Zambia play to 1-1 draw with New Zealand in Olympic warm-up

Olympics-bound Zambia played to a 1-1 draw with New Zealand in their women’s international friendly on Sunday.

Rhoda Chileshe gave the Copper Queens the lead four minutes into the second half, but New Zealand’s Katie Kitching equalised from the penalty spot and the points were shared.

The match was a warn-up game ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where Zambia will represent the COSAFA region.

They take on the United States in their opener on July 25, before meetings with Australia (July 28) and Germany (July 31).

It is a tough pool, though Zambia can take heart from the fact they defeated the German 3-2 ahead of last year’s Women’s World Cup Down Under.

It is the second successive Olympics for Zambia, who debuted at Tokyo 2020, where they went out int eh first round but played to a thrilling 4-4 draw with China.