05-06-2025
James Weldon reappointed as basketball head coach of Ireland women's team
JAMES WELDON HAS been reappointed as head coach of the Ireland senior women's team for the FIBA Women's EuroBasket 2027 qualifiers in November.
Weldon was first appointed to the position in 2018, and his extension was confirmed at a recent meeting of Basketball Ireland's Elite Performance Committee (EPC) ahead of the qualifying draw in August.
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This will be Weldon's third FIBA Women's EuroBasket campaign having steered the side through the 2023 and 2025 qualifiers. He previously guided Ireland to a silver medal in the FIBA European Championship for Small Countries in 2021.
Basketball Ireland Hall of Famer, Jillian Hayes, UCD Marian head coach Ioannis Liapakis and Team Manager Dolores Geaney will also return as part of Weldon's coaching staff for the next two years.
'The previous FIBA Women's EuroBasket campaign was incredibly challenging to navigate,' Weldon said following his reappointment.
'I'm very excited to find out who our opponents will be for the forthcoming qualifiers and embracing a new format which will give us more time in camp during each window.
'We hope we can build on the great team performance against Latvia last time out, when we came agonisingly close to causing an upset. We have strong squad depth now, having brought in a number of new players over the last couple of years, which should stand us in good stead when we return to competitive action.'
The FIBA Women's EuroBasket 2027 Qualifiers first round will see Ireland drawn in a four-team group, with three fixtures this November, followed by three fixtures in February 2026. The FIBA Women's EuroBasket 2027 Qualifiers second round then begins in November 2026 and concludes in February 2027, with three games in each window.
