(Birmingham, UK) Canada’s top wheelchair basketball stars captured a pair of victories on day 2 of competition at the 2010 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships. The Sr. Men’s and Women’s Teams are looking to successfully defend their dual World Champions titles at the tournament taking place July 7-17, 2010 in Birmingham, UK.

Both the Canadian Teams won gold at the previous tournament held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands in 2006. For the Canadian Women it was their fourth consecutive World Championships, meaning this year they are vying for an unprecedented fifth straight World Title.

The Canadian Women recovered from 14-9 first quarter deficit to upset the hometown team from Great Britain 54-49 on Thursday. Great Britain now has two losses in the tournament while Canada improves to a 1-0 record.

The Canadian Men also gained some traction with a solid 68-45 win over Mexico. They will head into the third day of competition with a 1-0 record.

Janet McLachlan (Vancouver, BC) led all players in the women’s game with a double-double. She had 24 points and 19 rebounds, while also snagging a game high 3 steals. Her keen free-throw shooting in the final minutes proved to be the difference for Canada. Cindy Ouellet (Quebec, QC) also captured a double-double scoring 14 points and 10 rebounds.

“It’s really awesome to get that first win under our belts,” said Team Canada Women’s Head Coach Bill Johnson.

“We sometimes forget that we have a lot of young players who are competing in their first World Championships. They responded very well to the pressure today and our team should be even better now that they have had a chance to get the butterflies out.”

The Canadian men played a very balanced game with 10-of-12 players seeing more than 5 minutes of court time. Starter Richard Peter (Duncan, BC) led all Canadians with 32:48 of playing time and grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.  David Eng (Montreal, QC) scored a team-high 16 points. As a team Canada shot a solid 50% from the field and went an impressive 5-for-8 from beyond the arc led by Dave Durepos (Fredericton, NB) three long bombs.

“I was very glad to get a chance to get all of our lines in today.  Everyone was given the opportunity to make some plays and they executed very well. No matter who was playing we kept our momentum and got into a pretty good rhythm that we can use moving forward,” said Jerry Tonello, Tam Canada Men’s Head Coach.

The Canadian Women will play their next game against the Netherlands July 9th at 2:00pm (GMT), while the Canadian Men face Algeria at 4:15pm (GMT).

Canadian athletes and coaches will be available for scheduled interviews throughout the duration of the tournament.  

To schedule an interview, or to request additional information, or images, please contact Emma Van Steen, Communications & Media Relations Assistant, at (613)-260-1296 ext. 200, or by email at evansteen@wheelchairbasketball.ca  

Team Canada Men Schedule/Results (all times shown in GMT):

vs. Mexico – Thu. July 8, 2010 @ 2:00pm
vs. Algeria – Fri. July 9, 2010 @ 4:15pm
vs. France – Sat. July 10, 2010 @ 2:15pm
vs. Turkey – Sun. July 11, 2010 @ 11:45am
vs. Australia – Mon. July 12, 2010 @ 6:45pm

Team Canada Women Schedule/Results: (all times shown in GMT):

vs. Great Britain – Thu. July 8, 2010 @ 11:45am – Win 54-39
vs. Netherlands – Fri. July 9, 2010 @ 2:00pm
vs. Mexico – Sun. July 11, 2010 @ 6:45pm
vs. Australia – Mon. July 12 @ 12:15pm

            o  Quarterfinals will take place on Wednesday July 14, 2010
           o  Semifinals will take place on Thursday July 15, 2010
           o  Medal games & closing ceremonies will take place on Saturday July 17, 2010

Wheelchair Basketball Canada is at the 2010 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships and will be providing frequent social media updates, video blogs, and photo galleries, in addition to daily recaps.

For more information visit: www.wheelchairbasketball.ca
Facebook: facebook.com/wheelchairbasketball

Twitter: twitter.com/WCBballCanada

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/WheelchairBball

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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).

www.wheelchairbasketball.ca
 
For more information, to request additional images, or to schedule an interview contact:

Emma Van Steen
Communications & Media Relations Assistant
T: 613-260-1296 ext. 200
evansteen@wheelchairbasketball.ca
 
Press Attaché Overseas:
Jody Kingsbury
Manager, Communications & Media Relations
T: 613-260-1296 ext. 204
jkingsbury@wheelchairbasketball.ca