X-Men basketball star Christian Upshaw to travel to Serbia for World University Games
 
Antigonish, NS—X-Men basketball point guard Christian ‘T-Bear’ Upshaw has been selected a member of the Canadian men’s development national team and will be travelling to Belgrade, Serbia this July for the World University Games.

Upshaw, a native of Halifax, NS recently completed his third season with the X-Men, enjoying his most successful year to date. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the AUS conference, was a CIS first team All Canadian, and was the co-winner of the StFX Male Athlete of the Year award. He was selected along with 11 other CIS and NCAA players from across the country to represent Team Canada in the 25th Summer Universiade scheduled for July 1-12 in Belgrade, Serbia.

The Summer Universiade is an international multi-sport event that takes place every two years, and is second only to the Olympic Games in the number of participating athletes and countries. The Universiade is open to competitors between the ages of 17 and 28 in the year of the Games who are full-time students at a post-secondary institution (university, college, CEGEP) or have graduated from a post-secondary institution in the year preceding the Games.

“When I heard the news that I had been selected to play for team Canada it was like a dream come true,” commented Upshaw.

“When I was a kid I used to dream of representing my country, so when Coach K [Konchalski] told me the news of playing for team Canada it really was a dream come true; not just for me, but for my community as well.”

“When I put that team Canada jersey on, not only am I representing my country, but I am also representing my family, my StFX family, the city of Halifax, my best friend who I lost to gang violence last year, and every public housing project within the greater Halifax area. It is a breath of fresh air, letting them know that they can do it to,” says Upshaw.

Joining Upshaw as the only other AUS athlete on the team is Phillip Nkrumah from Cape Breton University. The experience will mark Upshaw’s first taste at international competition. The team has been training in Hamilton, ON since mid-June and will be participating in a series of exhibition games in Belgrade prior to the Universiade along with the USA, Russia and Serbia.

The Canadian squad will be guided by head coach Chris O’Rouke from the University of Guelph who leads the team for the second consecutive Universiade.

In 2007, O’Rouke led the Canadian team to a bronze medal finish in Bangkok, Thailand. X-Men alumni Neil MacDonald and Garry Gallimore were team members for the red and white in Bangkok, so Upshaw will be following in their footsteps. Upshaw often spoke throughout this past season with X-Men assistant coach Garry Gallimore about his experience playing for team Canada and dreamt of how amazing it would be if he was ever provided the opportunity.

Now that he does have the chance, Upshaw comments, “I am not going to take it for granted at all. I am in the gym every day of the week, most of the time I am in there twice a day because when it comes to competing, I want to be ready to ‘go to war’ both physically and mentally.”

“My expectations for team Canada are very high, as are my expectations for any team I am a part of. I never expect anything less than gold, no matter whom I am competing with or against, and that expectation will not change this summer, not until somebody else gets the gold.”

The men's basketball squad has been Canada's most successful entry in team sports at the World University Games over the years. Crowned Universiade champions at home in Edmonton in 1983, the Canadians have reached the podium six times over the past nine Games.

They will open preliminary competition against Italy on July 2 and China on July 4 at the Belgrade Arena. To follow team Canada’s results, visit the CIS website, Universiade website or Canada Basketball website. The complete men’s development team roster follows below.

2009 DEVELOPMENT MEN's NATIONAL TEAM OFFICIAL ROSTER
4    Chris Dyck, Guard, 6'4, Winnipeg, MB, University of British Columbia
5    Boris Bakovic, Forward, 6'7, Toronto, ON, Ryerson University
6    Ross Bekkering, Forward, 6'9, Taber, AB, University of Calgary
7    David Collins, Centre, 6'11, Toronto, ON, Bradley University
8    Josh Gibson-Bascombe, Guard, 6'4, Toronto, ON, University of Ottawa
9    Keenan Jeppesen, Forward, 6'6, Hamilton, ON, U of Western Ontario
10  Phillip Nkrumah, Forward, 6'5, Brampton, ON, Cape Breton University
11  Josh Whyte, Guard, 6'3, Calgary, AB, University of British Columbia
12  Dax Dessureault, Centre, 6'9, Ottawa, ON, University of Ottawa
13  Christian Upshaw, Guard, 5'10, Halifax, NS, St. FX University
14  Jacob Doerksen, Forward, 6'6, Vancouver, BC, Trinity Western U
15  Greg Surmacz, Forward, 6'8, Peterborough, ON, University of Windsor

2009 DEVELOPMENT MEN's NATIONAL TEAM STAFF
Chris O'Rourke, Head Coach, University of Guelph
Darrell Glenn, Assistant Coach, Humber College
Geoff Mabey, Athletic Therapist 
Mat Yorke, Team Manager, Toronto Raptors