Wichita, Kan. – Adding to a number of sporting events to be hosted in Wichita in 2022 is the Adult and Junior Division portions of the National Wheelchair Basketball Association’s 2022 Toyota National Championship Series. The following national tournaments will be hosted in Wichita:
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NWBA Toyota Adult Division I Wheelchair Basketball National Championships: March 31-April 2
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NWBA Toyota Adult Division II Wheelchair Basketball National Championships: March 31-April 2
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NWBA Toyota Adult Division III Wheelchair Basketball National Championships: March 31-April 2
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NWBA Toyota Varsity Wheelchair Basketball National Championships: April 1-3
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NWBA Toyota Varsity Wheelchair Basketball Invitational Tournament: April 1-3
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NWBA Toyota Prep Wheelchair Basketball National Championships: April 1-3
The above events will be hosted at Wichita Hoops and the Wichita Sports Forum. Wichita Hoops is a state of the art, 12-court basketball facility. Wichita Hoops has over 100,000 feet of expansive hardwood basketball courts, and comes with other critical amenities, such as built in shot clocks and scoreboards, as well as electronically adjustable rim heights for Junior Prep Division games. The Wichita Sports Forum is a one-of-a-kind indoor sports facility, which boasts six basketball courts, hardwood and sand volleyball courts along with recreational features like batting cages and a 32,000 square foot air trampoline park for visitors to enjoy.
The top 16 ranked teams for each Adult Division (I, II, III) will earn an invite to their respective divisions’ national tournament. A total of 48 teams from the three Adult Divisions will battle it out for a coveted national title during this event.
The top 16 ranked teams for Varsity level of play in the Junior Division will earn an invite to compete in the National Varsity Wheelchair Basketball Tournament, based on their performance throughout the season. Varsity teams ranked 17-32 will receive an invite to participate in the National Varsity Invitational Wheelchair Basketball Tournament . The top 16 ranked teams from Prep earn an invitation to participate in the National Prep Wheelchair Basketball Tournament.
"On behalf of NWBA Leadership, we couldn’t be more grateful for the investment that Visit Wichita continues to put into the sport of wheelchair basketball," said Will Waller, CEO of the NWBA. "Since the emergence of COVID-19 in March of 2020, they have shown unwavering commitment to provide our members a safe and compelling experience. We are excited to bring over 1,100 wheelchair ballers to Wichita in March of 2022 and showcase our talents on the court and economic impact in the community."
Wichita is no stranger to hosting large scale wheelchair basketball competitions and will be well prepared for this tournament as they have hosted the NWBA Toyota Adult and Junior National Championship Series the last two years.
"Being selected by the National Wheelchair Basketball Association to again host portions of the Toyota National Championship Series is an honor,” said Josh Howell, vice president of sports development at Visit Wichita. “We’re thrilled for yet another opportunity to showcase Sedgwick County and Wichita’s world-class facilities, and just as we did in 2020 and 2021, we plan to put our best foot forward and provide a fantastic welcome to the athletes and their friends and family from across the country."
Wichita has also hosted numerous sporting events over the past few years and have many more on the calendar. In 2018, Wichita was host to the first and second round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament as well as the US Figure Skating Synchronized Skating Sectionals. Wichita also hosted the NAIA Men’s Wrestling National Championship, a US Figure Skating event, the ECHL Hockey All-Star Game and will host the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament in 2022.
The Local Organizing Committees and NWBA will work to develop and publish detailed fact sheets for the newly awarded events in a timely fashion to allow potential attendees and teams to plan accordingly. All updates will be published on the NWBA website at www.nwba.org and distributed to NWBA registered members.
For information on the tournament, click here.
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About Visit Wichita
Visit Wichita markets the Greater Wichita area and advocates for the city as a destination, increasing travel and tourism as a key economic driver for the city, county, region and state. Visit Wichita is led by president and CEO Susie Santo, and in 2019 travel and tourism contributed more than $1.1 billion in economic impact to the greater Wichita area.
About NWBA
The National Wheelchair Basketball Association is the recognized National Organization for Wheelchair Basketball by the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation and the High Performance Management Organization by the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee. The NWBA trains and selects teams for participation in the Paralympic Games, World Championships, and other international competitions. The NWBA was founded in 1948, and today consists of seven divisions including: Adult Division (I, II and III), Women's Division, Intercollegiate Men's Division, Intercollegiate Women's Division and Junior Division. For more information, visit: www.nwba.org.