PRAGUE (FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017) - France have medals in the last three editions of the tournament, but after defeat in the last two finals, Endy Miyem is determined to get their first gold since 2009.

As with most teams at FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017, the French team is experiencing an element of changing the guard. Their inspirational playmaker Celine Dumerc will retire after the tournament, with Olivia Epoupa and rising star Marine Johannes primed to take the reins for the next generation.

In the middle stands Endy Miyem, a world-class talent in her own right who provides an enviable mix of quality and versatility to stand the roster in good stead.

At 29 years of age, she's not ready to hear talk of becoming the team's veteran herself: "Time flies! I am becoming like a mama for the young players! But now, I don't really pay attention to it. Celine is still here, so it's still her for now.

"It's special for her, but Celine told us that she wanted to enjoy it first of all - but we know her, once she is on the court she just thinks about winning and playing perfectly, that's how she is. We're not thinking about it - when I'm playing, I'm just playing. When we are on the court we just think about what to do, that's it," says the Famila Schio forward.

Miyem knows Marie Ruzickova well, playing against her in Italy

France rolled through their first three games unbeaten, but they face an intriguing Quarter-Final against Slovak Republic after Zuzana Zirkova's scorching 31-point performance took down Ukraine: "I know a few of their players, like Zirkova with her magical left hand. Marie Ruzickova inside, I know her because she plays in Italy so I played against her. I know that she looks calm, but she is a really good player. Their other center, Anna Jurcenkova, she is an older player, a veteran, she knows what she has to do and she does it very well. Then Barbora Balintova, she's feeling it and she's a very good player."

But the French team is blessed with the depth of a strong domestic program: "We have a lot of talent in our group - a lot of people who dare to try things on the court. Nobody is scared, even the young players, so that's a big strength for us. We have a physical team, so we can be tough and hard on the court from the first minute to the last, and we can put pressure physically on the opponent."

Miyem's experiences in EuroLeague Women, firstly with Tango Bourges Basket and more recently with Dynamo Kursk before Schio, have helped to develop her into a leader on the roster. The trust that head coach Valerie Garnier places in her is clear, with the forward being the only member of the team to average more than 25 minutes per game in the Group Phase, and she responded by posting a team-high 13.7 points per game.

"The coach at the beginning of summer told me we are counting on you to step up, because you've been here for a long time - we need you to pull the group upwards and be the veteran role model. So now I have responsibilities and I have to take it - I cannot hide behind anyone now," says Miyem. "I have to push myself, it's not natural for me. But I try not to think about it too much - when you are on the court, it's not like I have to do this, I have to do that. I try to do it first during the practices, and then it comes easily during the game. I have to set the example.

"Playing abroad helped. I think it's more mentally that I improved and now, it's almost the same thing as in the national team, because when you are the foreigner in the team, everybody is counting on you, so you have to do something, you cannot wait for someone else to do it. So I try to do it for my club, then it's easier when it comes to the national team."

Miyem will be joined at Schio next season by her first professional coach and former national team coach Pierre Vincent. She admits that she looks forward to being under his wing again: "It's been five or six years - probably he changed, and for sure I have, so it will be interesting!

"He's a coach on the court but outside the court, he's like a psychologist, he tries to understand the players. So for example I like people to yell at me - it gets the best out of me. So he would do that because he understands that's the best way for me. On the court, he's always trying to get the best out of everyone for the good of the team."

As for France's next generation, Miyem has been impressed by the contributions of 18-year-old forward Alexia Chartereau: "She is a very good player and she is fearless - she doesn't care if she's 18 and in front of her is a player who is 30 or something, she doesn't care, she is just playing. She gives her best and that's what she needs to do and what we need. That's the best thing to do - when you start thinking too much and being scared about what's in front of you, then you cannot really play. You just have to play and think about the game."

After heartbreak in the least two tournaments, Miyem and her teammates will be hoping that they can go one better this time.

FIBA