"Today we stand here because all of you made this possible," said Michael Linklater, member of the Saskatoon Public Schools Foundation Board of Directors and world top 3x3 basketball player, at the opening of the Jumpstart Inclusive Basketball Court on October 5, 2023.
While Linklater and other delegates addressed the crowd, students in grades 4 to 6 from King George School had the honour of being the first to try out the new universally accessible court. The students, divided into small groups, rotated through multiple stations, led by local basketball players.
For Grade 6 students Jayla and Chad, the best part of the morning was the wheelchair basketball station, where they participated in races across the court.
"It's fun to ride around in [the wheelchairs] kind of like a bike with two wheels," said Chad.
"Students were invited because this is for them, this is their court," Linklater said, adding that this has been a dream of his since he was a child. Linklater is one of three individuals who presented the idea of the court to Saskatoon City Council in 2019.
