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More teams, more competitors, more opportunities - Canadian ringette championships adds teams through draw
2011-11-16
Ottawa, Ontario – November 16, 2011 – An exciting new format will give the Tim Hortons Canadian Ringette Championships (CRC) a huge boost.
Ringette Canada has announced it will expand the draw for the 2012 championships, which take place in Burnaby and New Westminster, BC from April 8-14, 2012. Previously only the top teams in each province would participate, but now, in addition to these provincial champions, the number of teams has increased to 20 in both the U16 and U19 divisions. The allocation of spots was done through a draw last night at the official launch of the 2012 CRC event in Burnaby.
With several high-profile sponsors on board and an expected economic impact of more than $2 million to the area, ringette officials are eagerly anticipating the weeklong event.
"This change in format will certainly make things more exciting and it will also give more athletes and more teams the opportunity to experience the feeling that goes with competing at the highest level,” said David Patterson, Executive Director of Ringette Canada. “We have complete confidence in Randy Wall and his team of dedicated volunteers who will be making this event a reality in April and we can't wait for the first free pass on April 9th."
Forty-eight teams from across the country will compete in three divisions. Forty teams will participate in the U16 and U19 divisions (as allocated through the draw) and eight teams will participate in the National Ringette League division (18+), which is determined through league play.
The provincial allocation of teams that was decided through last night’s draw includes:
BC – U16: 2 teams, U19: 2 teams
AB – U16: 4 teams, U19: 3 teams
SK – U16: 1 team, U19: 1 team
MB – U16: 2 teams, U19: 2 teams
ON – U16: 4 teams, U19: 6 teams
QC – U16: 4 teams, U19: 5 teams
NB – U16: 2 teams
NS – U16: 1 team, U19: 1 team
The championship will be held at the Bill Copeland Arena and Canlan 8 Rinks in Burnaby and Moody Park Arena in New Westminster. The event is expected to bring in over 2600 visitors to the region. Confirmed sponsors include: Tim Hortons, Province of BC (Hosting BC Program), Tourism Burnaby, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Telus, City of Burnaby and Metropolis at Metrotown.
“We have been planning and working on this event since 2008 and it is very exciting to officially launch and share what we have planned with both our community and the entire ringette community across the country,” said Randy Wall, Chair of the 2012 Tim Hortons Canadian Ringette Championship Host Committee. “We look forward to welcoming our country’s best athletes to Burnaby and New Westminster in April.”
About Ringette
Ringette is a Canadian sport that was invented in 1963 in North Bay, Ontario by the late Sam Jacks. There are currently over 29,000 players on more than 2,000 teams across Canada with over 2,400 officials and 5,000 coaches. Internationally, it is played in half a dozen other countries around the world. Ringette has been designated a Heritage Sport by Sport Canada and as part of the Sport for Life movement, ringette is well advanced at adapting Sport Canada's Long Term Athlete Development model. For more information, please refer to the Ringette Canada Web site at www.ringette.ca.
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For more information, please contact:
Alayne Martell
Media and Public Relations | Relations de presse et publiques
Ringette Canada | Ringuette Canada
National Ringette League | Ligue Nationale de Ringuette
Phone | Téléphone : (902) 839-2532
Cell : (902) 308-1067
alayne@ringette.ca
@: www.ringette.ca
@: www.nationalringetteleague.ca
play it. love it. live it. | mon sport. ma passion
With several high-profile sponsors on board and an expected economic impact of more than $2 million to the area, ringette officials are eagerly anticipating the weeklong event.
"This change in format will certainly make things more exciting and it will also give more athletes and more teams the opportunity to experience the feeling that goes with competing at the highest level,” said David Patterson, Executive Director of Ringette Canada. “We have complete confidence in Randy Wall and his team of dedicated volunteers who will be making this event a reality in April and we can't wait for the first free pass on April 9th."
Forty-eight teams from across the country will compete in three divisions. Forty teams will participate in the U16 and U19 divisions (as allocated through the draw) and eight teams will participate in the National Ringette League division (18+), which is determined through league play.
The provincial allocation of teams that was decided through last night’s draw includes:
BC – U16: 2 teams, U19: 2 teams
AB – U16: 4 teams, U19: 3 teams
SK – U16: 1 team, U19: 1 team
MB – U16: 2 teams, U19: 2 teams
ON – U16: 4 teams, U19: 6 teams
QC – U16: 4 teams, U19: 5 teams
NB – U16: 2 teams
NS – U16: 1 team, U19: 1 team
The championship will be held at the Bill Copeland Arena and Canlan 8 Rinks in Burnaby and Moody Park Arena in New Westminster. The event is expected to bring in over 2600 visitors to the region. Confirmed sponsors include: Tim Hortons, Province of BC (Hosting BC Program), Tourism Burnaby, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Telus, City of Burnaby and Metropolis at Metrotown.
“We have been planning and working on this event since 2008 and it is very exciting to officially launch and share what we have planned with both our community and the entire ringette community across the country,” said Randy Wall, Chair of the 2012 Tim Hortons Canadian Ringette Championship Host Committee. “We look forward to welcoming our country’s best athletes to Burnaby and New Westminster in April.”
About Ringette
Ringette is a Canadian sport that was invented in 1963 in North Bay, Ontario by the late Sam Jacks. There are currently over 29,000 players on more than 2,000 teams across Canada with over 2,400 officials and 5,000 coaches. Internationally, it is played in half a dozen other countries around the world. Ringette has been designated a Heritage Sport by Sport Canada and as part of the Sport for Life movement, ringette is well advanced at adapting Sport Canada's Long Term Athlete Development model. For more information, please refer to the Ringette Canada Web site at www.ringette.ca.
-30-
For more information, please contact:
Alayne Martell
Media and Public Relations | Relations de presse et publiques
Ringette Canada | Ringuette Canada
National Ringette League | Ligue Nationale de Ringuette
Phone | Téléphone : (902) 839-2532
Cell : (902) 308-1067
alayne@ringette.ca
@: www.ringette.ca
@: www.nationalringetteleague.ca
play it. love it. live it. | mon sport. ma passion