Kyla’s hoping to represent England

WORTHING-based basketball player Kyla Nelson is hoping to represent England in the under-16 European Championships this summer.

The 15-year-old, who attends Davison High School, has achieved a place as one of the top 20 players in her age group and now has one more training camp to try to get a place in the final squad of 12.

Kyla’s father, Steve Nelson, who is the under-18 and women’s coach at Worthing Thunder, believes his daughter has every chance of making the championships.

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He said: “Kyla has a very good chance of making the European Championships, she is a strong player who brings unique skills to the England squad. I have my fingers crossed for her.”

The teenager who currently plays for Worthing Thunder women’s and under-16 teams, is aiming to keep improving her game, with her main target being this year’s European Championships.

Steve, a Worthing Bears legend, started the female sides to allow Kyla and other Sussex-based female players to have the best opportunity to make the England team, without having to travel outside of Sussex to access national league basketball.

He said: “It’s a struggle, but we are hoping to fulfil all the women’s fixtures and hope to promote the game to get more girls and women to take part in basketball.”

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Basketball clearly runs in the family as Kyla’s older brother, Luke, plays for Reading Rockets in the EBL. He played for the England under-18 team last summer when he led the team in scoring, assists and minutes played, on their way to a bronze medal at the European B Championships.

The 17-year-old was also the starting point guard for the England under-16 team, who were the first-ever England junior men’s team to win promotion from Division B to Division A.

He also took part in the MBA Basketball Without Borders Camp, where he was selected to the All Star Team at the end of camp.

The Reading Rockets man is hoping to achieve good A-levels in the coming months, alongside targeting the under-18 European Championships Division A in the summer.