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Richmond Olympic Oval will host the first Cars and Hoops tournament this weekend.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Cars and Hoops tournament happening Saturday

By Matthew Cheung

Published 11:18 PDT, Wed July 6, 2022

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The Cars and Hoops foundation has partnered with Luxury & Supercar to host a basketball tournament on Saturday (July 9) at the Richmond Olympic Oval.

Founded eight months ago, the non-profit organization has organized the event “in order to provide unique experiences and raise funds for children facing life-threatening illnesses,” according to its website.

Luxury & Supercar has hosted previous supercar events like the Diamond Rally and Van Dusen Luxury & Supercar Weekend.

“Through COVID, we heard about a lot of charities experiencing money issues,” says Luxury & Supercar founder and chair Ian Walker. “Being from Beijing, China, I had experience in organizing such events, and being a student at (the University of British Columbia), I made a lot of great relationships and realized I had an opportunity to try and fill that gap. Additionally, I noticed there was a disconnect between Chinese and Western people, and they were disassociated from each other. I wanted to host an event where Westerners and Chinese (people) could enjoy a family event open to everyone.”

The three-on-three tournament will run from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. It will include 35 teams who will be provided with food, beverages, jerseys, and general admission tickets to the Cars and Hoops charity festival. Teams will be made up of a maximum of four players, all of whom must be aged 19 or older. There is a $200 entry fee for each team.

The tournament format will be double elimination. The event will take place in the waterfront area, four basketball courts inside the Richmond Olympic Oval, and the River Green Presentation Centre.

Outside businesses have also been given the chance to sponsor teams for $1,000 to promote their company branding or logo in front of an audience of more than 1,500 people. Additionally, sponsors of teams will receive two VIP tickets, which will give them access to complimentary food and drinks at the festival tent, and two court-side tickets during their teams’ games.

Fans of the sport or of luxury cars will be required to pay a $40 general admission fee in order to attend the event. Student tickets are $30 each. At the tent outside, fans of luxury cars will be able to check out 80 different unique supercars as well as vote for which car they like best.

“We are confident in the team that we have, as they have run great events previously. (We) are excited to bring some fun to Richmond, while raising money for a great cause,” says Walker.

Proceeds from the event will be donated to Canuck Place Children’s Hospice, which provides pediatric palliative care to children and their families through pain and symptom management, therapy, and counselling, as well as end-of-life care.

In addition to hosting this event annually, the Cars and Hoops foundation is also hoping to create a sports scholarship for Richmond students.

“It was something one of the members on our team had wanted when he was in high school, so he wanted to give students that opportunity,” says Walker.

Tickets are on sale until the day of the event. For more information, visit carsandhoops.com