More than 50 of Australia’s most promising basketballers have arrived in Canberra as the 2023 National Performance Camp at Basketball Australia’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) kicks off today.
The three-day live-in camp provides these young athletes with a chance to refine and showcase their skills while also being given resources and pathways to help them reach their full potential.
Some of the names attending the camp include Mackay Basketball Association’s, Monique Bobongie, 6’6 centre from WA, Savannah Metcalfe, crafty Tasmanian guard, Nash Walker, and Roman Siulepa, who was named the MVP of the BWB Asia Camp last August.
Taking part in a series of both on-court and educational sessions, the athletes will also receive strength and conditioning and recovery education under the guidance of some of basketball’s leading high-performance coaches. This initiative has become a key component in the Australian basketball pathway for our nation’s most promising rising stars.
Spanning three decades, the National Performance Camp has showcased some of Australia’s biggest exports, including Lauren Jackson, Rebecca Allen, Patty Mills and Joe Ingles.
The athletes taking part in the camp were identified to participate after achieving outstanding performances at representative events such as Australian Junior Championships and State performance programs.
Director of High-Performance, Coach Development at Basketball Australia, Peter Lonergan, said he was looking forward to welcoming the young athletes to the Centre of Excellence today.
“Thanks to the hard work of the state and territory basketball associations and their respective performance programs, the calibre of talent that comes through brings so much depth and excitement, so I’m really looking forward to the next three days,” Lonergan said.
“This National Performance Camp not only allows them to train with one another, but we’re also able to provide more education around recovery and nutrition to help guide them as they strive to reach their potential,” he added.
Reiterating Lonergan’s sentiments, Centre of Excellence Women’s Head Coach, David Herbert, said he was eager to see the talented athletes walk through the doors on Monday, including 17-year-old Saffron Shiels and Queensland’s Monique Bobongie.
“The future of basketball is bright when you look at talent like Saffron. Standing at 6’2, she runs the point guard position and carries herself with confidence above her years, while Monique has already represented her country at the recent U16 FIBA Asian Championships and U17 FIBA World Cup in 2021,” Herbert said. T
he National Performance Camp kicks off on Monday 23 January and run until Wednesday 25.
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