Gliders to Face USA Ahead of Make or Break Back-End to 2019

The Australian Gliders will face the USA in a six match series in Canberra starting this weekend with a squad boasting a significant representation of WAIS program athletes.

Over 35% of the national squad train in Perth as members of coach Brad Ness’ WAIS Wheelchair Basketball Program.

Of those six members, both Amber Merritt and Sarah Vinci hold Paralympic experience, whilst two (Mary Friday and Taishar Ovens) were members of the recent Australian U25 squad that won a silver medal at the World Championships in Thailand.

The list also includes Georgia Inglis and Natalie Alexander. Inglis has been one of the star performers in this year’s national women’s wheelchair basketball league, whilst Alexander has become a regular member of Gliders’ camps in recent times.

Whilst the series with the USA will give the Gliders invaluable match practise against one of the world’s best teams, the significance is also broader, in that this camp will help to determine the team that travels to Tokyo in August for an international series that will provide a crucial preparation phase for their Paralympic qualification tournament that follows in November.

The Gliders’ will compete at the Mitsubishi Electric Cup in Tokyo, but their opportunity to compete at next year’s Paralympic Games will be governed by their success in attempting to secure qualification at the 2019 AOZ Championships, which will be held in Pattaya, Thailand in November.

This tournament will definitively determine which countries from Asia and Oceania gain qualification for next year’s Games. Japan are already guaranteed as hosts, meaning two other spots are up for grabs. China and Australia – on current rankings – are favourites to fill those spots.

The six match series with the USA in Canberra runs from June 28 to July 4.