Basketball: the French with Russia at the Euro

This Monday, March 8, International Women's Rights Day, the drawing of lots for the European Women's Basketball Championship took place.

Scheduled from June 17 to 27, 2021, i.e. just a few weeks before the Tokyo Games, it is jointly organized by Spain and France.

"We hope that it can take place under more or less normal conditions with a little audience in the theaters", wishes Jean-Pierre Suitat, the president of the French federation.

The French team of Valérie Garnier, vice-champion of Europe, is lagging behind… Spain will initially play in Group D with Russia, the Czech Republic and Croatia.

“Russia, it has been a long time since we played against it: it is the unknown of the group.

It's a team with tall players and that makes them a serious candidate.

The Czech Republic and Croatia will also be complicated opponents, ”warns Valérie Garnier, the Blue coach.

Draw made for our

blues

on March 8 👍

GROUP D:

FRANCE 🇫🇷

RUSSIA 🇷🇺

CZECH REPUBLIC 🇨🇿

CROATIA 🇭🇷 @ EuroBasketWomen @FRABasketball pic.twitter.com/4MXSKva9Xl

- Jean-Pierre SIUTAT (@jpsiutat) March 8, 2021

In case of qualification, France would later cross with Group C in the quarter-finals.

This is where the tournament will become complicated with immediate sanction: “Bosnia, Slovenia, Turkey with their tough basketball and Belgium which is a strong nation will be on our way to the quarterfinals if all goes well.

We will have to finish first in our group if we want to have the best chances for the future, ”adds Valérie Garnier.

“The objective is first of all to take the matches one by one, but our ambitions are very strong.

The quarter-final will be a key moment.

We want to go to the end like Serbia, Belgium or Spain.

So much for me, the four favorites of the competition, ”continues the boss of the Blue.

France will play its first matches in Strasbourg

France has ranked second in the last four editions of the Euro in 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2019. The French have been crowned twice in 2001, twenty years ago, then in 2009. Since the announcement of a co-organization, which took place in 2019, the wing of the Women's Euro 2021 has been reduced.

The Covid then went through there.

Initially, France was to host the final phase (the semi-finals, the small final and the final) in addition to part of the group stage and the quarterfinals.

The full draw of the @ EuroBasketWomen ⬇ pic.twitter.com/yr3nv8fryN

- French Basketball Teams ⛹️‍♂️⛹️‍♀️ (@FRABasketball) March 8, 2021

But the French Federation gave up in 2020, focusing on the group stage and quarterfinals and ceding the organization of the last part of the tournament to its Spanish counterpart and more specifically to the city of Valencia.

"It will be necessary to show adaptation to the health situation if we want to succeed in this Euro, thinks Valérie Garnier.

Of course we hope to have a bit of an audience behind us in Strasbourg.

But we still don't know anything about it at this time.

"

The French will stay in Strasbourg for the group stage, then for the quarter-finals, before going to the south-east of Spain in case of qualification for the last four, which they have not left since the last six editions of the Euro.