"We're opening doors and opportunities" - Nuni Omot, Wenyen Gabriel & more turn candid on pioneering South Sudan's historic Olympic debut

South Sudan will be making its Olympic debut in Paris, a massive accomplishment for a country that has only been independent since July 9, 2011. Several players such as Nuni Omot and Wenyen Gabriel shared their take on their upcoming historic matchup against Puerto Rico on July 28.

In a video posted by FIBA on Instagram, their national team players were asked about their feelings about representing the country.

Here's what Omot said:

"Honestly, man, it's a blessing. It's amazing. A lot of emotions so I can't even describe the emotions that we feel right now. Obviously, it's gonna be our first Olympic debut campaign. Just to be able to be a part of it, it's a blessing. We're opening up doors and opportunities and showing that good light and good face for the country after how many years we've suffered."

Wenyen Gabriel, a former player for the LA Lakers, called it an honor to play for his country and is proud of already making it to the Olympics despite being a relative newcomer in all aspects.

"It's an honor. We worked really hard for this moment. We represent our entire country and we've never been here before. Also being a new country, it's something special for us. Just being able to have something positive for our country, it's an honor to represent," Gabriel said.

Marial Shayok couldn't believe that they are representing their country in the Olympics and they are looking to make their fellow South Sudanese people proud.

"Feels like an honor and feels surreal being part of the Olympics. Representing South Sudan, all of us coming together to playing for something bigger than ourselves, representing all South Sudanese people all over the world," Shayok said.

Sunday Dech and Peter Jok were also interviewed, calling it an honor to play in the Olympics. They are not just looking to have fun in Paris, but they are also trying to compete and get wins.

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South Sudan's schedule at the 2024 Paris Olympics

South Sudan is in Group C with powerhouse countries such as Team USA, Serbia and Puerto Rico. Team USA and Serbia are favored to come out of the group and make it to the knockout stages. Nevertheless, here's the schedule for the South Sudanese team in the group stage:

VS. Puerto Rico

• Date: Sunday, July 28
• Time: 5:00 a.m. EST

VS. United States

• Date: Wednesday, July 31
• Time: 3:00 p.m. EST

VS. Serbia

• Date: Saturday, August 3
• Time: 3:00 p.m. EST

Wenyen Gabriel and company had four games in preparation for the Olympics and they only had a 2-2 record. They lost the first one against Argentina before bouncing back to beat Portugal and Great Britain. They also narrowly lost to Team USA in their exhibition game, with LeBron James hitting the game-winning layup and Anthony Davis making the game-saving block.