News broke during the course of Friday’s play in the CIMA/CIBC High Schools Cricket activities at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Park that player registration had opened, via the CIMA Canada website , for those interested in gaining selection to the 2014 RBC/CIMA “Cricket Across the Pond” tour to the United Kingdom version of London.

“Cricket Across The Pond” is a community initiative led by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants Canadian branch (CIMA Canada), originally in conjunction with the Mayor of Toronto to provide opportunities to youth from diverse neighbourhoods and develop social cohesion and interaction among young people through cricket. The program offers a fully paid cricket training opportunity in the United Kingdom, thanks to financial support lead by RBC (The Royal Bank of Canada). The UK touring party participate in a number of cricket matches in the course of these annual visits.

“Cricket Across the Pond” uses cricket as a vehicle to reach out to youth by giving them a sense of hope, increased self-esteem and opportunities to become positive role models in our communities. The program provides young Greater Toronto Area cricketers with leadership and communications skills and the opportunity to travel to UK and learn life lessons as ambassadors of Toronto. CAP aims to develop these young Toronto ambassadors as youth role models in our communities.

The opportunity to register for the 2014 UK tour is now available through the CIMA Canada website. Those aged between 16 and 20 years old who would like to be considered for a place on the representative tour party, the RBC CIMA Mayor’s X1, during the visit to UK from July 18 until July 26, 2014, are invited to submit registrations by the deadline of Friday June 6, 2014. Selected candidates will be invited to attend a cricket screening session in the second week of June. The CIMA website provides an outline of some specific requirements as well as expected characteristics that will drive the selection process.

The “Cricket Across the Pond” initiative began thanks to cooperation between CIMA Canada and the Mayor of the City of Toronto together with support from the offices of the UK Consul General in Toronto. The initiative attracted financial sponsorship and media support.

The first UK tour took place in 2008 and the program was expanded in 2013 to include applications from the major cities in the Greater Toronto Area which became involved in the CIMA High Schools Cricket Tournament, namely Brampton, Markham and Mississauga.

The type of financial and media support associated with “Cricket Across the Pond” is vital for cricket not just in the Greater Toronto Area but across Ontario and the rest of the country if Canadian cricket is to continue and improve upon achievements in recent years arising from Canada’s qualification for ICC Cricket World Cups in 2003, 2007 and 2011. Some of those selected for previous Cricket Across the Pond tours have played for Canada at youth and senior men’s international levels.