LUANDA (FIBA World Championship for Women) - The 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup is just around the corner. In the lead-up to the biggest Women international basketball event, we take an individual look at all 24 teams.

Country: Angola
FIBA bwin Ranking Women: No. 20
Last participation in the FIBA World Championship for Women: No previous participations
Best result in the history of the FIBA World Championship for Women: No previous participations
Result in qualifying tournament for 2014 FIBA Basketball World Championship for Women: Winners of AfroBasket Women 2013

For the Angolans, Turkey 2014 will measure the level of progress they have made since making their debut on the world stage at the 2008 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Women (OQTW), followed by their appearance at the 2012 London Olympics.

They will arrive in Istanbul as two-time defending champions of Africa, although some experienced and key players such as Clarisse Mpaka and Catarina Camufal will sit out for healthy reasons.

Felizarda Jorge, Madalena Felix and Astrida Vicente are also out the African champions plans.

In the meantime, rising stars Rosa Gala and Artemis Afonso are expected to step up for the Angolans, who will open their Group D campaign taking on Serbia, a team that they have faced during their preparations in Murcia, Spain.

In that game, the Angolans lost by a big margin, but they insist they will step up with a more positive composure in Istanbul.

Later in the competition, they will face China and the USA, two teams that they have faced at the Olympics a couple of years ago.

Nacissela Mauricio, Sonia Guadalupe, Luisa Tomas and Nadir Manuel remain as the team's backbone.

Sooner or later, Angola had to grab the position they currently hold in the African scene.

Over the past seven years - the best stretch of their basketball history - they have won either won bronze or gold on the continent.

And playing the OQTW six years ago seems to have ignited their game passion for the world stage.

They say playing the OQTW as well as the following major tournaments proved that is where they want to be, and it would serve as the way to boost their basketball programmes, despite lacking domestic competition.

The 59-58 victory over Argentina back in 2008 - their only triumph on the world stage to date - will continue to be cherished until their second triumph, which they believe can be accomplished this summer in Istanbul.

Here is a snapshot of how the the Angolans re-invented their latest successful campaigns on the African continent.

After being denied by Mali in the Semi-Finals of AfroBasket Women 2009 and finishing third, the Angolan Basketball Federation sensed it was time to make adjustments with the then-coaching staff and some older players being affected by the decision.

Former Olympian Anibal Moreira took over, replacing Raul Duarte at the helm of the team in 2011 and within two years, he became the first African coach to win two consecutive continental titles.

Last summer, Angola became the first nation since Nigeria in 2005 to win back-to-back continental titles and went on to make their Olympic debut at London 2012.

They finished winless in the British capital event, but as Moreira argues, this is a learning process that is paying off on African continent, and sooner rather later may become a game-changer for them on the world stage.

As a result of their growing process over the past few years, some of their players who are set to play in Turkey 2014, are now in their 30s such as team captain Mauricio, Tomas and Ngiendula Felipe.

They are adamant that they are following in the footsteps of their men counterpart who won 11 titles in 13 possible in Africa.

FIBA