Paris 2024: How Rena Wakama made history with D’Tigress

BY ARUKAINO UMUKORO

Her Instagram bio simply reads, “Head Coach of Nigerian Women’s National Team, Tulane (University) WBB (Women Basketball) Assistant (coach).”

But the former Nigerian professional basketball player is actually more.

She is the first female coach to win an Afrobasket title.

She is the first coach to lead Nigeria to victory against a top-ranked team (Australia) at the Olympics. 

She is the first coach to lead an African basketball team to two wins in a single Olympic tournament.

She is the first coach to lead an African basketball team (male or female) to the quarter-final of the Olympic Games.

She is Rena Wakama. 

Nigeria’s Rena of the House Wakama. The first of her name. Queen of the D’Tigress. The Khaleesi of the great African basketball team. The breaker of Olympic chains. The history maker. 

Born to Nigerian parents in North Carolina, Wakama, who hails from Rivers state in the oil-rich Niger Delta region, chose her home country after college in the US when she first represented Nigeria at the 2015 Women’s Afrobasket tournament in Cameroon. Nigeria finished third.

She also played for the First Bank of Nigeria team at the FIBA Africa Champions Cup for Women.

And since she took over as coach of D’Tigress in June 2023 on a two-year contract, the 32-year-old seems to be chasing record-breaking moments like a moth to a flame.

Long before the Olympics flame was lit in Paris, Wakama had already set her target. 

Just a month after her appointment as coach, she led the Nigerian female basketball team to the Women’s Afrobasket title in Kigali, Rwanda, thus making history as the first female coach to win the tournament since its inception in 1966.

On Sunday, August 4 in Lille, France, Wakama and her spectacular D’Tigress team made history as she led Nigeria’s women’s basketball team to a 79-70 victory against Canada to qualify for the quarter-finals of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Before Wakama and Nigeria’s D’Tigress, African Women (basketball) teams had a total of only 1 win over 37 games in the Olympics.

With D’Tigress’ wins against Australia and Canada, Wakama has, in a matter of days, achieved what African male and female basketball teams could not do in decades.

On July 29, the Nigerian senior female basketball team recorded its first Olympic win in 20 years, with a 75-62 win over favourites Australia, in their first Group match in Lille, France.

In their second game at the 2024 Paris Olympics, against host France, the Nigerian team lost 75-54. 

That loss was the extra motivation Wakama and her team needed to go for another win. And they did.

“I am glad we did have that loss because we were able to get back to what we do best. Also, there’s no pressure now on us and we have shown everyone that we deserve to be playing here,” she said after the historic win against the Canadians.

The way and manner of the victory was even sweeter. Wakama’s D’Tigress ate points like a sumptuous breakfast at each quarter of the game. They outscored Canada 23-5 in the third quarter and eventually rode to a deserved 79-70 victory against a team that came into the Olympics ranked fifth in the world.

Fluke? What fluke. It was a statement of intent. Fortune favours the bold. 

“When we are focused on something, and when we all come together, we are powerful. Our whole team, support staff, and coaches, we have the same mindset – a winning mindset,” said an emotional Wakama after the win against Canada on Sunday.

“I hope young girls are watching this. I wanted to be the first, but I don’t want to be the last. If we invest in Africa, we are capable of doing really amazing things. We have to put some eyes on Africa and develop the game there and it starts with grassroots. it will make the game so much better.”

She added: “It’s surreal and I don’t think it’s going to hit me yet for another couple of hours. I am proud of my girls, and I have pushed them so hard. I have pushed them harder than anyone can even imagine. It’s because I know what they can do; and we did that today and we showed them who we are.

“It’s about every little detail and I make them start over (if not done right), I make them do everything right for these reasons. So, in crunch time and in pressure situations, we can execute when our backs are up against the wall.”

“I mean… trust the process, keep fighting, keep pushing, I have always been a fighter growing up. You tell me I can’t do something, and I am going to tell you that I can,” Wakama, who has a US bachelor’s degree in therapeutic recreation and an MBA, added.

Indeed, fortune favours the bold and the brave. And when they take to the field or lead the charge, they conquer time, break borders and make history.

Nigeria, Africa, stand up for the queen of basketball and her team of amazons.

Congratulations, Rena Wakama. Congratulations, D’Tigress!

This article was originally published on Africa Interviews and republished here with permission