Kamloops's sporting identity is easier to understand when the city's history, venue details, and event records are read together. Canada's Tournament Capital is the current name used by the City of Kamloops, but an individual trip still depends on a particular competition schedule and venue. This guide sets out the background and the facilities named in the City's information, so athletes, spectators, and group organizers can distinguish established venues from longer-term plans.
From Tournament Capital of BC to Canada's Tournament Capital
The City's Tournament Capital account traces the provincial recognition to 1984, when Kamloops was formally named the Tournament Capital of BC. The concept later developed into Canada's Tournament Capital as the city expanded its ambitions and infrastructure. The City identifies the 1993 Canada Summer Games as a turning point that demonstrated its ability to host a large, multi-sport competition.
As of October 2026, the City's account describes more than 100 tournaments and major events choosing Kamloops each year and more than $50 million invested in sport infrastructure. Those city-wide figures explain the scale of the hosting program; they do not specify the dates, location, or arrangements for any one event. Start an itinerary with the competition's own schedule, then use venue information to understand where each session fits.
The Venues
The City names the Tournament Capital Centre, Canada Games Aquatic Centre, Tournament Capital Ranch, Sandman Centre, McArthur Island Sport and Event Centre, and McArthur Island Park among its sporting infrastructure. Keep the full venue name in a shared itinerary. A reference to Kamloops or the Tournament Capital alone is too broad to tell a group where to meet.
The City's Tournament Capital Centre facility details describe several distinct spaces. The Canada Games Aquatic Centre has a 50-metre indoor pool with eight swimming lanes. The fieldhouse provides 65,000 square feet, including three hardwood FIBA-certified courts and a 200-metre, six-lane indoor track. Hillside Stadium has seating for 1,300 and a 400-metre, eight-lane outdoor track installed in summer 2023.
These measurements describe facilities, not an event's seating allocation, pool configuration, or public access during competition. Do not turn a venue's features into assumptions about what a spectator or participant can use during a particular session. The event schedule and its instructions should remain the basis for that day's plan.
Reading a Competition Schedule
For a group trip, write the venue name beside every session rather than leaving it only at the top of an itinerary. Keep arrival, competition, and departure times separate, and identify which instructions apply to athletes and which apply to spectators. This makes it easier to spot gaps before travelling and avoids asking one person to remember the details for everyone. Leave free time genuinely flexible until the competition commitments are clear.
Recent Events
The City's event hosting history lists the 55+ BC Games in September 2026, the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships in 2025, and the Kamloops International Cup in both 2024 and 2025. Its record also includes the Memorial Cup and Scotties Tournament of Hearts in 2023, and the Canada 55+ Games in 2022, moved from 2020.
This record shows the variety of events associated with the city's hosting program. It is a history, so treat its dates as past events rather than as an upcoming calendar. A previously hosted competition does not establish that it will return on the same dates or use the same venue. For the trip being planned, keep historical examples separate from confirmed competition arrangements.
Build Kamloops
The City introduced Build Kamloops in 2024 to continue investment in sport and recreation infrastructure, with arts and culture also part of the program. Its program overview describes a multi-year, multi-phase effort and records several different kinds of milestone.
A mini rink was added at McArthur Island Sport and Event Centre in October 2025. The Kamloops Centre for the Arts groundbreaking followed in November 2025, and the future home of the curling and racquet sports complex was announced in January 2026. These dates explain the stages recorded by the program. A future site announcement or groundbreaking should not be read as confirmation that a facility is open for a competition.
For visitors, that distinction keeps plans grounded in the venue actually named by an event. Use the established facility details to understand the setting, the hosting history for background, and the Build Kamloops milestones to understand the city's direction. Keep any assumptions about future facilities out of a present itinerary until the relevant arrangements are confirmed.