The province’s newest specialty licence plate has a distinctive sporting theme with the unveiling of the new Basketball Manitoba licence plate.

“From medaling at national provincial tournaments to winning university championships, Manitoba’s basketball success runs deep,” said Premier Brian Pallister. “Basketball is a sport that encourages teamwork, inclusion and sportsmanship – values our government is committed to reflecting in everything we do.”

Manitobans wanting to show their support for the sport of basketball in Manitoba are encouraged to purchase a set of these specialty licence plates by completing an application at any of the province’s Autopac outlets.

The new plates, which are administered by Manitoba Public Insurance, will be available for purchase starting on Monday, March 20. The cost of each set of plates will be $70, with $30 from every plate purchase going toward the Basketball for Life Fund.

This program provides much-needed support to basketball programming for inner-city children and supports young people in pursuing the sport of basketball at the provincial, national and international levels, the premier noted. Costs involved in the program include competition and training costs, travel and accommodations, equipment and insurance costs.

“Basketball Manitoba is honored to have this specialty licence plate that will support our programming initiatives, while at the same time showing Manitobans’ love and passion for the sport on their vehicles,” said Adam Wedlake, executive director, Basketball Manitoba. “Basketball in our province and country continues to grow at a fast pace and the more resources we can provide to the children of Manitoba to get and stay involved in an active, healthy and positive environment, the better our communities will be. The basketball community has shown a great interest in supporting this initiative and we are excited to see the first plates hit the street very soon.”

More information about the Basketball for Life Fund can be found at www.basketballforlife.ca.