One lost passport, one big World Cup miss in Germany for China’s women’s basketball star Li Yueru

On September 3, the Chinese Basketball Association announced that WNBA star Li Yueru will be missing the Fiba Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin due to a lost passport. Li's passport had accidentally gone missing while being mailed in the United States, and by the time it was discovered, the registration deadline for the tournament had passed, preventing her from traveling to Germany. The Women’s Basketball World Cup begins on Friday, with China facing off against the United States in their opening match.

The 27-year-old Li, who plays for the Dallas Wings, expressed her disappointment in Chinese social media, stating that she felt "really unfortunate" not to be able to join her teammates in Berlin. She reached out to the association and embassies for assistance in her search, acknowledging that despite their efforts, they were "a little short on luck" this time. Li, a 6-foot-7 center, joined the Dallas Wings in 2025 and previously represented China at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where she was the team's leading scorer.

Her basketball career has taken her to various teams, including the Seattle Storm, the Los Angeles Sparks, and the Chicago Sky, as well as Chinese clubs in Inner Mongolia and Guangdong.