The Basketball Africa League continues to be a game changer on the African continent, using its different programs to increase the number of women in sports leadership roles in basketball. The organization announced its seventh cohort of mentees and mentors under its Mentorship Program.
The Mentors and Their Mentees
Laeticia Amihere, the Atlanta Dream and Canadian forward, was paired with Fatou Bintou Sima. Amihere will support Fatou Bintou throughout the program as she develops her basketball skills while balancing her academic life. This is a great opportunity for the young player to network with and learn from some of the finest athletes in the WNBA.
Ebony Hoffman, an assistant coach with the Seattle Storm, was paired with Aissata Maiga, a basketball coach with Mali Basketball Fédération. Hoffman played in the WNBA between 2004 and 2014 with the Indiana Fever and Los Angeles Sparks before retiring with the Connecticut Sun. She joined the Seattle Storm in 2022 and served as an assistant coach.
Dr. Tobi Owotomo, the Oklahoma City Thunder physical therapist and athletic trainer, was paired with Dr. Julia Akot, a medical doctor with the South Sudan Basketball Fédération. Dr. Tobi played varsity rugby at York University, where she studied kinesiology and health sciences and played on the Canadian U20 rugby team.
Allison Feaster, the vice president of team operations and organizational growth for the Boston Celtics in the NBA, was paired with Kaly Soro, a project manager with Omega Sports Holding from Côte d’Ivoire. Feaster played in the WNBA between 1998-2008. She played for teams: Los Angeles Sparks, Charlotte Sting and Indiana Fever.
Chrysa Chin, the executive vice president of strategic relations at the National Basketball Players Association (NBA), was matched with Manar Benessaidi, the sustainable development advisor to the Director General of the African Union. Chrysa heads and directs the implementation of player initiatives and innovative programs for NBA athletes. She also co-founded Behind the Bench, the National Basketball Wives Association, which brings together wives of NBA players to become active members of their communities as they engage in charitable activities and programs.
Aicha Diop, the director of marketing for the BAL, was matched with Carine Nishimwe, a communication strategist and project manager at Studio63Inc. Diop was recognized as one of the most influential women in sports by the African Sports Ventures Group (ASVG). She also has over fifteen years of experience in branding, strategy, digital and social marketing, and communication. She has also worked with organizations such as IBM, Flash Entertainment and Sorbonne.
Ashley Combs, the senior director of player marketing at Excel Sports Management, was matched with Zandile Yaze, a marketing and events specialist at the Leverage Corporation. In her role, Combs works with NBA athletes to support them in community outreach programs. She has worked closely with the San Antonio Spurs to help its players.
Ros Gold-Onwude, a sports broadcaster with ESPN, was paired with Onyinyechi Yinyeswit, a broadcast journalist at News Central Television. Gold-Onwude played basketball for Stanford College and represented Nigeria at the All-African Games. She has worked closely with media outlets like Turner Sports, where she covered the NBA games. She has also covered the NBA summer league for TNT and NBA TV and also worked with the Golden State Warriors as an NBC Sports Bay area sideline reporter.
BAL4HER Program
In collaboration with Speak Up Africa, the Basketball Africa League founded the women’s mentorship program under their departments BAL4HER and African LeadHERS. The program pairs promising young African women in sports with women executives in the sports industry. The goal of the program is to narrow the gap between a few women executives and the decision-making spaces in African sports. The mentees and mentors hold a series of workshops where they are immersed in learning, skill, knowledge attainment and create solutions for the growing body of women and girls athletes in Africa.
Impact of the Program
The program has had successful cohorts of mentees and mentors. The program’s mentors are women who have soared high in the sports industry to become role models and sometimes as trailblazers for young women in those fields. The program creates a space where women obtain the necessary skills to lead and impact their communities, clubs and national federations.
