News and notes at 2026 IWBF Wheelchair Basketball World Championships

OTTAWA – There’s lots of excitement brewing for the 2026 IWBF Wheelchair Basketball World Championships which get underway today (September 9) at both the TD Pace and Carleton University venues in Ottawa.

The Canadian women’s team opens its preliminary round against Spain at 4:15 p.m. (all times ET) while the Canadian men face Morocco later at 7:30 p.m. Both games are at TD Place. For tickets click HERE.

It is the first time Canada hosts the worlds since its combined both the men’s and women’s events. In 2014, Canada won the gold medal at the women’s worlds in Toronto.

Unique home world championships

The Canadian players are thrilled to get such a unique opportunity to compete at  a major event on home soil. For two-time Paralympian Élodie Tessier, apart from her parents, it will be the first time her family sees her play live including her twin sister Jessica.

‘’Jessica will be here for two weeks as well as aunts and uncles,’’ Élodie told Radio-Canada’s Keven Breton.  ‘’It’s a super great opportunity for our team to have family members come and see us play.’’

Nik Goncin was a member of Canada’s men’s team for the 2015 Parapan American Games in Toronto. Since then, he’s become one of the top players in the world competing at three Paralympics.

He says the presence of family members is a huge boost for the players but it is important to keep the focus on the tournament.

‘’We’re there for business,’’ Goncin told Para Sport Nation. ‘’I’m kind of stressed like the other guys, this doesn’t happen very often. For me in 2015, it was a bigger challenge than I thought. You want to hang out with family after the game and all that but what I found for me, what works best, is not do that and just do the same as any other tournament unless you have some free time here and there.’’

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Goncin says the team’s practice sessions leading into the tournament have put the squad in a confident mood heading into its first match against Morocco

‘’The vibes are good,’’ Goncin said on Wheelchair Basketball Canada’s Instagram channel. ‘’We’re getting better on some of the things we’ve been working on. We’ve been catering practices to some of the gaps that we had up to this tournament.’’

Morocco at first worlds since 2018

For Morocco it will the African qualifier’s first world championship participation since 2018. They are now on a mission to eventually gain a berth for the 2028 Paralympic Games in Los Angeles.

“The strengths lie in our team spirit and atmosphere, as this team is brimming with determination to win despite our limited budget,’’ Moroccan team star  Zouhair Challat  told Paralympic.org.  ‘’The team never gives up, no matter how difficult things get, because we’re all giving our all to represent our great nation.” 

Canadian women’s team also eager to start

Both the Canadian men’s and women’s teams were fourth at the 2024 Paralympic Games and are aiming to reach the podium in Ottawa.

‘’It’s all starting to click right now,’’ said Canadian women’s team high scoring forward Arinn Young. ‘’It’s exciting to see it all come together.  We’re practicing really well and are in a very good environment. As long as we can continue to carry that through each day and each practice we’ll be ready to go.’’

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The Canadian women face a strong challenge in its opening match against Spain. It is considered an emerging force in women’s wheelchair basketball placing eighth at the 2024 Paralympics and earning bronze medals at the last three European championships.

Having a strong start to the tournament will be important for the Canadian women.

‘’We have the capability to go to the final,’’ said Élodie Tessier. ‘’The five players on the court must play in unison. Our core is very strong with Kady Dandeneau, Cindy Ouellet and Arinn Young. And our coach Joey Johnson brings great tactical knowledge and an ability to rally the troops towards a common goal.’’

All tournament games will be carried live on CBC Gem and Radio-Canada’s TOU.TV