Canadians will strive for a top spot at the World Wheelchair Basketball Championships in Hamburg, Germany. The men and woman’s teams will battle teams from around the world August 16-26, 2018. The competition takes place every four years. It is also the largest international parasport event outside of the Paralympic Games.
Belgium hosted the first official Men’s World Championships in 1975. The first Women’s World Championships took place 15 years later in France. Canada has played an important role in the event. For example, Canada was the first to host the first-ever men under-23 world championship in 1997. Later, Canada hosted the first woman under-25 championship in 2011.
The Canadian men and women’s teams will have their first game on August 17th. To begin with, the men are facing off against Morocco. Then, the women will take on Great Britain.
Canada is sending two great teams to the event. Indeed, the twenty four athletes picked to play for Canada include fifteen Paralympians. Their experience will help the teams as they go for gold. Below, a quick look at each team shows their promise.
Team Canada Women
The woman’s team will defend their title from the 2014 world championships. They are the team to beat. Indeed, the team has five gold medals and two bronze medals. Even more, they have reached the podium at every world championship since the first one held in 1990.
The women’s roster includes:
- Sandrine Bérubé – Beauharnois, Quebec