Canada’s National Wheelchair Rugby Team will begin their quest for the 2018 Wheelchair Rugby World Championship on Sunday evening at the Quaycenter. Canada will play France in their opening match, a team they have yet to ever face at a major international competition.

Canada’s preparations for this match have gone well thus far. Athletes and staff arrived a week before the start of the competition, which enabled the team to acclimatize nice and steadily to the new environment. Daily practice sessions were also held, which helped sharpen the players’ skills as well as iron out any remaining kinks.

“I’ve been happy with how training has progressed. We have been fortunate enough to have been given the opportunity train Sydney a week before the tournament is set to begin. That’s given us the chance to adjust to the time difference and fully recover from the long travel.” said Head Coach Patrick Côté. “As for the training itself, I’m liking the way we look right now. We’re definitely working our way up to position, where we’ll be able to perform at our best.”

France, ranked 7^th in the world, will put up a tough fight in the opening match. They are likely to use a high-low lineup strategy against Canada, and rely on the try output of Ryadh Sallem (3.5) and Jonathan Hivernate (3.0).

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Key Facts:  FRANCE

World Championship: 9th Place (2014)
Paralympics: 8th Place (2012), 7th (2016)
World Ranking: 7
2018 WRWC Qualification: 3^rd Place – IWRF 2017 European Championship
Head Coach: Olivier Cusin
Squad: Ryadh Sallem (3.5), Jonathan Hivernat (3.0), Christophe Salegui (3.0), Sébastien Verdin (3.0), Brice Maurel (2.5), Nicolas Rioux (2.0), Nicolas Valentim (2.0), Mathieu Thiriet (1.5), Cédric Nankin (1.5), Christophe Corompt (1.0), Corentin Le Guen (0.5), Adrien Chalmin (0.5)

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“France are a very solid team. They have been to the last two Paralympics and qualified straight out of the European Championships last year. They have experienced players, that have been around for quite a length of time. They have speed and play well as a unit, so I’ll likely be a tough battle throughout” said Patrick Côté.

Six players on Team Canada are in line to make their first appearance at a World Championship on Sunday; Cody Caldwell, Shayne Smith, Eric Furtado Rodrigues, Anthony Létourneau, Matt Debly and Branden Troutman. Patrick Côté is confident that, if called upon against France, all six will be able to contribute to the team’s success.

“Obviously a win would be important for us but what I also want to see is our entire lineup contribute to the team’s success. I want to be able to switch up the lineups, instead of just running one or two combinations against France” said Côté. “I believe that our key to success for this match against France will be our depth. If the younger players are able to contribute to the overall team effort, I think it’ll help us to secure the win.”

Canada’s match against France will be played on Sunday, August 5 2018 at 02:30 EST. The match will be available to be watched live on Wheelchair Rugby Canada’s Facebook page HERE.

All matches will also be available live on cbcsports.ca and via the CBC Sports app will be livestreamed on cbcsports.ca and via the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices, as well as cbc.ca/watch and via the CBC TV App.