Source: Katharine Lotze / Getty
that she called members of Nigerians D’tigress national team “monkeys.”
In May of 2022, a report from the Australian newspaper
The Sunday Telegraph indicates that during a pre-Olympic game between the Nigerian and Cambage’s Australian Opals, things got chippy. The Nigerian team was playing tough defense, and as things got physical, Cambage began to hurl racist remarks like calling the opposing team monkeys and telling them to “Go back to your Third World country.”
Cambage finally gave a lengthy interview to
Taylor Rooks about the incident and claimed that she never racially offended the Nigerian team.
She also said she’s actually filing to leave the Australian national team to join the Nigerian team.
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“I don’t really lean towards racially backed insults,” Cambage told Rooks. “That’s not how I go. I’m very pro-Black. I did not say these [things] to these girls. The truth looks a lot worse for other organizations involved, than using me as a scapegoat.”
She even pleads for someone to leak the video of the incident to prove her point.
However, it’s not just several Nigerian basketball players that say Cambage did say those words; her own teammates do too, including former Australian captain
Jenna O’Hea who, during a TV interview, said, “That is all one hundred percent correct.”
In light of Cambage bringing up the 2021 incident, a video of the interaction was finally released. While you’re unable to hear what exactly was said, the footage shows the highly physical game escalate as Cambage swings her arm and hits Nigeria’s Victoria Macaulay in the face.
The play continues at the other end of the floor as Macaulay stands under the basket, injured. Seconds later, she runs over to the Opals bench and punches Cambage, who then falls to the floor.
After the video reached social media, Cambage released another statement, once again denying any wrongdoing.
“In light of the circulating footage from the 2021 scrimmage between the Opals and D’Tigress, I want to provide clarity on my recollection of the events,” Cambage wrote. “Before the scrimmage, I had expressed concerns to Opals staff about the unacceptable playing conditions within the COVID ‘Bubble’ they were imposing. The circulating video portrays a highly physical game with no officiating, resulting in me being attacked and sustaining a concussion. Contrary to false claims I did not use racial slurs or refer to anyone as a monkey, which is evident from the footage.”
She also said that she hasn’t actually joined Nigeria’s national team but rather just expressed interest in representing the country.
See how Twitter is reacting to finally seeing footage of Cambage getting punched below.
