TORONTO B次元官网网址� The Toronto Raptors, a team whose magical playoff run sparked civic pride and raucous enthusiasm across Canada, sent fans into fits of unbridled joy on Thursday as they beat the reigning champ Golden State Warriors in a see-saw thriller to win the NBA championship.
Thousands of spectators who jammed Jurassic Park, the fan zone outside the teamB次元官网网址檚 empty downtown arena, to watch Game 6 of the finals on big screens erupted in gleeful pandemonium as the final buzzer sounded.
B次元官网网址淭his is the best day of my life!B次元官网网址� said John Cooke, 35, of Toronto, as the crowd sang the QueenB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址淲e Are the Champions.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淲hat a night! I canB次元官网网址檛 believe it, I canB次元官网网址檛 believe it!B次元官网网址� said Elias Edraki, 35, also of Toronto.
B次元官网网址淎nd thatB次元官网网址檚 how we do it in the North,B次元官网网址� Prime Minister Trudeau tweeted above a photo of him, two of his children and a dog watching the game.
Jurassic Park watches the Toronto Raptors win the 2019 NBA championship.
B次元官网网址� Sean Craig (@sdbcraig)
Fans had gathered both indoors and at dozens of outdoor venues across the country to cheer on a team from a city many Canadians love to hate, their enthusiasm measured by unusually jammed bars.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 difficult to put into words what this means to me, but my love for my son B次元官网网址� and the Raptors B次元官网网址� is off the charts,B次元官网网址� said John Drzazga, 41, of Grimsby, Ont., whose 10-year-old Dustin roamed the zone in an inflatable dinosaur suit with a two-metre tail.
Dozens of cities across Ontario also held packed viewing events as did many other places from coast to coast, such as Halifax, which threw a massive outdoor block party.
Montreal shut down two city blocks to allow the improbable: people cheering a team from Toronto. Thousands braved the rain, forming a red tide, as organizers handing out B次元官网网址淲e the NorthB次元官网网址� T-shirts.
One man was booed when he arrived in a blue Warriors T-shirt. But he ripped it off to reveal a Raptors jersey. The Warriors shirt was set on fire, burning until police doused it. Fans in Regina, as they did on Monday, watched on the massive screen at the RoughridersB次元官网网址� home stadium, while Edmontonians headed to the Expo Centre.
Even in Rickford, Ill., hometown to Raptors star Fred VanVleet, fans began a party at 6 p.m. at the newly created Jurassic Park RKFD to watch their local hero perform.
B次元官网网址淔red is an amazing basketball player and a genuinely good person both on and off the court,B次元官网网址� Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara said.
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In Oakland, Calif., where the Warriors hosted the Raptors, cheers erupted in Oracle Stadium as Canadian singer-songwriter Sarah McLauchlan performed O Canada and Pat Monahan, of pop-rock act Train, sang The Star Spangled Banner before the tip-off.
Outside Christchurch, New Zealand, a Canadian flag hung on a suburban fence emblazoned, B次元官网网址淟etB次元官网网址檚 Go RaptorsB次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址淲e the North.B次元官网网址�
The championship win by the Raptors marked the first for a Canadian team in one of the big four professional sports since the Toronto Blue Jays won the 1993 World Series and the first NBA team outside the U.S. to go all the way.
And that's how we do it in the North.
B次元官网网址� Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau)
B次元官网网址淚 remember coming here as an immigrant from Sri Lanka in 1989 and we watched Joe Carter hit that home run for the Jays,B次元官网网址� said Subi Mahan, 37, of Pickering, Ont., who was with his two boys, Kiyan, 6, and Kishan, 9. B次元官网网址�(So) to be here and share this with my boys is amazing. This is what love is.B次元官网网址�
According to latest figures from payments firm Moneris, spending in bars nationally jumped 63 per on Monday from the same day a year ago, when the Raptors lost a Game 5 nail-biter by a single point. Edmonton saw the biggest increase with spending jumping a whopping 279 per cent. Spending in Toronto area bars almost doubled.
Love of the Raptors, with their best performance in their 24 seasons, prompted Toronto Mayor John Tory to don his now-signature black-and-gold blazer to visit the gathering crowd Thursday.
B次元官网网址淚t is beyond comprehension that people could be down here, huddled under these makeshift tents, for hours on end, more than a day, overnight,B次元官网网址� Tory said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 cold, itB次元官网网址檚 rainy, itB次元官网网址檚 been such a terrible spring, but theyB次元官网网址檝e been here week after week, day after day, and theyB次元官网网址檙e the greatest fans in sports.B次元官网网址�
THE CANADIAN PRESS
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