Brave on home court – Emily Bessoir ahead of the Women’s Basketball World Cup

Ahead of the start of the Women’s Basketball World Cup on 4 September in Berlin, Emily Bessoir spoke to BLACKROLL® about her own journey to this point. From her desire to find her own vibe within a basketball family, to her time at UCLA in California, right through to the athletes’ boat at the Olympic opening ceremony in Paris: she has repeatedly shown great courage along the way. In this interview, Emily explains how she has grown through the challenges she has faced and why courage will be crucial for her at the home World Cup.

Emily’s journey: family, living abroad and stepping out of her comfort zone

For as long as Emily can remember, her family’s life has revolved around basketball. Thanks to her parents, she practically grew up with the big orange ball in her hands.

“To be honest, I didn’t want to play basketball at all when I was younger. I always wanted to do something different from my parents and my brother.”

As a child, she used to watch her parents play in the hall; today, her whole family never misses one of her matches.

“When they come up to me after the games, I still don’t want to hear your comments, even though, unfortunately, you’re often right!” (laughs).

“This is much bigger than I ever thought.”

Emily is putting more and more time into the basketball hall; her teammates are becoming close friends. She stays on longer after Training and takes extra shots. The ball goes through the net more and more often, and everything revolves around the next match. Then it all happens very quickly: “When I was first selected for the national team at the age of 13, I realised: this could turn into something really big. It’s much bigger than I ever imagined!”

Big Steps Overseas: UCLA

At the age of 18, Emily packed her bag and boarded a flight to California to make her dream of playing professional basketball come true. The country and culture were familiar to her; her dad was born in America. It was clear to her from an early age that she wanted to go to college in America, to study alongside playing sport at the highest level. “Sport and education are so closely linked there. The facilities are top-notch – only the most recent and best training equipment, the staff around you – everything is of the highest standard. As a college athlete in America, you’re already a star. You’re valued differently than in Germany.”

A whole new life, one day at a time. Living independently is part of everyday life; there’s no one to run the household. Emily is learning to take care of everything herself and has been out of her comfort zone for months.

For many in the national team, a spell abroad is the norm. In the professional leagues – particularly at college and later in the WNBA – players can turn basketball into a career.

Courage, self-confidence, connection

“Many of the players have been playing together since their youth. We go through lots of ups and downs, travelling halfway around the world together. We also follow each other’s progress at our respective clubs. In the M & EM podcast with my team-mate Marie Gülich, we talk about everything that’s on our minds – a lot about the players’ mindset and female empowerment.”

Although the players are scattered across half of Europe and America, playing for different clubs, there’s always a refreshing, lively atmosphere in the national team. But it’s about more than just basketball.

“We want to be bold as a team and challenge one another, even pushing our limits. That applies both on the court and off it. We stand for empowerment: thanks to a new athletes’ agreement, we’re entitled to the same bonuses as the men’s national team. We want to use our voices, not just for ourselves.”

Olympic Moments

When asked about her most moving moment so far, Emily doesn’t hesitate for a second: “Definitely at the Olympics: we were out on the boats on the Seine during the opening ceremony in Paris. Suddenly I saw the Eiffel Tower with the Olympic rings, and that really moved me. Of course, during the Games I’m completely in the moment, very focused, and don’t realise that I’m actually competing at the Olympics. The moment the whistle blows to start the match, no matter how much is going on around us, we have to focus on that match. That’s our job.”

Emily is well aware that the home World Cup can spark huge excitement, even though she’s currently deep in pre-tournament preparations and the final warm-up matches in the weeks leading up to the tournament are crucial for building momentum.

Basketball hype Made in Germany

“It still feels totally surreal that we’re playing in Berlin and the venues for our matches are already out of stock. That’s very special. A massive tournament and a huge stage. It doesn’t really feel real to me yet, because I can’t quite let it sink in.”

Emily sees her greatest motivation in a broader context. She wants to inspire the next generation to take up basketball:

“It’s really motivating when lots of young girls are watching or come up to us after the matches.”

Emily knows that the support from her own family, the many familiar faces and the home crowd will give her an extra boost as she eagerly awaits the opening match on 4 September. “At the moment, it’s a mix of anticipation and positive nerves. We can’t wait for it to start. We want to deliver!”

The DBB team will play their first group match against Spain in a sold-out arena in Berlin. Let the games begin.