Even before stepping foot on the floor for the Michigan women’s basketball team, incoming freshman guard Syla Swords will compete for an Olympics medal. On July 2, the Canadian women’s basketball team unveiled its lineup and announced that Swords will compete for the team at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Swords becomes the second Wolverine in program history to go to the Olympics. The only other athlete to compete on the Olympics stage was Krista Phillips, who also represented Canada though in the 2012 London Olympics.
“It’s an incredible accomplishment and opportunity for Syla to represent Canada in Paris,” Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico said in a statement to The Michigan Daily. “To be an Olympian at such a young age speaks volumes about the way she plays the game, the type of teammate she is and the impact she makes. We are so happy for her and her entire family.”
Swords not only made the team but made history with Team Canada, becoming the youngest player to ever compete at the Olympics on the women’s basketball team.
Although the youngest player on the roster, Swords has plenty of international competitive experience. Ahead of the 2024 Olympics, she played for the senior team in the FIBA Pre-Olympic Qualifying Tournament in 2023 and the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in 2024. She also played at the U17 and U19 World Cups for Canada at the junior level and played in the 2023 AmeriCup at the senior level.
At the FIBA U17 World Cup in 2022, Swords guided Team Canada to a fourth-place finish. But in 2023, she helped Canada claim the bronze medal at both the junior level U19 2023 FIBA World Cup and senior level 2023 AmeriCup team. She averaged 12.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.3 steals in 29.9 minutes per game with the World Cup team, securing an All-Tournament Second Team selection. She was also the youngest member of the Canadian AmeriCup team at the senior level.
In high school, Swords was a McDonald’s All-American and finished at No. 4 in the 2024 recruiting class according to ESPN. At Long Island Lutheran, she averaged 17.6 points, 7.5 rebounds, 5.1 assists and three steals per game as she was named the 2024 Gatorade New York Girls Basketball Player of the Year and 2024 New York MaxPreps Player of the Year.
All of Swords’ high school experience paved the way for an extensive international career that ultimately landed her a spot on Canada’s 2024 Paris Olympics roster and Michigan’s roster as well.
Early in her career, Swords already has a plethora of experience when combining her high school and international team competition. And now, competing at the Olympics Games will give Swords an extra unparalleled experience ahead of her collegiate career with the Wolverines.
The post Syla Swords selected for Canadian team at 2024 Paris Olympics appeared first on The Michigan Daily.
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