Rachid Meziane, looking back, is there still a bitter taste after missing out on an Olympic medal?
“No, the page has turned. We all have our eyes fixed on new objectives. Our mission now is to qualify for Euro 2025. I think that the group has nevertheless emerged from this Olympic experience stronger. Overall, that It’s still a very good result to finish among the four best teams on the planet in the biggest competition in the world. Even if there was obviously some bitterness at the time, which is normal because we remain competitors. with our heads held high and not letting ourselves be consumed by emotions that would drag us down. The players have all returned to their club since then and that helped turn the switch.”
There will be no room for error this week against Lithuania and Poland.
“After being surprised by Poland in the opening match of Euro qualifying (62-67 at Lotto Arena on November 8, 2023)we know that our chances of qualifying will depend on two victories during this new international window. The mission is therefore clear. There is a certain pressure, because we don’t really have any margin for error.”
This Thursday, you welcome Lithuania to the Sportpaleis in Antwerp, a place that brings back good memories.
“Indeed, that’s where we qualified for the Olympics in February thanks to our victories against Nigeria and Senegal. There was also this historic match against the United States (Editor’s note: attendance record for a women’s match in Belgium with 13,700 spectators). It was above all the atmosphere and the atmosphere that had marked us. During the Olympic Games too, Belgian supporters responded. We know it’s a festive crowd. And we can’t wait to relive this kind of moment. I think girls also need to find this atmosphere again. I hope this will push us towards victory against Lithuania. You will have to be careful because the Lithuanian selection has players who do not necessarily play in major teams in Europe, but they are all capable of scoring. We should therefore not let them express themselves. It’s up to us to put a defensive game plan in place for this. They have an interior sector which is quite solid too, with tall players. On positions 3-4-5, it’s quite dense. But if we manage to play our game, we will be the favorites.”
Compared to the Olympic Games team, we will have to deal with several absentees (Antonia Delaere, Bethy Mununga and Laure Resimont are injured).
“In relation to its impact in our system, Antonia’s package (shoulder surgery) is of course detrimental for us. She is an important player on our team. The profile of a player like Bethy Mununga could also have brought us a lot, through her physical density and her solidity in the rebounding sector. We will have to find alternatives. But today, we have young players like Ine Joris or Nastja Claessens who have gone to explore the Spanish championship. For them, these experiences are ways to really improve their skills, while being confronted with greater adversity than what they experienced in Belgium. Before, we could observe a gap between what they experienced in the club and in the national team. We realized that these were girls who couldn’t express themselves because the intensity was greater. Today, this gap is decreasing. It was important for us that these players grew up, because they are also the future of the Belgian national team. I hope they have become more seasoned and will be able to show it this Thursday.”
gullThere was an Elise Ramette before the Games, and another after the Games.
A bit like the emergence of Elise Ramette during the Games?
“I think there was an Elise Ramette before the Games and another after the Games. I hope she will be able to repeat that. But we see it in the club too: she has more confidence in her game, she plays with much more confidence. Her performances at the Games have allowed her to have better self-esteem and make her better. Sometimes, you just need to have a little more self-confidence to improve yourself. Individually, she was the biggest improvement on the team this summer.”
After her withdrawal from the Olympics and her transfer to Fenerbahçe, Julie Allemand confides: “I forced myself to watch the Cats at the Games”
Will the return of Julie Allemand also change the situation?
“As I have always said, it would be disrespectful to Julie Allemand to say that we did not miss her at the Olympics. She is our starting point guard. When we know the level of relationship in the game that she can have with Emma Meesseman, with whom she now plays in club at Fenerbahçe, but with other players too, obviously, it was a detrimental absence Her return is obviously very positive for us We can already see it in the intensity. , in the tempo that we can put in the game, she is someone who is capable of making the difference. Her return also allows us to have alternatives, in particular by placing Julie Vanloo a little more on position 2, where she feels best.”
This summer, you were cited in Türkiye to coach the Mersin club. Was it concrete?
“Yes. To be transparent, there had already been contacts well before this summer. There was a serious contact, but which did not materialize. I was still under contract with the Villeneuve-d’Ascq club and I preferred to respect my commitments Maybe it will be postponed, I hope so in any case. Mersin is also a team which has participated in the last four Final Four. Euroleague. It’s a big club in Europe, as a competitor, we want to give ourselves more resources to try to win big trophies. Maybe that will come later, or maybe not. a coach’s career sometimes remains uncertain.”
