TORONTO, Ont. (April 21, 2022) – Following a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, Canada Basketball, in collaboration with local hosts Alberta Basketball and Basketball Québec, announced Thursday the return of the Canada Basketball 15U & 17U National Championships this summer.
The Manitoba Provincial Team Program will be forming a total of six teams that will represent Manitoba at these national championships along with the 2022 Canada Games taking place in Niagra Falls, Ontario for teams at the 18U level. Open tryouts for the Manitoba teams will occur May 27-29, 2022 at the Sport Manitoba Courts (aka Canada Games Sport for Life Centre) at 145 Pacific Avenue in Winnipeg. The three ages for the teams will be 18U (born in 2004 or later), 17U (born in 2005 or later) and 15U (born in 2007 or later) at both the male and female levels. Details on the tryouts will be announced in late April. Details on the Manitoba coaching staff can be found HERE.
The Canada Basketball 15U & 17U National Championships will run August 1-6, 2022, and feature teams representing each of the ten provinces across Canada. The 15U and 17U boys competitions will be held in Edmonton, AB, while the 15U and 17U girls' tournaments will be hosted in Sherbrooke, QC.
Edmonton and Sherbrooke will host boys and girls 15U and 17U teams composed of the best basketball talent from across the country, as they compete for the national title in each age group.
“Canada Basketball is beyond excited to see the return of the Canada Basketball 15U & 17U National Championships this August after a two-year pause due to the global pandemic,” said Michael Bartlett, President & CEO of Canada Basketball. “We are proud to support our Alberta and Québec host provincial organizations to safely offer this event to the Canadian basketball community.”
“The Canada Basketball 15U & 17U National Championships are an essential contributor to the growth and development of basketball in Canada, providing an opportunity for Canada’s elite athletes, including many of our current and future national team players, with a chance to showcase their talents and compete best-on-best on home soil in front of family, friends and fans,” Bartlett said.
Basketball Québec, the defending 15U & 17U girls national champions, will host the girls tournaments at Bishop’s University.
“It is a real pleasure for Basketball Québec to be able to host the 15U and 17U National Championships this summer on the campus of Bishop's University,” said Executive Director of Basketball Québec, Daniel Grimard. “With Bishop's University we have an exceptional setting and infrastructure that will provide all athletes with the best competitive environment throughout the week.”
Edmonton will serve as the home to the boys 15U and 17U National Championships, which will take place at Saville Community Sports Centre.
“We are very excited to be hosting the National Championships at the beautiful Saville Community Sports Center,” said Paul Sir, the Executive Director of Alberta Basketball. “Edmonton always looks forward to showing why we have earned such a great reputation as a sports and host city.”
Following the decision to postpone the Canada Summer Games in Niagara until 2022, the Canada Games Council (CGC) worked collaboratively with each National Sport Organizations (NSOs) to review each sport’s technical package and its athlete eligibility rules. As a result, athletes who were eligible for the Games in 2021 (18 or under as of December 31, 2022) will remain eligible for the Niagara 2022 Canada Summer Games.
Basketball PEI was to host the 2021 Canada Basketball 15U Men’s & Women’s National Championships from August 1-8, 2021, in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island before the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Schedules and ticket information for each championship will be announced at a later date.
All games from the Canada Basketball 15U & 17U National Championships will be live-streamed through an online platform that will be free to watch to the general public, but Canada Basketball encourages basketball fans across the host provinces to support teams in person, and join us in Edmonton and Sherbrooke for an incredible first-class basketball experience.