Features

Laeticia Amihere: Meet The Exceptional Canadian-born African Making Waves In The WNBA

BY Dora Abena Dzaka August 26, 2024 12:08 PM EDT

Laeticia Amihere, a Canadian-born Ghanaian/Ivorian, has garnered national and international attention at just 15 years old.

During an AAU tournament game in the USA, she became the first Canadian woman credited with a dunk during play.

Following this achievement, she secured her place on the Canadian basketball team’s roster.

After representing Canada at the senior level since 2017, in 2019, she became the overall No. 10 recruit of her class and received offers from across the United States. 

The 6-foot-4 forward also won the NCAA title with the South Carolina Gamecocks in 2022 and was selected by the Atlanta Dream with the eighth overall pick in the 2023 draft.

Laeticia Amihere decided on South Carolina during college and gave her all during her senior class, making the team one of the most successful recruiting classes in the school’s history. 

Amihere played alongside Olivia Thompson, Brea Beal, and Aliyah Boston.

As it is in every childhood dream, basketball wasn’t her first choice of sport, but Amy went on to achieve much.

However, achieving this feat wasn’t easy. Amihere had a keen interest in basketball, especially dunks, since the eighth grade. 

From West Africa to South Carolina

Laeticia Amihere is a native of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, with West African ancestry. 

Her father, Anthony Amihere, is from Ghana, while her mother, Georgette Amihere, is from the Ivory Coast.

Laeticia, Benson, and Kofi are the couple’s three children; Kofi passed away in 2022.

The Amiheres left West Africa for Canada in search of better prospects which proved to be the right choice because the Canadian basketball player has improved greatly on and off the court.

Growing up as a West African, Amie had the zeal to honor her roots and traditions and even revealed to have picked soccer as her first choice of sport since it was huge in her culture. However, her height diverted her towards basketball.

Given Back: Charity Work 

Away from the game, she has known to give back to the communities, which is etched in her roots.

In 2022, Amihere traveled all the way to the Ivory Coast as a host for a basketball clinic where she donated important athletic resources while educating young girls.

In addition to her WNBA accomplishments, she has competed internationally for Canada, representing the country in the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, the FIBA AmeriCup in 2021, and the FIBA World Cup in 2022. 

At the just-ended Olympics in Paris, this gifted basketball player made her second appearance for Canada.

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