Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago Hosts 14th Annual Wirtz Wheelchair Basketball Tournament
December 10, 2003
SKOKIE—The Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (RIC) wheelchair basketball teams, the RIC Hornets I & II, two men’s team, and a women’s team, RIC Express, will be hosting their 14th Annual Wirtz Wheelchair Basketball tournament, December 6-7, 2003, at the Weber Leisure Center in Skokie, located at the intersection of Church and Gross Point Road.
RIC’s basketball programs are affiliated with the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) and are played in accordance with NCAA rules, with a few exceptions outlined by the NWBA. The RIC Express women's wheelchair basketball team is the only women's wheelchair basketball team in the Chicago area. The Express plays local games against men's teams and travel to women's tournaments once a month.
The RIC Hornets I will compete at the Division II level and the RIC Hornets II will compete at the Division III level. The RIC Express will compete in the Division III tournament. Games will be held from 1:00 - 8:00 p.m., Saturday, December 6th, and 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Sunday, December 7th. Participating teams will include the RIC Hornets I & II, RIC Express, Oak Forest Fire, Chicago Wheelchair Bulls, Grand Rapids Pacers, Rockford Chariots and Waukesha Thunder.
RIC wheelchair basketball is made possible in part by a grant from the Chicago Blackhawk Charities, a fund of the McCormick Tribune Foundation. The Annual Wirtz Wheelchair Basketball Tournament is sponsored by the Wilmette Auxiliary of the RIC’s Women’s Board. For more information or interview opportunities with players of the RIC Wheelchair Basketball, photographs, or b-roll, please contact Anne Charles at (312) 238-6019, or visit RIC’s Center for Health and Fitness Web site at www.richealthfit.org.
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Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago is dedicated to helping people with all levels and types of physical disabilities regain or improve their physical functions and empowers them to participate more fully in family, social, vocational and leisure time pursuits. U.S. News & World Report has ranked the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago “The Best Rehabilitation Hospital in America” for 13 consecutive years.
Journalists contact: mediarelations@ric.org, 312-238-6044.
All others contact: webmaster@ric.org.
