Sandy Brondello re-signs as Opals coach and turns focus to another podium at the 2028 LA Olympics

Basketball Australia has rewarded Opals coach Sandy Brondello with another four years in the top job and a chance at back-to-back Olympic podiums, MATT LOGUE with the exclusive details.

Sandy Brondello will coach the Australian Opals for the next four years and she is already planning another podium finish at the 2028 LA Olympics.

As revealed by Code Sports in January, Brondello has officially put pen to paper on a new multi-year deal to lead women’s national team.

The extension caps off a successful period for the Mackay-born mentor after she led the Opals to bronze at the 2024 Paris Games.

Brondello is determined to continue the Opals’ proud international record, which has set the standard for Australian basketball.

The Aussie women have won three silver and three bronze Olympic medals, while they’ve collected four bronze, a silver and a gold medal on the World Cup stage.

Brondello led the Opals back to Olympic success in Paris. Picture: Adam Head

Brondello, who was first appointed head coach of the Opals in 2017, said she was thrilled to lead the women’s national program into an exciting new era.

She is pumped about the Opals’ future built on the back of players like Ezi Magbegor, Alanna Smith, Jade Melbourne, Isobel Borlase and potentially Ballarat-born US College sensation Georgia Amoore.

The LA Games will represent a remarkable seventh Olympics for Brondello who played in four (1988, 1996, 2000, 2004) and would later head coach at three campaigns (2020, 2024, 2028).

“The Opals long success is unprecedented, we know our competition is improving rapidly so we won’t be resting on our laurels, there is work to be done and I know that I speak for the entire Opals team, let’s get this,” Brondello said.

“Coaching the Australian Opals is an honour, I never take the responsibility lightly.

“Having represented at six Olympics as a player and now coach, the Opals is such a big part of my life and one that I am most proud of.

“Having the pleasure to work with such motivated and talented athletes is such a joy and the success that we have had is such a testament to the wider team who make up the Opals.

“I look forward to continuing as head coach until Los Angeles in 2028 and I’m thankful to be entrusted with this responsibility.”

Brondello, 56, is widely regarded as one of the best coaches in women’s basketball on the world stage.

Just months after standing on the Olympic dais, she guided the New York Liberty to the franchise’s first WNBA championship.

Brondello is looking to develop the next crop of Opals talent, including the likes of Isobel Borlase (R). Picture: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images.

She was a successful player in their own right, winning two silvers and a bronze medal during her stellar international career with the Opals.

Brondello has passed on this passion for her country as a coach and it shows in her record to date.

She led the Opals to a silver medal at the 2018 World Cup in Spain, while he helped the Aussies collect a bronze at the 2022 Cup in Sydney.

The 2021 Tokyo Olympic campaign didn’t go to plan, with the Australians bombing out in the quarter-final stage.

Following the bronze-medal success in Paris, Australia rose to No.2 in the FIBA Women’s World Rankings.

Paul Goriss has been appointed Associate Head Coach, leading the program when Brondello has WNBA commitments, with the coaching panel also featuring Shannon Seebohm, Cheryl Chambers, Kristi Harrower and Renae Garlepp.

Originally published as Sandy Brondello re-signs as Opals coach and turns focus to another podium at the 2028 LA Olympics