Clarisse Machanguana (born 4 October 1976) is a professional
women's basketball player and philanthropist from
Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
. She has played internationally in both the United States (
WNBA from 1999 to 2002) and in Spain (
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Found ...
since 2003). She also represented
Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
at the
2006 Lusophony Games
The 1st Lusophone Games ( pt, 1.os Jogos da Lusofonia; ) were held in the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China between 7 and 15 October 2006. The 2006 Games were the first edition of this multi-sport event for Por ...
in Macau, China. In 2014 founded the Clarisse Machanguana Foundation, which empowers Mozambiquan youth through sport, education and health.
Machanguana was the UNICEF ambassador to Mozambique from 2016 to 2018.
Early life and college
Machanguana was born on October 4, 1976, in Mozambique. When she was 19, she moved to Portugal to attend preparatory school and play basketball. She then followed her friend, Portuguese basketball player
Ticha Penicheiro
Patrícia Nunes "Ticha" Penicheiro, OIH (September 18, 1974) is a Portuguese sports agent and former basketball player. She played for the Sacramento Monarchs in the WNBA for most of her professional career. She was a four-time WNBA All-Star an ...
, to
Old Dominion University
Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia w ...
. In 1997, Machanguana and Penicheiro led the Lady Monarchs to the
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
title game.
Old Dominion University statistics
Source
WNBA career
Machanguana was drafted in the 2nd round (16th overall) in the
1999 WNBA draft
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major schoo ...
by the
Los Angeles Sparks
The Los Angeles Sparks (LA Sparks) are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Sparks compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was foun ...
. She played collegiately at
Old Dominion University
Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia w ...
. In 1997, Machanguana was named to the Final Four All Tournament team.
With the Sparks, she played in 59 games in 2 seasons, starting 1 and averaging 3.1 points per game. In 2001, Machanguana played with the
Charlotte Sting
The Charlotte Sting were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Charlotte, North Carolina, one of the league's eight original teams. The team folded on January 3, 2007.
The Sting was originally the sister organization of ...
, where she played in 30 games, starting 8 and averaging 5.4 points per game. In her final season in the WNBA, Machanguana played with the
Orlando Miracle. In Orlando, Machanguana played in 29 games, starting 25 of them. She also averaged 4.8 points per game.
Post-WNBA
Since leaving the WNBA after the 2002 season, Machanguana joined
F.C. Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Founded i ...
in Spain. At the
2006 Lusophony Games
The 1st Lusophone Games ( pt, 1.os Jogos da Lusofonia; ) were held in the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China between 7 and 15 October 2006. The 2006 Games were the first edition of this multi-sport event for Por ...
, she led the
Mozambique women's national basketball team
The Mozambique women's national basketball team is the nationally controlled basketball team representing Mozambique at world basketball competitions for women.
Competition record FIBA World Championship
* 2014 – 15th
FIBA Africa Championshi ...
to a gold medal.
In 2006, Machanguana was inducted into Old Dominion University's Hall of Fame.
Non-Profit Work
After retiring from playing basketball, Machanguana returned to Mozambique. Local nonprofits approached her to represent them due to her name recognition and wide reach. Through this work, she learned more about the
HIV
The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
epidemic in Mozambique.
In 2014, founded the Fundação Clarisse Machanguana (Clarisse Machanguana Foundation),
which empowers Mozambiquan youth through sport, education and health. This program From May 2016 to May 2018, Machanguana was appointed
UNICEF
UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...
ambassador to Mozambique in recognition of her commitment to child rights, girls empowerment, and adolescent empowerment.
In spring 2016, she began a trek across Mozambique to bring awareness to the country's HIV epidemic and
obstetric fistula
Obstetric fistula is a medical condition in which a hole develops in the birth canal as a result of childbirth. This can be between the vagina and rectum, ureter, or bladder. It can result in incontinence of urine or feces. Complications may i ...
.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Machanguana approached the U.S. Embassy in Mozambique for aid in obtaining a scholarship to learn about nonprofit management. She was awarded a scholarship through the
Fulbright Program
The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people o ...
. In 2022, she graduated from the University of Arizona with a master’s degree in global nonprofit management.
Career statistics
Regular season
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, 28 , , 0 , , 8.8 , , .490 , , .000 , , .722 , , 1.9 , , 0.3 , , 0.3 , , 0.1 , , 0.5 , , 2.6
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, 31 , , 1 , , 13.6 , , .578 , , .000 , , .560 , , 2.3 , , 0.6 , , 0.4 , , 0.1 , , 0.6 , , 3.5
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2001
, style="text-align:left;",
Charlotte
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
, 30 , , 8 , , 19.3 , , .500 , , .000 , , .649 , , 4.0 , , 0.6 , , 0.5 , , 0.5 , , 1.4 , , 5.4
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2002
, style="text-align:left;",
Orlando
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...
, 29 , , 25 , , 14.8 , , .535 , , .000 , , .640 , , 2.2 , , 0.6 , , 0.4 , , 0.1 , , 1.1 , , 4.8
, -
, style="text-align:left;", Career
, style="text-align:left;", 4 years, 3 teams
, 118 , , 34 , , 14.2 , , .527 , , .000 , , .650 , , 2.6 , , 0.5 , , 0.4 , , 0.2 , , 0.9 , , 4.1
Playoffs
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, 1 , , 0 , , 7.0 , , .667 , , .000 , , .000 , , 2.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 4.0
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, 4 , , 0 , , 11.8 , , .500 , , .000 , , .667 , , 2.8 , , 0.0 , , 0.3 , , 0.3 , , 0.3 , , 3.0
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2001
, style="text-align:left;",
Charlotte
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
, 8 , , 0 , , 16.5 , , .531 , , — , , .667 , , 2.4 , , 0.3 , , 0.4 , , 0.4 , , 0.8 , , 4.8
, -
, style="text-align:left;", Career
, style="text-align:left;", 3 years, 2 teams
, 13 , , 0 , , 14.3 , , .535 , , .000 , , .667 , , 2.5 , , 0.2 , , 0.3 , , 0.3 , , 0.5 , , 4.2
Sources
Player profile at wnba.com
1976 births
Living people
All-American college women's basketball players
Centers (basketball)
Charlotte Sting players
Mozambican expatriate basketball people in the United States
Los Angeles Sparks draft picks
Los Angeles Sparks players
Mozambican expatriate basketball people in Spain
Mozambican expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Mozambican women's basketball players
Old Dominion Monarchs women's basketball players
Orlando Miracle players
San Jose Lasers players
Tarbes Gespe Bigorre players
{{Mozambique-basketball-bio-stub