Two female basketball players from Mali got physical with each other on Monday after their loss to Serbia at the ongoing Women’s Basketball World Cup.
The fight happened at the post-match press area after the team was defeated 81-68 by Serbia.
The players involved were Salimatou Kourouma and Kamite Elisabeth Dabou.
Reacting to the incident, the Federation of International Basketball Associations (FIBA) said it had opened investigation.
“Following the incident, FIBA has opened an investigation. Once the investigation is concluded, FIBA will decide on any applicable disciplinary measures,” it said in a statement.
FIBA had in June invited Mali to replace Nigeria at the tournament in view of its position as the next ranked team from Group B of the qualifiers.
Nigeria’s D’Tigress qualified for the global event at the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup Qualifying Tournament held at Belgrade, Serbia in February.
But in May, Nigeria’s Federal Government said it was withdrawing Nigerian teams from international competitions for a period of two years as a result of the protracted leadership crisis in the Nigeria Basketball Federation. The ban was later lifted.
