Leicester Riders
| Leicester Riders | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| League | British Basketball League | ||
| Established | 1967 | ||
| History |
Loughborough All-Stars 1967–1981 Leicester All-Stars 1981–1986 Leicester City Riders 1986–1997 Leicester Riders 1997–present |
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| Arena | Leicester Community Arena | ||
| Capacity | 2,500 | ||
| Location | Leicester, Leicestershire | ||
| Team colours | Red, White and Black | ||
| Main sponsor | Jelson Homes | ||
| Head coach | Rob Paternostro | ||
| Ownership | Kevin Routledge / Russell Levenston | ||
| Website | LeicesterRiders.co.uk | ||
| Uniforms | |||
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The Leicester Riders, officially known as the Jelson Homes Leicester Riders for sponsorship reasons, is a British professional basketball team that play in the British Basketball League (BBL). They are the oldest operating basketball team in the country,
Founded on 26 April 1967 and then known as the Loughborough All Stars, the Leicester Riders are the oldest club in British basketball.
They were founder members of the National Basketball League in 1972 and the BBL in 1987.
The Riders were founded by students and lecturers at Loughborough University in April 1967 and were known as the Loughborough All Stars. They were founder members of the National Basketball League in 1972, and the British Basketball League in 1987, and are the oldest club in British basketball operating at the top flight.
The club moved from Loughborough to Leicester in 1981, backed by Leicester City Council and Leicester City Bus (hence the change in nickname to "Riders"), before moving back to play at Loughborough University in 2000, following the closure of Granby Halls, at a new venue barely a stone's throw from Victory Hall where the club played its first game.
In 2004 the Riders agreed a sponsorship deal with De Montfort University (DMU) and moved back to Leicester, where they played their games at the DMU's John Sandford Sports Centre.
Following a difficult period for the Club financially between 2005 and 2007, former director of the team, Mike Steptoe, and the supporters club formed a consortium which raised enough money to keep the side running. Then local business Jelson Homes stepped forward to sponsor the Club and the appointment of general manager Russell Levenston began a turning point for the club. Part of the sponsorship deal with Jelson Homes was to ensure the future of the club by investing in 'basketball in the community' schemes, providing the youth of Leicester with basketball coaching programmes, such as the "Shoot to the Future" programme, run with the support of the Police.
Riders also now have an extensive youth programme for boys and girls, a Women’s team near the top of England Basketball’s Division One, one of the country’s largest Basketball Apprentice schemes at Charnwood College, and a partnership with Loughborough University, led by the Great Britain men’s captain Drew Sullivan, and which includes a GB Futures player, Jamell Anderson, two Great Britain Under 20 men’s internationals and two Great Britain Under 20 women’s internationals, as well as a number of boys and girls in England Under age international teams. Membership in the Club is expected to reach nearly 1,500 this season. The Club’s community programmes reach nearly 15,000 young people in the City and County.
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