THE men’s national basketball team left for Madagascar this morning to compete in the 26th edition of the Fiba Africa Championships scheduled to begin on August 17.

The team left aboard Kenya airways.

Before departure, head coach Vaceslav Kavedzija told Times Sport that he expects a strong performance from his lads.

"Our goal is to qualify for the Olympic Games in London. It is never easy but we shall fight to the end,” he said.

"The beauty of this lot is that they are determined and focused,” Kavedzija added.

Rwanda is in group D alongside Tunisia, Togo and Central African Republic (CAR). Hosts Madagascar are drawn in group A alongside Mozambique, Nigeria and Mali; defending champions Angola, Chad, Morocco and Senegal are in Group B while group C pits Ivory Coast against South Africa, Cameroon and Egypt.

The winner will automatically secure a ticket to London come 2012.

Rwanda qualified for the tournament after lifting the Zone V title back in February.

National team: Aristide Mugabe, Jean Louis Habineza, Kami Kabange, Ellis Kayijuka, Cameron Bradley, Hamza Ruhezamihigo, Robert Thomson, Kenneth Gasana, Daniel Manzi, Aboubacar Barame , Mathieu Miller and Olivier Muhizi.

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