Princeton University Athletics
Women's Basketball to Travel to France & Africa
July 22, 2011 | Women's Basketball
The Princeton women's basketball team is set for an 11-day international trip this September to visit France and Africa.
The team departs on September 1 for Paris, France, where it will spend four nights in the City of Lights. On September 5, the team departs for Dakar, Senegal for six nights in the west African country. The Tigers bid adieu to Senegal on September 11 to return to the U.S.
The team will have a full time local tour director as it takes part in sightseeing tours and excursions, playing games against both the French and Senegalese national teams, hosting basketball clinics and partaking in service projects.
"It is an unbelievably exciting time for our entire women's program, as we finalize all preparations for our overseas trip to France and Senegal," head coach Courtney Banghart said. "We chose these two countries for a variety of reasons: the competitive basketball traditions, the cultural learning opportunities, and our desire to perform community outreach while abroad. There is no limit to the growth a trip of this caliber encourages and all Tigers are eager to get underway. We'd like to thank The Friends of Princeton Basketball for their vision and support in funding this trip- it is the first step on our quest for another Ivy Championship!"
The planning has been going on for quite some time, but it all came to fruition during the 2010-11 academic year. In May, the team met with University Health Services to go over precautions, such as safe drinking water and food, mosquito repellents for skin and clothing. Every member of the team has gotten the required inoculations, including yellow fever, typhoid and others. And of course passports have been applied for and received.
The NCAA allows foreign travel every four years and at Princeton those trips are funded by the Friends Groups. The following is a list of Princeton teams that have traveled abroad since 2000.
Men's Basketball - Spain 2001Women's Basketball - Scandinavia 2005
Field Hockey - Argentina 2007
Men's Hockey - England 2002
Women's Hockey - Germany, Switzerland, France 1999-00; Germany & Czech Republic 2003-04
Men's Lacrosse - Ireland & Spain 2008
Women's Lacrosse - Australia 2005 & 2008
Women's Soccer - Germany 2004
Squash - Egypt 2009
Track & Field - Greece, 2011; China 2007
Women's Volleyball - Brazil 2008
Tennis - France 2002, 2006 & 2010