Zambian striker, Barbra Banda has taken the Olympic women’s football event by storm breaking multiple Olympic records and setting new ones in the process.
After an impressive Olympic debut in which she scored a hat-trick against the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup finalists Netherlands, the 21 year-old followed it up with another hat-trick against China on matchday two thereby becoming the first woman in Olympic history to score two hat-tricks at the games.
Also, her second hat-trick which was against China saw the Shanghai Shengli striker become the first woman to score back-to-back hat-tricks at a single Olympic tournament.
By virtue of her six goals in two games, the Copper Queens captain leads the goalscoring chart at the women’s football event and has also become the all-time women’s African top scorer at the Olympics right ahead of Nigeria’s Mercy Akide-Udoh with four goals (two goals each in 2000 and 2004).
Banda has also equalled the most goals scored in a single event – a record set by Canada striker Christine Sinclair in 2012; and the most goals scored by an African, including the men, leveling up with compatriot Kalusha Bwalya and Ghana’s Kwame Ayew who both scored six in 1988 and 1992 respectively.
With only a point in two games, Banda would once again look to put on her goalscoring boots on Tuesday when the Copper Queens file out against Brazil in a bid to secure qualification to the next round.
