First timers aiming for German joy in Rhine-Ruhr

The Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games will go down in the history books for Team South Africa, and Thoriso Kotsane absolutely cannot wait to be a part of it!

3×3 basketball will be featured for the very first time at the FISU Games – a unique feat in itself, 13 years after the very first FISU World University Championships 3×3 Basketball in 2012 – yet in the ten FISU Championships and World Cups that followed, no female South African university team had been present on the international student-athlete 3×3 basketball stage… until now.

“An honour to be making history”

Following a rigorous qualifying process, Thoriso Kotsane – a late bloomer to the sport, having played netball throughout her childhood before being scouted by a local coach aged 17 – was selected to be part of the history-making side set to compete at the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games, something the 20-year-old says she still can’t quite believe.

“It feels surreal!” Thoriso Kotsane tells fisu.net. “When they announced my name in the final squad, I was overwhelmed with joy and had tears in my eyes! If you had told me a year ago that I would be representing South Africa at the FISU World University Games in 3×3 basketball, I would genuinely have laughed and thought that you were crazy! But honestly, it is an honour to be making history.”

Thoriso forms part of the almost 200-strong Team South Africa delegation heading to Germany, who will participate in eight of 18 sporting events in July’s Games. South Africa’s Chef de Mission Carole Adam noted how the FISU World University Games have laid the foundation for many a successful career, with Team South Africa confident on improving upon their 21-medal tally in Chengdu last time around.

“The strength of this team lies in its diversity – not just across sporting codes, but also in character, background and ambition,” Carole said after official squad announcement. “Many of South Africa’s most celebrated Olympians first gained international experience at these Games. From the track to the pool, from the mat to the court – this team carries on that proud tradition. I believe we are sending a squad that is not only competitive, but also inspirational.”

Exposure and recognition

Thoriso Kotsane, likewise, hopes the tournament will be a springboard for her career, helping her achieve the ultimate dream of playing the sport she loves abroad.

“We hope to put South Africa on the map in Germany, and with the team we have, I am pretty confident that we will make a statement at the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games,” she says. “The 3×3 basketball scene is slowly growing in South Africa, but we honestly need more exposure in terms of players gaining recognition and playing abroad, to help further their sporting careers. I hope to one day play overseas.”

First time abroad

This will be Thoriso’s very first time leaving South African shores, and as a “certified big back”, she is not only eagerly anticipating the action on the court, but the attractions off it.

“I have not been overseas before, so this will be my first time,” she says. “I am looking forward to the sights and most importantly, the food. I love trying new things, so food is definitely on my checklist.”

The second-year University of Pretoria Political Science student, who also has a Sports Science Certificate to her name and hopes to be a diplomat once her playing days are over, says her biggest motivation comes from her family, who she hopes she will inspire through her sport and studies.

“My biggest motivation has to be my mom and little brother,” she says. “My mom has sacrificed a lot for me to pursue my dreams, and I want my brother to have a good role model to look up to. I left home to help change the circumstances at home. God also motivates me through my mom and brother because all these opportunities are happening because of Him.”

No doubt a proud mother and brother will be watching their history-making daughter and sister at next month’s Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games!

Written by Fabio de Dominicis, pictures courtesy of Thoriso Kotsane