FIBA: Philippines bracketed with France and New Zeland in OQT

The road to Rio is going to be tough.

Early this morning, the groupings of the 18 qualifying countries for the Olympic Qualifying Tournament was determined via draw: We were bracketed in group B of the qualifying tournament in Manila, along with France and New Zealand.

Group A of the Manila QOT includes Senegal, Canada, and Turkey.

Only the winner of each qualifying tournament will be given the chance to head over to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro this August.

France, which ranked 5th in the FIBA world rankings, would be the hardest team the Gilas will need to overcome; Philippines ranks 28th, with Senegal (31) the only country in the group that ranks lower than the Philippines.

Here’s the draw results: