Paris (AFP) – France basketball star Victor Wembanyama said Saturday’s Olympic final in Paris represents a “once-in-a-lifetime” chance to win gold at home. The hosts returned to the final for the second straight Olympics after defeating Germany 73-69 on Thursday, and will take on the United States or Serbia for the title. France have never won gold — settling for silver on three occasions in 1948, 2000 and at the pandemic-delayed Tokyo 2020 Games. They again find themselves potentially 40 minutes from a coveted crown, with Wembanyama key to their hopes.
“It’s a chance to write history even more,” said the 20-year-old Wembanyama, last year’s top pick in the NBA draft. The San Antonio Spurs centre enjoyed a fine debut season, winning the rookie of the year award, but is fully focused on leading his country to glory in Paris. “Of course, (it’s) some part of a dream come true. Big part of a goal we set ourselves months back,” he said. “Definitely a once-in-a-lifetime goal. Maybe nobody can reproduce that, so we have got to take our chance.”
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France has produced the first player taken in each of the past two NBA drafts. Zacharie Risacher went to the Atlanta Hawks in June, with Alex Sarr selected second by the Washington Wizards. Les Bleus have benefited from huge support in both Lille — for the group stage — and Paris, which Wembanyama said had left him feeling emotional.
“Incredible, incredible moment. The fans made it hard for me not to cry,” he said after scoring 11 points in the win over Germany. “I thank them for being as they are and for enjoying it as much as they do – this chance, this thing that we’re all living. The national team, this jersey brings to us that different energy we can’t find anywhere else, and we can see it, how intense we’ve been the last two games. It’s something that we all feel.”
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