Britain's Temi Fagbenle, right, has strong criticism for the funding choices made by UK Sport and Sport England ©Getty Images

British basketball player Temi Fagbenle has accused Government funding agencies Sport England and UK Sport of ignoring basketball at the expense of "obscure" middle-class sports not played by youngsters from ethnically diverse or poorer backgrounds, highlighting Olympic events such as modern pentathlon and skeleton.

Fagbenle claimed the funding agencies are "'trying to rip the shirts off the GB team's backs" by refusing to fund the sport's international set-up.

The 25-year-old Harvard-educated Londoner's words came as British Basketball boss Lisa Wainwright warned the country's eight senior and age-group teams will have to be wound up unless they receive backing.

Fagbenle told Brtain's news agency Press Association it was "crazy that sports like skeleton get millions", while British Basketball gets no UK Sport funding for its sides.

Temi Fagbenle, pictured scoring against France at the London 2012 Olympics, says UK Sport and Sport England are
Temi Fagbenle, pictured scoring against France at the London 2012 Olympics, says UK Sport and Sport England are "ripping the shirts off the GB teams' backs" by refusing to fund them sufficiently ©Getty Images

"I feel like they are trying to rip the GB shirts off our backs," she said.

"Just look at the athletes on the basketball teams - a lot of us are from ethnic minorities and/or grew up in working-class households.

"When I see sports like modern pentathlon and skeleton get millions of pounds, I wonder what sort of world the powers that be are living in and what agenda they are trying to push.

"Young people in general aren't inspired by obscure sports that are completely alien to them. 

"They are inspired by athletes they can relate with."

Fagbenle, a Women's National Basketball Association champion with the Minnesota Lynx last year, added: "Basketball has the power to attract people of all backgrounds but without a rapid change in how we are funded and, subsequently, publicly viewed in Great Britain, this great power will be completely lost."

Modern pentathlon - an Olympic event that combines fencing, showjumping, shooting, swimming and running - will receive at least £5,5 million ($7.7 million/€6.2 million) from UK Sport before Tokyo. 

That figure could rise to about £6.1 million ($8.5 million/€6.9 million).

British Basketball claim more than 55 per cent of those in the sport are of black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds.

British Basketball statistics also state that 17 per cent of Basketball England members are located in the 20 per cent most deprived areas in the country.

"From April, we have about £100,000 guaranteed via the British Basketball League," Wainwright warned.

"We need £1 million ($1.4 million/€1.1 million) to fund our eight teams for a year. 

"That's between 100 athletes.

"If we don't find this money, the teams will be suspended for two years and then demoted to the bottom rung in Europe.

"It will take about eight years to get back to where we are now."

With UK Sport investing £100 million (£140 million/€113 million)a year in Olympic and Paralympic sport, and Sport England backing hundreds of talented athletes across the spectrum, Fagbenle and Wainwright are asking why £1 million cannot be found to fund the entire basketball programme for a year.

Sport England told BBC Sport they provided funding for the Great Britain team "on the agreement they would seek alternative investment" after UK Sport stopped funding the elite sides.

And, when they failed to find that money, they agreed to give a further £150,000 ($169,000/€210,000 to allow the team to fulfil their forthcoming fixtures.

They also added that they have committed more than £6 million to the sport's grassroots and talent programmes between 2017-2021.

A Westminster debate on the funding crisis is scheduled for Tuesday (February 20).

A UK Sport spokesperson said its Government-approved remit is to fund sports with the "best prospect of winning medals" and basketball "has not provided evidence" that it can do so at Tokyo 2020 or Paris 2024.

They added that they "will keep this under review".

Lizzy Yarnold's victory at the skeleton at Pyeongchang 2018 means Britain's women have won the last three consecutive Olympic gold medals in the event ©Getty Images
Lizzy Yarnold's victory at the skeleton at Pyeongchang 2018 means Britain's women have won the last three consecutive Olympic gold medals in the event ©Getty Images

Skeleton is Britain's most successful Winter Olympic sport.

Lizzy Yarnold won her second consecutive gold medal in Pyeongchang today, meaning Britain has won three consecutive Olympic titles in the event.

Britain's other competitor in the event at Pyeongchang 2018, Laura Deas, won the bronze medal. 

Britain's women have won a medal at every Olympic skeleton competition since the sport was introduced at Salt Lake City 2002. 

At Rio 2016, there were four British athletes competing in modern pentathlon, with no medals won. 

Britain's last medal in the event was a silver at London 2012.

Fagbenle and her team-mates are ranked 21st in the world but are set to rise after back-to-back wins this week in Portugal and Israel that have taken them joint-top of their EuroBasket 2019 qualifying group with two home games to play.