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Cash and Fowles Announced as Members of 2012 Olympic Team

March 30, 2012 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Chicago Sky News Release


CHICAGO. (March 30, 2012) - The Chicago Sky's Sylvia Fowles and Swin Cash were announced today as part of the 2012 U.S. Olympic Women's Basketball Team. Eleven USA Women's National Team members were named and the group is highlighted by a trio of two-time Olympic gold medalists, four athletes who have each earned one Olympic gold medal and four newcomers to the Olympic stage. The well-balanced and talented core of the U.S. squad will compete for the USA's fifth-consecutive Olympic gold medal in London this summer. The player selections were made by the USA Basketball Women's National Team Player Selection Committee. One slot remains for the eventual 12-member U.S. squad and the final athlete will be selected at a later date

The 11 athletes named to the 2012 U.S. Olympic Women's Basketball Team include: Sylvia Fowles (Chicago Sky), Swin Cash (Chicago Sky), Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx), Sue Bird (Seattle Storm), Tamika Catchings (Indiana Fever), Tina Charles (Connecticut Sun), Angel McCoughtry (Atlanta Dream), Maya Moore (Minnesota Lynx), Candace Parker (Los Angeles Sparks), Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury), and Lindsay Whalen (Minnesota Lynx).

Fowles was a member of the 2008 Olympic team that won the gold medal in Beijing, China. The 2008 team dominated their opponents on the court, winning by an average of 37.5 points per game. Fowles came off the bench in all eight games and averaged 17.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, and .9 blocks per game. The 2008 gold medal was the fourth gold medal in a row for the U.S. Women's National Team which is the first time a women's traditional team sport has claimed four consecutive gold medals. The win in the gold medal game over Australia marked the third straight time Team USA has beaten Australia for the gold.

This is Cash's second stint with the U.S. Olympic Women's National Team after she helped the U.S. bring home the gold medal in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece. The 2004 team went 8-0 on its way to the gold medal and won every game but one by double digits. Cash played in seven games for Team USA and averaged 6.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. The '04 gold medal was the third straight gold medal for the U.S. Women and they finished the tournament first in almost every major statistical category.

2012 Olympic Games

Four-time defending Olympic gold medalists, the U.S. will look to capture its fifth straight and seventh overall gold medal and extend its 33-game Olympic winning streak at the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London. The Olympic basketball competition will be held July 28-Aug. 12 in the Olympic Park Basketball Arena (preliminary round and quarterfinals) and North Greenwich Arena (semifinals and finals).

The draw to determine the two preliminary round pools of six teams each is scheduled to be held April 28 at the FIBA Central Board meeting in the Ivory Coast. The preliminary round, played July 28-Aug. 5, will feature a round-robin schedule and the top four finishing teams will advance to the Aug. 7 quarterfinals. The semifinals are scheduled for Aug. 9 and the finals will be played on Aug. 11.

Seven countries have claimed spots in the eventual 12-nation field, including host country Great Britain; the United States, which earned its berth by virtue of earning the gold medal at the 2010 FIBA World Championship; and five nations which earned the gold medal at their respective FIBA zone qualifying tournaments, including Angola (FIBA Africa), Australia (FIBA Oceania), Brazil (FIBA Americas), China (FIBA Asia) and Russia (FIBA Europe).

The final five teams will earn their spots at the 2012 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament (June 25 - July 1 in Ankara, Turkey), which will feature 12 nations from each of the five 2011 FIBA zone qualifying tournaments as follows: two from FIBA Africa, including Mali (bronze medalists) and Mozambique (fifth-place finisher); three from FIBA Americas, including Argentina (silver medal), Canada (bronze medalist) and Puerto Rico (fifth-place finisher); two from FIBA Asia, including South Korea (silver medalist) and Japan (bronze medalist); four from FIBA Europe, including Turkey (silver medalist), France (bronze medalist), Czech Republic (fourth place) and Croatia (fifth place); and New Zealand (silver medalist) from FIBA Oceania.

The USA Basketball Women's National Team Player Selection Committee is comprised of WNBA representatives Reneé Brown, Chief of Basketball Operations and Player Relations; Dan Hughes, head coach/General Manager of the San Antonio Silver Stars; and Chief Operating Officer/General Manager of the Indiana Fever Kelly Krauskopf; athlete representative and five-time Olympian Teresa Edwards; and USA Basketball Women's National Team Director Carol Callan.

2012 U.S. Olympic Women's Basketball Team

NAME POS HGT WGT DOB WNBA TEAM SCHOOL HOMETOWN

Seimone Augustus F 6-1 179 04/30/84 Minnesota Lynx Louisiana State Baton Rouge, LA

Sue Bird G 5-9 150 10/16/80 Seattle Storm Connecticut Syosset, NY

Swin Cash F 6-1 162 09/22/79 Chicago Sky Connecticut McKeesport, PA

Tamika Catchings F 6-0 166 07/21/79 Indiana Fever Tennessee Duncanville, TX

Tina Charles C 6-3 193 12/05/88 Connecticut Sun Connecticut Jamaica, NY

Sylvia Fowles C 6-6 200 10/06/85 Chicago Sky Louisiana State Miami, FL

Angel McCoughtry F 6-1 160 09/10/86 Atlanta Dream Louisville Baltimore, MD

Maya Moore F 6-0 170 06/11/89 Minnesota Lynx Connecticut Lawrenceville, GA

Candace Parker F/C/G 6-4 172 04/19/86 Los Angeles Sparks Tennessee Naperville, IL

Diana Taurasi G/F 6-0 172 06/11/82 Phoenix Mercury Connecticut Chino, CA

Lindsay Whalen G 5-9 150 05/09/82 Minnesota Lynx Minnesota Hutchinson, MN

Head Coach: Geno Auriemma, University of Connecticut

Assistant Coach: Doug Bruno, DePaul University

Assistant Coach: Jennifer Gillom, Washington Mystics

Assistant Coach: Marynell Meadors, Atlanta Dream

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