(Submitted Photo/Paige Crozon)

By Ben Tompkins

Olympic Qualifying Berth

Humboldt native focused on booking trip to Paris after back-to-back world championships

Oct 30, 2023 | 6:06 PM

It has been just over a month since Paige Crozon won her second consecutive gold medal on the Women’s FIBA 3×3 circuit, in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

For the Humboldt native, that fact still hasn’t fully sunk in and that may be because she’s not thinking too much about the past, but rather looking ahead to the future.

To be fair, it’s also not the easiest thing to enjoy being at the pinnacle of your game when you spend the next two weeks going to bed at 7 p.m., just trying to recover from the worldwide travel of the past five months.

“It was amazing but definitely took a toll on all of us, and now, two weeks later, we’re already back in the swing of training, because obviously, we have our sights set on the Olympics,” Crozon told northeastNOW.

“So, we’re trying to find those moments to kind of reflect on the entire year and what we were able to accomplish with it, but also still very focused and looking forward to Paris 2024.”

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The 2024 Paris Olympics will mark the second time 3×3 basketball is an event, as it was first introduced back in 2021 for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Despite winning back-to-back world titles, Canada was unable to qualify through the circuit, as they simply didn’t compete in enough stops.

USA, China, and France had many teams that were playing throughout the summer, which gave them enough points to book their ticket to Paris.

Canada will now join the 16 next-best teams in qualifiers in May and June, as they battle for three additional Olympic spots.

Another mini-qualifier will also be held for an additional team to earn a berth, while the eighth and final spot is reserved for the host team (if the host has already qualified, FIBA will give the spot to a team that hasn’t played in the last three Olympic-cycles of 5×5).

“It’s kind of a confusing and interesting system, obviously, I think they’re still, with it being a new sport, figuring out the best way to have a qualification process, but that’s where it stands right now,” Crozon added.

“I think our approach stays the same, we want to push ourselves to be in the best position to qualify and be successful, so we’ve all committed ourselves to doing whatever it takes to elevate our individual games as well as become better as a team. We always have high expectations for ourselves as a group and we want to maintain that over the next year.”

With Team Canada having to go the long route to earn their berth in the Olympics, regardless of finishing as the best team these past two years, Crozon is hopeful for some added support soon.

She expects her country’s success and attention might get more women involved in the game and grow the depth of talent for international competitions.

“I think the game is going to continue to evolve and grow, which is a great thing, and hopefully we can continue to get more Canadian athletes and students playing 3×3 at the international level. I think it has to start at the grassroots level with development and the opportunity to play 3×3 and then it will build to the international stage,” Crozon explained.

“I think we all play the sport because we genuinely love it and are passionate about it and have so much fun while we’re out there. I think that shows and I think in doing so and having this platform and sharing our stories we hope to empower girls in all sports and continue to advocate and grow the game of 3×3 across the country.”

Crozon and her group will have exhibition matches planned out throughout the winter to stay prepped and ready for the qualifiers.

The 28-year-old, who is coming off the game-winning, buzzer-beating shot during the 3×3 finals, which earned her Sask Sport’s athlete of the month in September, is hoping that confidence will continue all the way through.

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Ben.Tompkins@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter @BenTompkins_8