South Sudan’s basketball team is on a mission to make their troubled young country proud after qualifying for the Olympics for the first time.
“Bigger than basketball,” their journey symbolizes hope and unity for a nation marred by years of conflict and hardship.
The players come from various parts of the world, including the United States, Australia, and Canada, with many having started their lives in refugee camps.
They know little about their country, as their parents fled during the Sudan conflict of 1983-2005, one of the longest civil wars on record, which eventually paved the way to South Sudan’s independence in 2011.
However, this “bunch of refugees,” as Wenyen Gabriel describes them, is determined to write one of the rare positive chapters in the history of the world’s youngest nation.
Just two years after the heady days of independence, South Sudan was plunged into its own catastrophic civil war from 2013-2018 that killed about 400,000 people and displaced millions.
Today, the country of about 11 million people is still plagued by political and ethnic violence, poverty, and corruption, as well as frequent natural calamities such as floods and drought.
“Whenever we put on that jersey, we know that we’re not just playing for ourselves,” captain Kuany Kuany told AFP in an interview in July during Olympic preparations in the Rwandan capital Kigali. “There’s a whole nation, a country behind us that is seeing us as a beacon of hope, to change the narrative and bring optimism and positivity back to the country.”
Gabriel, a 27-year-old who has played alongside NBA superstars, concurred. “There’s been a lot of things in the past, a lot of wars, a lot of darkness, but there’s a lot of brightness in the future. Our name is the ‘Bright Stars,’ and I think us representing our country in this light and us showing that we are all united is very important for our country, way deeper than basketball. And we want to build something great.”
The team was thrust into the international spotlight when they participated for the first time in the Basketball World Cup in August last year. Their journey through the tournament, with three victories in five matches in the Philippines, opened the door to the Olympics.
Only five athletes before them have competed at the Games under the flag of South Sudan. The Bright Stars’ performance in Manila proved their talent to the world and also to themselves.
“It was the first time ever that we’ve played against non-African teams… it went to show us that we really have what it takes,” said Kuany.
And in a warm-up match last weekend in London, they nearly delivered a stunning upset to the mighty US team, eventually losing by just one point (101-100).
As they head to the Paris Olympic Games, the Bright Stars are determined to shine and bring hope and pride to their homeland. Their journey is not just about basketball; it’s about uniting a nation and creating a brighter future for South Sudan.
