Youth athletes get free tickets to Bombers games

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/07/2012 (4825 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba Lotteries is giving youth rookie athletes the chance to watch the hometown pros play live.

The Manitoba Lotteries Flight Deck, an initiative devoted to youth involvement in amateur sports and the volunteer efforts of their coaches, will award 36 seats for every Blue Bomber home game to young athletes and their coaches.

“Manitoba Lotteries is a proud supporter of sports in the province and we are thrilled to bring young athletes together to share in the Winnipeg Blue Bomber experience,” said Winston Hodgins, President and CEO of Manitoba Lotteries. “After the tremendous positive feedback we received from the athletes, parents and coaches who attended Winnipeg Jets games during Flight Deck’s inaugural season, we committed to extending this very successful program by joining forces with the Winnipeg Football Club.”

Applications for the Manitoba Lotteries Flight Deck are open to Manitoba athletes ages eight to 17 years old and their coaches who have completed Sport Manitoba’s “Respect In Sport” program. The program helps give coaches and sport leaders the tools to deal with abuse, neglect, harassment and bullying in sports.

“We are very proud to partner with Manitoba Lotteries for this great program,” said Blue Bomber President and CEO Garth Buchko. “The Winnipeg Football Club is a proud supporter of amateur sports in this province and the Flight Deck is a tremendous initiative which will reward those who put in a ton of work as both players and coaches in their respective sports.”

And not only footballers are eligible to watch our boys in blue kickoff. All types of youth teams can apply for the “Respect In Sport Program” and to watch the Bombers stomp our home field through the Flight Deck initiative.

“This is a great way to reward the kids for their great effort. Having them all come out to cheer on the Bombers is a great team building exercise,” says Owen Suchar, Southdale Demons soccer coach for 10- and 11-year-old players who will attend the August 16 Blue Bomber game vs. Hamilton. “It’s going to be a first experience for a few of them, so everybody’s pretty pumped.”