PARIS — Losing their bronze-medal game left Katherine Plouffe and her teammates awash in emotion Monday night.
Canada's 3x3 basketball team had come tantalizingly close to taking home a medal from the Paris Olympics, but ultimately saw their hopes dashed when they dropped a 16-13 decision to the United States.
“Lots of emotions," Plouffe said. "It really sucks. Yeah, it really sucks. But very thankful, super grateful for this experience, to have made it here with all the support from our family and friends and the country and people who've been with us along our journey from 2019 until now"
After years with the Canadian women's basketball squad, Plouffe and her twin sister, Michelle Plouffe, decided five years ago to create a 3x3 program.
They funded their own training and travels, recruited their own teammates and found places to play.
"It's been worth it," Katherine Plouffe said after Monday's loss. "I would rather have my neck a little bit heavier right now, but the journey is worth it. And there's so many serendipities along the way that I would never trade. So I'm still positive on what we did, definitely.”
Paris marks Canada's first Olympic appearance in 3x3 basketball. The discipline made its debut at the Tokyo Games.
Getting to Paris has been a special journey, Michelle Plouffe said.
“Obviously a medal would have been a cherry on top, but I'm just so thankful for the relationship we have with each other and the support we've had from our families and our friends and everyone back home who's just seen us start from the bottom — really from below the bottom, from nothing — to be at an Olympic Games," she said. "And that's pretty special.”
The Plouffe sisters started the 3x3 program in a bid to create more opportunities for women and girls to play basketball, and Michelle hopes their Olympic run has done just that.
"It was always about leaving something, leaving a legacy behind. And I think we've made a big leap forward in doing that," she said. "So it's been a huge journey, and I'm just so grateful.”
Katherine Plouffe led Canada with five points in the bronze final, while Michelle Plouffe and Kacie Bosch each contributed three.
The Americans, who won gold when 3x3 basketball made its debut in Tokyo, got a game-high six points from Hailey van Lith.
Michelle Plouffe opened the scoring with a two-pointer and Bosch added another deep shot to give Canada a 7-3 lead less than three minutes into the game.
The Americans rallied, but Canada still held an 8-6 lead at the midway mark.
Dearica Hamby gave the U.S. a 14-13 lead on a free throw with 1:17 left to play and the Canadians couldn't recover.
Still reeling from the loss, Canada's Paige Crozon went over to the stands to see her five-year-old daughter, Poppy.
“I went up to her after the game and gave her a sad look, and then she gave me a cheeky little smile. And it just provided some perspective," she said. "It helped me to zoom out and have perspective of what's really important.”
The loss to the Americans marked Canada's 10th game in seven days. Games were played at an outdoor, temporary venue on Paris' Palace de la Concorde, and temperatures often reached the high 20s.
“We've said that from the beginning, that this is a beast of a tournament," Katherine Plouffe said. "And yeah, fatigue was there. Yeah, other things played a role, and we could have done some things better, but, you know, it's in the past now. The Olympics are done.”
Earlier on Monday, Canada dropped a 16-15 decision to Germany in a spirited semifinal that saw the winning basket scored with a single second left on the clock.
Germany went on to beat Spain 17-16 in the gold-medal game Monday night.
“It’s so bittersweet because we were expecting the medal for ourselves. So to leave empty-handed, as far as medals is concerned is very tough," Bosch said.
"(But) to place fourth in our first-ever Olympic appearance is something to definitely be proud of. Are we satisfied? No. I don't know anybody in the world of sports who would be satisfied with a fourth-place finish. But we're gonna learn from it. We're gonna grow from it and move on."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 5, 2024.
Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press
