- Basketball enthusiasts quick to react to Opals defeat
- Liz Cambage suspended for alleged racial remarks
- She became a trending topic on X as the Opals fell to Nigeria
Sports enthusiasts wasted no time in expressing their discontent towards former Australian basketball player Liz Cambage following her alleged racist comments directed at Nigerian players. This occurred shortly after Nigeria’s unexpected victory against the Opals.
The Australian women’s Olympic team is facing challenges in Paris, having suffered a surprising 75-62 defeat to Nigeria, ranked third in their opening pool match on Monday.
Social media users on X quickly turned their ire towards Cambage, who had previously been accused of calling Nigerian players ‘monkey’ during a heated friendly match prior to the Tokyo Games in 2021.
At 32, Cambage has been barred from selection for the Australian team but continues to play professionally. She recently completed a lucrative three-month contract with the Chinese Sichuan Yuanda women’s team in Chengdu.
Despite not having played for the Opals since three years ago, Cambage was trending on X shortly after the loss.
‘Nigeria defeating Australia in women’s basketball is sweet payback,’ one user tweeted.
‘Good for them, especially after all they’ve been through and the mess Liz Cambage created.’
Another commentator remarked: ‘Do you all remember when Liz Cambage called a Nigerian player a monkey while playing for Australia?’
Basketball fans swiftly criticized former Australian player Liz Cambage for her alleged racist comments against Nigerian players after the Opals’ opening loss in the Olympics.
‘This is a delicious dose of karma/payback from the Liz Cambage incident,’ another user tweeted.
‘I know Liz Cambage is feeling frustrated right now,’ commented another user, adding to the conversation.
‘I hope Liz Cambage is having a terrible day,’ expressed another X user.
‘AND F*** LIZ CAMBAGE’ was another blunt remark.
Cambage dramatically distanced herself from the Opals leading up to the Tokyo Games in 2021, despite denying ever calling Nigerian players ‘monkey’ or telling them to ‘go back to your own third world country’ during the contentious warm-up match.
Her departure caused significant instability for the Opals, who had previously won medals in five consecutive Games but faced elimination in the quarter-finals in Tokyo.
Following an investigation, Cambage received a formal reprimand from Basketball Australia.
In 2022, former Opals captain Jenna O’Hea confirmed that the allegations against Cambage were ‘100 percent’ accurate.
Social media users quickly responded to Cambage after Nigeria achieved a surprise victory against the Opals.
Some users on X were quite direct in their criticisms towards Cambage regarding her alleged comments.
Opals coach Sandy Brondello later remarked that Cambage would not be considered for future selections, citing that she was ‘too much hard work.’
‘In the Opals program, you need to align with our culture. Liz contributed greatly to the Opals, but toward the end, it was too demanding, and we don’t need that,’ Brondello stated.
‘We have limited time together, and one player shouldn’t dominate the team dynamics.’
In response to her ban, Cambage accused Opals coaches and players of making racist and ‘inappropriate’ remarks towards her while continuing to deny the allegations against her.
Elizabeth Balogun and Adebola Adeyeye of Team Nigeria celebrate their victory against the Opals during their Olympic opening.
The opening loss by the Opals at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille puts them in a difficult position to advance beyond the group stage.
Despite a promising start against the D’Tigresses, the Opals faltered significantly in the second and fourth quarters.
Nigeria’s Ezinne Kalu led her 12th ranked team to a convincing victory over the third ranked Australians.
Australia committed 16 turnovers compared to Nigeria’s eight in the first half alone.
The Opals will next face world number five Canada in their upcoming Group B match on Thursday, followed by a showdown against the hosts France, who earned the bronze medal in Tokyo, next Monday.
Australia must secure a top-two finish in their group to qualify for the quarter-finals.
