Rwanda 3x3 basketball team skipper Steven Hagumintwari has said that a ticket to the FIBA 3x3 World Cup is all that he and his teammates will be looking for during the highly-anticipated qualifiers slated for May 6-7 in Israel.

Rwanda impressed at the FIBA 3x3 Africa Cup 2022 held in Cairo, Egypt, in December last year after grabbing a third-place finish following a 21-17 victory over Tunisia to win a bronze medal.

It was the first medal the country has ever won in the FIBA 3x3 Africa Cup.

ALSO READ: Rwanda wins Bronze at FIBA 3x3 Africa Cup 2022

Now pooled in Group B at the qualifiers, alongside Asian giants China and Caribbean nation Trinidad and Tobago, Moise Mutokambali’s men have now shifted focus on making yet another history in Israel with a dream to qualify for the FIBA 3x3 World Cup.

"We always set the target high, and we want to get a ticket of World cup. But it starts with getting some wins and qualifying World cup,” Hagumintwari told Times Sport.

"It will require us everything. We have to be ready mentally, physically and put all our hearts into it."

ALSO READ: Rwanda ready for FIBA 3x3 World Cup Qualifier 2023, Mutokambali

The team skipper said that the long-awaited qualifying event comes at a time the group spent days training together and rallied everyone in the team to compete not just for Rwanda but also for the continent.

"The message is simple: let’s go out there to compete and show the world that Africa has got talent," he noted.

Hagumintwari’s teammate Jean Jacques Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza is also confident that Rwanda can go out there and show the world how far they gave gone in the game.

"FIBA 3x3 World Cup Qualifier is a great opportunity for the country as a whole. It’s where you witness the best of the game at a high level which gives people a reason to love the game,” he said.

"As a team, we will also need to show that our national team is at a high level," he said.

The team will depart the country for the qualifiers on Thursday, May 4.

Provisional roster

Olivier Tutatsinze, Patrick Ngabonziza, Justin Uwitonze, Jean Jack Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza.

Others are Dieudonnee Ndizeye Ndayisaba, Steven Hagumintwari, Victoire Mutabaruka, Thierry Nkundwa and Mike Mugalu Lukwanga.