Youth basketball athletes in Saskatoon now have another option to get training and instruction in.
After years of operating in Regina, HoopLife Basketball Training has begun a new chapter with their first major expansion into Saskatoon following their grand opening at Saskatchewan Polytechnic.
“We started in Regina seven and a half years ago,” said HoopLife founder and CEO Andrew Gottselig. “This has been a goal for a long time and we’re blessed to have the opportunity to be here, to have someone like Sask Polytech to partner with to use their facilities.”
A for-profit training centre, HoopLife will be operating out of Saskatchewan Polytechnic five days a week to provide basketball instruction and training for kids between the ages of four and 17 years old.
According to Gottselig, the goal will be to build their own facility in Saskatoon by 2026 similar to their current gymnasium space located in Regina.
“In Regina we have a 9,000-square-foot facility,” said Gottselig. “In the next two years within, we will do that in Saskatoon as well. The people who win from that is the kids, the community will win. That’s our north star right now, is how fast can we get that so kids can come to open gym seven days a week.”
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Along with their Saskatoon expansion, HoopLife is also serving as the official youth development partner for the CEBL’s Saskatchewan Rattlers.
It completes a path from the youth ranks to the professional level, which coach and vice-president of sales Keegan Edwards said will benefit the development of young basketball players throughout the province.
“I think it really has a deep meaning and a value for all of the kids that are in Saskatchewan who previously thought that professional basketball was really out of reach,” said Edwards. “That it was unattainable, that it’s somewhere far away.”
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