SA Wheelchair Basketball team's difficult journey to Paralympics

To start the process, Wheelchair Basketball South Africa (WBSA) Director, Charles Saunders says they are using the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) southern region qualifiers to get ready for the elusive spot. 

The qualifiers take place at the Mandeville Sports Centre in Johannesburg from today until Monday, and Saunders has more on this difficult qualification process.

"The International Paralympic Committee has cut down the number of teams participating in the Paralympics, specifically within basketball," said Saunders.

"So, where we normally had the 12 teams, it's now cut down to eight teams, which makes things very, very difficult. So, what will take place is that the number one team in Africa will be featured at the Paralympic Games. 

"Because the Olympic charter identifies the four continental zones, there'll be four teams that will gain automatic qualification when they win their zone. 

"Thereafter, it's taken that there are another four places open, and teams that wish to be among those will participate in what is known as a repêchage tournament, which is basically another qualifying system, where the top four teams will then make up the eight teams in the Paralympics.

"So, we have to first win the continental games, which is known as the African Para Games, and once South Africa has qualified for that then the next move would be to go to the repêchage tournament, and see whether we can be another African team that qualifies."

SA have been pitted against Zambia and Angola, with only two nations set to emerge and represent the Southern Region at the Afro Para Games in Accra, Ghana, which is scheduled for September later this year.