April 14, 2016 By Sahr Morris Jr.
Sierra Leone beach volleyball players and coach have said they are ready to face the continent’s best for a place in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the CAVB Beach Volleyball Continental Cup.
With the tournament set to kick-start today (Thursday) in Abuja, Nigeria, the four players, after they concluded their last training session in Nigeria under the close watch of coach Sorie Kamara, expressed confidence they can secure the winners spot and earn a berth in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
“We are more than ready for the competition, which is expected to be a good and exciting one for us,” Zaniab Kamara said. “We know as players that we are in a critical or decisive stage of the competition, so we need to focus on game by game and see what comes out of the matches.”
The Sierra Leone coach, Sorie Kamara, who guided the ladies to this stage, remains upbeat that the ladies would put up a strong fight against their opponents in Pool B
“I believe they can do the job if they play hard,” says coach Kamara after their second training yesterday morning.
The four Sierra Leonean players are: Fatmata Binta Bah, who will partner with Aminata Kadiatu Turay, while captain Frances Lansana will partner with Zainab Kamara.
Sierra Leone will face Rwanda, Kenya, Morocco, Ghana and Namibia in Pool B, while Pool A includes Mozambique, Mauritius, Egypt, Gambia, Burkina Faso and host Nigeria.
Teams will play every other country in their pool with the top two sides qualifying for the semifinal. The third and fourth teams will play for the 5 to 8 places, while the 5th and 6th ranked teams play for the 9 to 12 places.
The eventual champions will be the second nation to qualify for the beach volleyball tournament, which is set to take place in Rio de Janeiro’s iconic Copacabana beach.
The second and third placed teams from the CAVB Beach Volleyball Continental Cup will qualify for the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Continental Cup, where the winners and runners-up will earn the final two berths to Rio 2016.