The Australian women’s basketball team have qualified for the Olympics for the 10th time after thumping Germany 85-52, but legend Lauren Jackson will not join them in Paris.
Contesting the FIBA qualifying tournament in Belém, Brazil, the Opals confirmed they would compete in Paris after setting up their win with a commanding 54-24 first half on Sunday AEDT.
In a more authoritative performance than Friday’s nervy 60-55 escape against hosts Brazil, all 12 Opals got on the scoreboard against Germany, led by captain Tess Madgen’s 15 points.
Jackson, who was used sparingly against Brazil, scored nine points after coming off the bench in the first quarter.
Having come out of retirement, the 42-year-old appeared set to be selected for her fifth Olympics and first since the 2012 London Games, but revealed in a post-game interview she would not.
An on-court interview asked her about the Opals going to another Games, and she replied: “Not for me, no. I’m done.”
“When I say this has been a privilege, I mean it,” she later wrote on Instagram.
“I love these girls so much.”
Regarded as one of the greatest basketballers of all time, Jackson has won three Olympic silver medals (2000, 2004 and 2008), and a bronze (2012) with the Opals.
She retired from basketball before the Rio Olympics in 2016. She made a comeback in 2022, before a torn Achilles looked set to end her career, but she once again bounced back to help the Opals book their ticket to France.
In the qualifying game against Germany, she had an immediate impact, dishing a sizzling assist to Ezi Magbegor, before knocking down a three-pointer.
Jackson’s seven-point opening term helped the Opals seize control of the game.
Fellow veteran Bec Allen added 10 points, as did 19-year-old Isobel Borlase in an impressive Opals debut.
“Our first half wasn’t perfect, but we were locked in,” Opals coach Sandy Brondello said.
“We knew we’d be qualifying for Paris if we won tonight. Happy to get that behind us.”
The Opals’ last game in the Olympic qualifying tournament is against world number 10 Serbia on Monday AEDT.
They are chasing their sixth Olympic medal in Paris, having reached the podium in five consecutive Games between 1996 and 2012.
AAP/ABC
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