(OTTAWA, ONT.) – The BC Junior Grizzlies topped Manitoba 28-21 to claim gold at the 2025 Junior West Championship Saturday afternoon at Calgary’s Shane Homes YMCA at Rocky Ridge.
Tournament MVP Jeffer Ward led the Grizzlies with 14 points, while Cameron Gelowitz and Elise Froese contributed six points each in the victory. Matthew Wilton led Manitoba’s scoring with 10 points.
“First of all, I want to thank WSA for putting together a great tournament – the volunteers, officials, WBC – everyone did a great job,” said Grizzlies coach Adam Frost. “Congratulations to all the teams, but particularly the athletes from BC. Both teams played fantastically; they left everything on the court, they worked well together on the team, there were no superstars – it’s one of the reasons that we had success – everybody worked well together, so happy for the group.”
Alberta White claimed the bronze medal with a 20-13 victory over Alberta Blue in the third-place game. Mohammed-Saheed Alawiye led the way with six points, while Anika Guillaume added five in the win.
Six teams from Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan battled for top honours at the 2025 Junior West Championship, held at Calgary’s Shane Homes YMCA at Rocky Ridge. The 4×4 tournament, sanctioned by Wheelchair Basketball Canada (WBC) and presented by Wheelchair Sports Alberta, marked the second competition in the Canada Games cycle. The 2027 Canada Winter Games is scheduled for Quebec City from February 27 to March 14, 2027.
Final Standings
1. BC Junior Grizzlies
2. Manitoba
3. Alberta White
4. Alberta Blue
5. Saskatchewan
6. BC Junior Orcas
MVP and All-Stars
MVP – Jeffer Ward (BC Junior Grizzlies)
All-Star – Elise Froese (BC Junior Grizzlies)
All-Star – Bernard Rosello (Manitoba)
All-Star – Katie Bajema (Alberta Blue)
All-Star – Rhys Guillaume (Alberta White)
Complete tournament results can be found here.
About Wheelchair Basketball Canada
Wheelchair Basketball Canada (WBC) is the national sports governing body responsible for the organization of the sport in Canada. It is a non-profit, charitable organization committed to excellence in developing, supporting, and promoting wheelchair basketball programs and services from grassroots to high performance for all Canadians. Wheelchair basketball is a fast-paced, hard-hitting, competitive sport in which Canada is held in high esteem worldwide for winning six gold, one silver, and one bronze medal over the last nine Paralympic Games. WBC will host the 2026 IWBF Wheelchair Basketball World Championships from September 9-19, 2026.
For more information on WBC, please visit Wheelchairbasketball.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebook, X, and Instagram.
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For more information, please contact:
Dhiren Mahiban
Communications & Digital Media Manager
Wheelchair Basketball Canada
C: 416-574-6682
dmahiban@wheelchairbasketball.ca