Florent Pietrus has no doubts that France will qualify for the next European Championships and therefore give him the opportunity to erase one of the worst experiences of his career.

Pietrus, a rising star with Pau-Orthez, was a member of the French side that flattered to deceive at last summer’s Eurobasket in Sweden.

France went into the competition with high hopes having picked up silver at the 2000 Olympics but, after a decent enough start, could only finish fourth after losing to crunch games to Lithuania and Italy.

They lived a nightmare in the bronze medal game against major underdogs Italy.

France had a chance to tie the game at the end of regulation as captain and NBA star Tony Parker drove towards the hoop but his buzzer-beating attempt was off the mark.

Les Bleus had been among the favourites to lift the title. At bare minimum they expected to qualify for the Olympics. Neither happened.

Pietrus, who averaged less than seven points a game during the tournament, admits he was left deflated by the whole adventure.

"For me the Euro 2003 remains a huge frustration,” Pietrus told PA International.

“We deserved better regarding the team that we had, but we failed to live up to expectations.

"After our match against Lithuania we lost it. The pressure increased a lot. The media, the fans, the whole of France and we, the players, thought we had already won the title.

"We should have taken things gradually."

However, Pietrus is confident Les Bleus will get back on track in the Euro 2005 qualifiers in September when they compete in Group D against Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovenia.

France must finish in the top two of the group to make it to Belgrade, where the Eurobasket will be staged.

But they will have to do it without Parker, who says the San Antonio Spurs want him to rest.

"We will qualify for the Euro 2005,” Pietrus said. “As far as the 2006 World Championships is concerned, it is a bit too far to think about it yet.”

Alain Weisz, the French coach in Sweden, has been replaced by Claude Bergeaud and Pietrus expects the new man in charge, his former boss at Pau, to cope well.

"We have a new coach, a new staff, I am confident for the future.

"I know Claude very well, he used to be my boss and he comes to see us play in Pau all the time."

As for his own career prospects, Florent is the only Pietrus at Pau now that younger brother Mickael has moved to the NBA.

Though he’s happy in France, his brother’s experiences have definitely whet his appetite for a move across the Atlantic one day.

“Of course the NBA remains an objective for me,” he said. “This is the number one league in the world but I am young, I've got time. I am waiting for the right moment.

"I need to develop certain aspects of my game and here in Pau all the conditions are perfect to achieve that.

"To be able to go abroad you need to be a complete player."