Injury blow for Brazilian basketball
Wednesday, 30 July 2008 14:38Brazil centre Erika de Souza will miss the Olympic Games due to injury.
Brazil national coach Paulo Bassul revealed that the Atlanta Dream player has pulled out of the squad after injuring her right leg during a WNBA game against the New York Liberty on Sunday.
'I am disappointed with her absence because we will miss a key player in our tactical scheme,' said Bassul on the Brazilian Basketball Confederation's official website.
'Now we must find the way to build a strong squad for the Olympics.'
Graziane Coelho, who plays for Hungarian side Mizo Pecs, has been confirmed as De Souza's replacement for Beijing.
'Grazi is totally used to our system in the national team and she will certainly contribute to our team,' Bassul explained.
Most of the team are currently in Sydney for warm-up friendlies against Australia.
Centre Kelly Santos is playing in the WNBA for Seattle Storm before joining the squad in Beijing while forward Micaela is recovering from a right leg knock.
Brazil qualified for the Olympics by winning the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Madrid last month with a 72-67 win over Cuba in their final.
