15 players invited to Canada Basketball’s Development Women’s National Team’s selection camp

Credit Canada Basketball

TORONTO, Ontario – Canada Basketball is set to begin preparations for the Development Women’s National Team (DWNT) with a Tryout by Invitation Camp. Canada Basketball is proud to announce 15 athletes and team staff that will attend the camp at the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford, British Columbia from August 2 – 5, 2011.

This summer, the DWNT is heading to Shenzhen, China to compete at the Summer Universiade from august 12-23, 2011. This marks the 26th time the International University Sports Federation (FISU) will host the Summer Universiade, which is the second largest multi-sport event in the world, next to the Olympic Games.

The tryout by invitation roster consists of talent from coast to coast with no shortage of international experience. Of the 15 players invited, seven players have played internationally as part of Canada’s National Team Program, including Megan Pinske (Coquitlam, BC), Julie Seabrook (North Vancouver, BC), Justine Colley (East Preston, NS), Elyse Jobin (Moncton, NB), Kendel Ross (Sarnia, ON), Zara Huntley (Halifax, NS) and Kelsey Hodgson (Fredericton, NB). Hodgson is the only returning member from the last World University Games in 2009, when Canada finished 15th in Belgrade, Serbia.

The tryout roster also includes two members from the reigning Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) national champion, University of Windsor Lancers, Raelyn Prince (Harrow, ON) and Miah-Marie Langlois (Windsor, ON). Langlois capped off an impressive CIS Final 8 Championship by helping Windsor take home its first ever national championship for women’s basketball and winning the Tournament MVP award.

Also invited to camp are members of the runner-up, University of Saskatchewan Huskies, Jill Humbert (Saskatoon, SK) and Katie Miyazaki (Richmond, BC), who was named to the CIS Final 8 Tournament All-Star Team and the CIS Defensive Player of the Year for the past two seasons.

This marks the first time Lisa Thomaidis (Dundas, ON) will serve as a Head Coach for a team in the National Program. Currently as the Head Coach of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies, she has been with the National Team Program since 2001, when she was video assistant for the Senior Women’s National Team (SWNT) for two years. She was then named an apprentice coach for the team in 2003, and has served as the team’s Assistant Coach for the past eight years under Head Coach Allison McNeill.

Joining Thomaidis on the DWNT Coaching Staff are Head Coach of the University of Calgary, Shawnee Harle (Campbell River, BC) and Head Coach of the University of Alberta, Scott Edwards (Duncan, BC).

Harle has served as the Head Coach of the University of Calgary since 1994 and is the only basketball coach in Canada to attain her Level 5 National Coaching Certification. Her international coaching experience is vast, as she was the Assistant Coach for the SWNT at the 1994 Goodwill Games in St. Petersburg, Russia and at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.

Edwards has been a Head Coach for the past five years at the University of Alberta. During his tenure coaching the Pandas, he has won silver and bronze medals at both the Canada West and CIS Championships. This will be his first experience coaching at the international level with the National Team Program.

Canada was assigned to Pool C, where they will play Russia, Poland, and South Africa in the preliminary round. A total of 16 countries will compete for the FISU gold this summer in Shenzhen. Team Canada will hold a training camp in Abbotsford, British Columbia from August 2 – 5 before travelling to Shenzhen.

Since basketball was included in the FISU games for women in 1961, Canada has a total of two medals, both bronze in 1979 and 1991.

Attached are the tryout by invitation rosters, coaching staff and pools for the 2011 Universiade. To follow the event and Team Canada, visit http://www.sz2011.org/Universiade and www.basketball.ca.                      

Canada Basketball (www.basketball.ca) is a private, not-for-profit corporation that is committed to the growth of the sport in Canada.  Just as important, Canada Basketball is focused on the development and preparation of Canada’s national teams for the Olympic; Pan American and FISU Games as well as the World Championships.  The aspiration of Canada Basketball is to instill the pride, commitment, passion and respect that Canadians personify into the development of basketball across the country and internationally. 

The Summer Universiade is an international multi-sport event that takes place every two years and is second only to the Olympic Games in the number of participating athletes and countries. The Universiade is open to competitors who are at least 17 and less than 25 years of age as of January 1 in the year of the Games. Participants must be full-time students at a post-secondary institution (university, college, CEGEP) or have graduated from a post-secondary institution in the year preceding the event.

2011 DEVELOPMENT WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM – TRYOUT BY INVITATION ROSTER

2011 DEVELOPMEN MEN’S NATIONAL TEAM STAFF

2011 UNIVERSIADE POOLS:

Pool A: China, Taiwan, France, Lithuania

Pool B: USA, England, Slovakia, Brazil

Pool C: Russia, Poland, CANADA, South Africa

Pool D: Australia, Czech Republic, Japan, Sweden