Paris 2024: Ashleigh Plumptre eyes Olympic ticket with Super Falcons

By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde

Nigeria defender, Ashleigh Plumptre hopes to play at the women’s football event of the next Olympic Games in Paris, France.

The Super Falcons face a tophill task with home-and-away ties against archrivals Cameroon in the third round of Africa’s Olympic qualifiers in February 2024.

A triumph over the Central Africans will see the nine-time African champions square up in a fourth round duel with  either Tanzania or South Africa in April to seal one of two berths to the Paris 2024 women’s football tournament.

And the Al-ittahid defender, who had missed out of international action is anxious to return and play a part in the country’s qualification to the Olympics after the West African nation missed out in the last three editions.

“Would it be the pinnacle of my career? Yes,” Plumptre told Arab News.

“It makes me smile just thinking about the Olympics. I love helping people and the only thing I was really interested in at school was human biology.

“I was just fascinated with the human body. My dream when I was younger was to be a doctor on an Olympic team because I love the Olympics.”

The former Leicester City FC star played a pivotal role in helping the West African giants to a Round of 16 finish at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

After such a laudable performance for the team, she is looking forward to another groundbreaking qualification for the Olympics.

The team has not qualified for the last three editions and will hope to return to the women’s event of the Olympics in 2024.