By Jackson Gardner

In less than a month, TRU will be front and centre as they prepare to host the 2022 USPORT National Championship. The prestigious annual tournament will take place at Hillside Stadium with the top eight teams in the nation competing for their spot on the podium.

Long-time Kamloopsians will remember the last time the Sports National Championship came to TRU. In 2017, Hillside stadium turned into a fortress and brought an already tight-knit Kamloops community together as they backstopped the TRU Wolfpack to a podium finish, capping a successful tournament by beating UBC on penalties to win the bronze medal. This proved to be a turning point for the Wolfpack Men’s soccer program, turning a program that had previously never made playoffs, into a program that has made playoffs for five consecutive seasons (2017-present) and is on the national radar. Kamloops is dubbed the ‘tournament capital of Canada’, this means they’re no stranger to big tournaments. But what could one of this magnitude mean for TRU as an institution?

The USPORT National Championship is the biggest University sports event. In terms of exposure, TRU is unlikely to ever witness a larger crowd than the 2000+ spectators that will fill Hillside Stadium’s stands in November. An event this large provides the best local exposure there is, and with tournament passes coming at $50 per pass, it also provides a nice stream of income for the athletics department. “There’s just nothing like it, playing in front of these amazing fans. The amount of local support we get is unbelievable and I am so grateful to be part of such a fantastic community, with and without sport.” said Wolfpack winger Dylan Hooper, who is lacing up in his fourth season with the pack. On top of the local exposure, the USPORT National Championship games are also aired on CBC, which is the most watched broadcasting channel in Canada. TRU could see a great benefit from having such a significant platform to promote its name.

Hooper celebrating a goal (Snucins 2022, Wolfpack Flickr)

Since the last National Championship, TRU has gained traction on an international scale. In 2017, the university had 4,579 international students attending the university. In 2022, that count has risen by over 16% to 5,464 (TRU Factbook, 2022). While the data shows an increase starting from the last National Championship, there is no way to be sure if that is due to the exposure TRU gained in 2017. However, there are certain cases where the national championship had some influence on those looking at universities to attend. “Obviously as a university athlete you want to be playing on the biggest stage, and there really is no bigger

stage than the national championship. That made my decision to come to TRU that much easier when looking at universities. Of course you want to back yourself and earn the right to be there with no matter which team you’re with, but it’s nice knowing that come November you will 100% be playing in the biggest university tournament and not only that, but in front of your own fans. It’ll be a surreal experience” said Mikkel Rosenlund, a second-year international recruit from Denmark.

There appears to be a pattern when examining some of the top universities in the soccer rankings. The universities that make it into the top eight are among the best post-secondary institutions in the country, in addition to having very strong athletic programmes. The likes of York University, UBC, University of Montreal among others are in the thick of it year after year, both in the classroom and on the pitch. To have TRU in the mix with them will be sure to bode well for the university. Honorary sixth-year Josh Banton from England, a member of the 2017 Wolfpack team that won bronze stated “Yeah honestly when I first came here I knew a bit about TRU but not too much, it was a bit of a risk for me. Looking back 5 years later after hosting nationals its incredible to see how far TRU has come. If you look at the campus, it’s way more developed. If I met a stranger and told them I went to TRU now they’d nod their head, where I feel like six or seven years ago you wouldn’t have gotten that same reaction. I think that TRU hosting the national championship in 2017 had a huge part to play in that, and I can only see us hosting it in 2022 further developing that reputation.”

Wolfpack Team Huddle (Snucins 2022, Wolfpack Flickr)

The build up and anticipation for this event is already blowing up. With tournament passes selling out quick and over 16,000 views on the most recent promotional video, it’s sure to be a good one this November. Catch the Wolfpack take on the nation’s best this November right here at Hillside Stadium.