The Rwanda Basketball federation (Ferwaba) has dismissed rumours that national team head coach Cheikh Sarr will be leaving his position soon. A recent article published by BasketSenegal.com, a sports website from his home country (Senegal) linked him to a return to their women’s national team next year. The report added that he has already been approached by relevant officials in this regard. However, speaking to Times Sports, Desire Mugwiza, Ferwaba President said Sarr is still under contract with the national team, and there is a long term plan to keep him as the head coach. “He is still under contract with the federation and we have a long-term plan for him,” he said. Sarr took over the head coach duties of the national in March 2021, and has been in charge of a number of games, key of which were in the Afrobasket 2021 tournament that took place between August and September in Kigali. During the tournament, Sarr’s team put up memorable performances, beating Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo to proceed out of the group stages, before being edged 72-68 by Guinea in the quarterfinals. Sarr is an experienced tactician who has served as head coach of both the men and women’s basketball teams of Senegal. During his tenure as head coach for Senegal women’s national team, he led them to the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in 2018. As head coach for the men’s team, Sarr led them to the second round of the FIBA men’s basketball world cup in 2014. Sarr holds a Ph.D in sports psychology and has served as a teacher and researcher in sports and physical activities at Gaston Berger University (UGB) Senegal. He also holds a master’s degree in sports management, from Alfred Lerner College, Delaware, USA. He is also one of the few FIBA instructors on the continent. He is a FIBA instructor and a coach that trains fellow coaches in regard to improving their skills. As an instructor, he has been assisting coaches in various parts of Africa, including Cameroon, Madagascar and Rwanda.
