(St. Catharines, ON) Wheelchair Basketball Canada and the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) are pleased to announce the competition groups and game schedule for the inaugural Women’s U25 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships taking place at Brock University July 15-21, 2011.

On April 12, 2011, Wheelchair Basketball Canada and Brock University co-hosted a press conference and draw to determine the competition groups for the tournament. Canada’s first-ever Women’s U25 National Team will compete in Pool B along with Germany, Japan and South Africa. National teams from Australia, Great Britain, Mexico and the United States will compete in Pool A.

“The organizers did an excellent job and I am very pleased with how the draw unfolded,” said IWBF President Maureen Orchard. “We can see from the results that we will have two very strong groups of teams, which will make for a very competitive tournament.”

Preliminary round competition runs July 15-17, 2011. The bronze and gold medal games are set for Thursday, July 21, 2011 at 4:45 p.m. (EDT) and 7 p.m. (EDT), respectively. All games during the Women’s U25 World Championships will be webcast live via the tournament website at www.u25wwbc.com.

Team Canada will play in the following preliminary round games:

• July 15, 2011 at 7 p.m. (EDT) vs. South Africa
• July 16, 2011 at 5 p.m. (EDT) vs. Japan
• July 17, 2011 at 1:15 p.m. (EDT) vs. Germany

To see the complete game schedule please visit www.u25wwbc.com

“It’s exciting to be a part of this event, especially since it’s the first of its kind,” said Team Canada Head Coach Michael Broughton. “We as a team were really looking forward to seeing which teams would play in each pool. Now we can focus on making our final preparations for the tournament and concentrate on having a strong showing in our preliminary matches.” 

The first-ever Women's U25 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships is a milestone event in the ongoing growth of wheelchair basketball around the globe and forges a legacy of unprecedented opportunity for young women in sport. The International Wheelchair Basketball Federation event is co-hosted by Wheelchair Basketball Canada and Brock University.

About the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF)

The IWBF is a non-profit international organization whose purpose is to provide opportunities for persons with a disability to play the game of wheelchair basketball. For more information about the IWBF, please visit www.iwbf.org.

About Wheelchair Basketball Canada

Wheelchair Basketball Canada is the national sports governing body responsible for the organization of wheelchair basketball in Canada. It is a non-profit, charitable organization that is the Canadian member to the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF).

Wheelchair basketball is a fast paced, hard-hitting, competitive sport that has emerged as one of the most competitive and athletic sports played at the Paralympic Games. Our senior national teams are held in high esteem around the world for the elite skill and control that placed them on the podium with a combined five gold and one silver medal in the last five Paralympic Games. Visit: www.wheelchairbasketball.ca for more information.

For more information or to schedule an interview contact:

Jody Kingsbury
Communications & Media Relations
Wheelchair Basketball Canada
T: 613-260-1296 ext. 204
C: 613-851-2337
jkingsbury@wheelchairbasketball.ca