A ZAMBIAN women’s footballer has died ahead of an Olympics 2024 qualifying match.
Norin Betani, 24, passed away on Wednesday, as confirmed by the Zambian FA.
Betani had been expected to travel with the team to Ghana for the qualifying match at the Accra Sports Stadium on Friday.
A statement from the Zambian FA read: “We regret to announce the death of one of our female players, Norin Betani, who was in the provisional squad for the Ghana match.
“Betani was taken to the nearest hospital to the team camp.
“Whis is the Kanyama Level One Hospital, and FAZ engaged the family at every stage.
“The patient was referred to the Univesity Teaching Hospital on Monday and was under medical care until her demise.
“FAZ secretariat staff, family members, and her club (Indeni Roses) worked closely during the player’s hospitalization.”
Tributes for the player have flooded in online as people have paid their respects to Betani.
One fan wrote: “Our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and the football fraternity.”
A second commented: “Rest in peace Norin.”
A third posted: “Condolences to our own striker and a sister.”
A fourth said: “May her dear soul rest in peace.”
Another added: “This is just sad news we’ve lost a talent RIP.”
Zambia were heading into the match as they looked to qualify for the Olympics for a second time.
They previously qualified for the 2020 Olympics after beating Cameroon in the final round of qualifiers.
In their Olympic debut, they lost 10-3 to the Netherlands which is the highest-scoring match in the event’s history.
