this decade, France returned to the Olympics in 1984, and the World Cup in 1986. Success and struggle (1990–2000) During the 1990s France had their moments to shine, despite some internal struggles and many injuries to key players. At the European championship, the team did not win a medal despite some good performances. The years 1999 and 2000, however, marked a turnaround for French basketball. The team built around Antoine Rigaudeau, Tariq Abdul-Wahad, Laurent Sciarra, Jim Bilba, and Laurent Foirest finished in the top 4 at the EuroBasket 1999, which France hosted. Their first loss was in the semi-finals followed by their second loss in the bronze medal match to FR Yugoslavia 74–62, despite some internal problems that disrupted the group of players. In 2000, team France qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, full of ambition, which developed the means for major achievement. At the end of their stint in Australia, the selection of coach Jean-Pierre de Vincenzi helped lead the team to the silver medal, France's first top 3 performance at a major basketball event in 46 years and their first Olympic medal in 52 years. Tony Parker joins the team (2001) After the 2000 Olympics, French phenom Tony Parker was selected by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2001 NBA draft. However, at the EuroBasket 2001, without Antoine Rigaudeau, who surprisingly decided to retire from the national team, the 19-year-old Parker alone was not enough as France failed to repeat their outstanding performance attained at the 2000 Olympic Games. France lost in the quarter-finals to Germany 77–81 and finished in 6th place overall. During this time, most of France's players cleared their spots for a new generation of players, which were available in abundance as the France Junior national team had won the 2000 junior championship. Setback despite abundance of talent (2003) At the EuroBasket 2003, France competed with an immensely talented squad, which included NBA players Tony Parker, Jérôme Moïso and Tariq Abdul-Wahad. As well as future pro Boris Diaw, and European standouts Laurent Foirest, Cyril Julian and Florent Piétrus. But despite competing with one of the most promising rosters ever, France lost in the semi-finals against Lithuania, then went on to lose a close battle in the bronze medal match to Italy 67–69. Restructuring and improved performance (2005) Hoping not to repeat the disappointing performance of 2003, France's squad once again saw considerable changes