Hotels are full and the city will be bustling through the week as the players and fans of the participating teams of the 60th All Native Basketball Tournament take in a week of thrilling games and cultural celebrations all centred around the Russell Gamble Gymnasium and Civic Centre Complex in Prince Rupert.
By road, ferry and even some by air, travellers have made their way to town for for the sixth decade of what has become one of Prince Rupert's defining events, one celebrated far beyond the city's limits.
The ANBT is however much more than a week of basketball, as old friendships are renewed and events off the basketball court take their share of the spotlight.
From the market like atmosphere of the Civic Centre auditorium, to the always spectacular Opening Ceremonies and Hall of Fame recognition later in the week, all of which serve to shape the narrative for the six days of tournament time.
But it is the basketball that brings it all together and starting with Sunday's games in the Women's and Seniors brackets, the battle will be on to navigate the ANBT schedule through to a placement in the Saturday finales.
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| Prince Rupert's Jim Ciccone Civic Centre will be the hub of the city for the next seven days, with the Russell Gamble Gymnasium serving as the centre of all the action from the 2018 ANBT |
Today makes for the tournament icebreaker games, as the Ladies and Master's division begin their play, leading up to what is always one of the most memorable events of the six day tournament, that of the Opening Ceremonies later this evening.
The official Opening Ceremony for edition number 60 of the annual tourney will start at 8PM, with doors opening at 7PM.
The Sunday night event providing for one of the hardest to get tickets for the week, rivalling those for the Tournament finales of next Saturday.
This years featured dancers will be from Lax Kw'alaams and they will make for the signature event of the week and official welcome for participants and fans from all corners of British Columbia and from our neighbours to the north in Alaska.
Among the many memorable moments to come from the opening will be the parade of the athletes as they enter the Russel Gamble Gymnasium and their respective fans celebrate their arrival.
Tickets for the Opening ceremonies, if any are still available, can be purchased from the ANBT office at 259 - Third Avenue West, directly across from CityWest.
Those who have purchased tournament passes, should note that they still require a separate ticket to
attend the Sunday Night opening event.
Those looking to attend the games of tournament week can take advantage of a number of options ranging from a Tournament pass to single day passes. You can find out more about ticket availability by contacting the ANBT office at 250-627-8997.
Once the Ladies and Master's have led the way with the Sunday openers, the remainder of the field in all divisions will start to see action on Monday.
With a busy Monday schedule kicking the tournament into high gear and non stop action from early morning, well into the late evening through the week.
Matches are set for both the Russell Gamble Gymnasium and the Civic Centre Arena and you can review the Draws for each division here.
A last minute withdrawal by Hyadaburg Seniors has sent tournament organizers scrambling, looking to notify the teams on standby for the potential fill in opportunity, though no further notes have been released by the ANBT organizers so far as to how the schedule will look moving forward.
More on that could come out of the coaches meeting that was to take place Sunday morning at 9AM.
As the week moves towards Championship Saturday, one of the most anticipated evens of tournament time will arrive with the Hall of Fame night, which will see five more members enshrined into Hall for 2019.
The ANBT organizing committee has selected three for memberships this year to be included as part of the 2019 Tournament ceremony.
Those to be celebrated this year include:
Russell Mather, Lax Kw'alaams (player)
William Wesley (CFNR) (builder)
Hydaburg Senior Dynasty Team
Updates on Tournament developments can be found on the ANBT Facebook Page organizers also have some background on the tournament, including a number of photos from the past, available on the ANBT website.
You might even come across a few notes on the tournament action through Twitter, with #ANBT2019 the hashtag of note for this years competition.
As they have in past years, CFNR will be holding the role as host broadcaster for the tournament with play by play of game day action, as well as features on those participating in this years event both on the court and from the many other events that take place during the tournament week.
Once the teams tip off at centre court and the tournament is underway we will be updating our Tournament Results page regularly, as we strive to keep our readers up to date with the flow of results from all divisions through the week.
Our Results page, will also be anchored on our Tournament Archive Page, the Results feature is now live and you can click here for updates.
Our All Native Tournament Page can also be found as part of our North Coast Review Extra Edition feature, located as part of our right hand column of information links.
Our Archive page for this years event, features a range of items about this years tournament, and already it has a number of items from across the Northwest and beyond, with notes on teams and other stories of interest that will shape the next seven days in Prince Rupert.
To review those notes click here.
For those visiting the city from afar, enjoy your stay and the action ahead, if the past is any indication, basketball fans once again will be taking in some high tempo games and at some point by Friday new stories and perhaps even a few new legends will be found on the hardwood at the Russel Gamble Gymnasium.
To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.
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