Fitness key for Fiji 3x3 women at Youth Olympics

The Fiji Basketball 3x3 wom­en's team is focused on im­proving fitness ahead of its campaign at the Youth Olympic Games next month.

This was the gist of head coach Earl Hughes' interview with SUNsports yesterday.

"3x3 is a physically demanding sport in any age group," he said.

"Preparation has been good and we've been preparing for about four weeks on the court."

Hughes indicated that overseas ­based player Zara Suka will join the team on October 4.

"She's going to be the rock that comes through and helps us defen­sively and offensively," he said.

"The girls that have been select­ed are very competitive, and they showed this in the previous second­ary school tournament when they represented their own teams," he said.

"They carried their teams; they got that attitude and a strong ability; so we're happy with that."

He added that his young four-mem­ber team will take every opportunity when they take the court.

"We'll let the results come through by taking these opportunities, and they are excited to represent Fiji for the first time at the Youth Olympics," he said.

"They're determined and are ready to go."

Hughes described his players as en­thusiastic and adaptable athletes.

"They're very good at getting feed­back and are just willing to learn and progress," he said.

"They make mistakes, but it's all about learning, and they're starting to play as a team despite being from different teams."

Hughes was optimistic about the team's chances due to their talent and speed on the court.

FIJI'S 3x3 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM

• Nyssa Daunivalu
• Anasofaia Maiwiriwiri
• Makaefa Savu
• Zara Suka