Gilas women's Animam bound for France on pro contract

MANILA, Philippines — Gilas Pilipinas women's Jack Animam kick-starts her return to action after recovering from an ACL injury as she heads to France to play professionally in the Ligue Feminine de Basketball.

Animam posted on her Instagram story Friday evening to confirm the news. The video shows Animam at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport before she flies to France.

"It's official. Your girl is going to play in France," she exclaimed.

The former UAAP star admitted that there were "many scares" for her second pro stint in Europe, but she eventually was able to hurdle them to ink the deal.

"Grabe, too many scares for this to happen but sabi nga ni Lord, when the time is right, I the Lord will make it happen and this is it." she said.

Animam played with Radni?ki Kragujevac in Serbia back in 2021 before suffering the ACL injury during a warm-up in one of their games.

The five-time UAAP champion was the first homegrown Filipino — man or woman — to sign a pro contract in Europe. Juan Gomez de Liano joins her as he plays in Lithuania in that elite list.

According to local 3x3 tournament Manila Hustle 3x3, where Animam was supposed to play, the former NU standout will play for Toulouse Metropole Basket.

An official announcement from the team has yet to be posted.

Animam has long been a stalwart for the Gilas Pilipinas women's national team and is a double gold medalist in the 30th Southeast Asian Games, winning both the 5-on-5 and 3x3 titles in Manila.