Street hockey festival making Windsor stop in August
Play On! Canada announced Tuesday that a large street hockey festival will be coming to Windsor as one of nine stops in the series of sports celebrations across Canada.
The not-for-profit sport organization will welcome players of all levels and skill levels from Aug. 6-7, 2022.
The registration fee is $49 for the weekend (no tax for youth), and participants only need running shoes and a hockey stick to play.
“The City of Windsor is definitely a ‘hockey town.’ Hockey is in our DNA, and we believe sports help to unite communities, build civic pride, draw visitors to our city and positively impact our economy and tourism sector, inspire and engage youth, and provide citizens with memories that will last a lifetime,” said Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens.
Dilkens said as the city moves beyond the pandemic, he’s excited to see Play On! Canada bring its accessible and inclusive festival to Windsor, “inviting us all to make up for some lost time and experiences and to get out there to play this game we love.”
The tournament will take place downtown at Riverside Drive and Ouellette Avenue. Though this event marks Windsor’s first hosting of Play On!, the event has ties to the region. It has been held in southwest Ontario before, in London, where it attracted over 4,000 participants.
Organizers say the event will help individuals with social and health recovery and communities with economic recovery after two years of COVID-19 restrictions.
“Our youth have endured two years of not being able to play as they usually would,” said Scott Hill, chairman of Play On! Canada. “Street hockey also has potential to unite Canadians. We are excited to partner with communities to provide this unique opportunity for people of all ages to gather, laugh, reminisce, reconnect, and play together.”
According to a 2021 study by Brock University’s Centre for Sport Capacity, Play On! Canada’s sports festivals are a significant driver of sport tourism activity for a community. A typical event generates $3.3 million in local GDP activity, with an average participant spending $514 on expenses tied to the event weekend, team preparation, and training.
“Time and again, our destination has delivered on great hospitality – and at the bedrock of it all is having our businesses and residents become “tourism ambassadors,” showcasing the best there is to offer here locally,” said Gordon Orr, CEO of Tourism Windsor Essex Pelee Island.
All players will have an opportunity to invite fans to follow their teams, with fans encouraged to make donations to a charity or sport association of their choosing. Full details on player and team registration, fees, and game rules are available at www.playon.ca.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
New deep-water channel allows first ship to pass Key bridge wreckage in Baltimore
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbor since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago, halting most maritime traffic through the city's port.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.