Help kids get in the game! Ritchie Bros. to host Olympic athletes, local celebrities and companies during 4th annual Corporate Kids Challenge

This one-day fundraising extravaganza benefiting KidSport BC™ features sports day activities and a live charity auction-sign up your corporate team today!

VANCOUVER, Sept. 10, 2013 /CNW/ - Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE andTSX: RBA),  the world's largest industrial auctioneer, will host the fourth annual Corporate Kids Challenge and live charity auction to benefit KidSport BC™ on Saturday, September 14, 2013. Among the donated auction items: Vancouver Canucks gift packages, a deluxe fishing trip vacation for two at Stuart Island, BC and much more. In 2012, the event raised CA$545,000 for KidSport BC™, which helps underprivileged children participate in organized sports. Twenty corporate sponsor teams from across Greater Vancouver are already registered to participate in this year's Challenge, but there's still time to sign up your own corporate team today—visit www.rbauction.com/kidschallenge for more details.

"This year marks 20 years of KidSport™—we were established by Sport BC in 1993—so we are ready to make this year's Corporate Kids Challenge bigger than ever," said Pete Quevillon, Director, KidSport BC™. "Thanks to the collaboration of various organizations from around BC, athletes and local celebrities, we will help even more kids from our province participate in the next season of sport."

This year's event theme is "1993" in honour of KidSport's 20-year anniversary and it will welcome Olympic athletes and local celebrities to participate in the sports day challenge on various corporate teams. BC government representatives are also planning to attend the event. Some of the Olympians and celebrities participating in the event include:

• Michelle Stilwell — Five-time Canadian Paralympic medal winner in women's basketball and women's athletics and BC Liberal MLA for the Parksville-Qualicum riding
• Richard Hortness — Two-time Canadian Olympian in men's swimming
• Maëlle Ricker — first Canadian woman to win Olympic gold on home soil for women's snowboarding
• Tommy Europe — Two-time all-star defensive back in the CFL and host of TV's "The Last 10 Pounds Bootcamp", "Bulging Brides" and "Tommy Europe Fitness"

This old-school sports day event will feature 20 corporate sponsor teams of 10-15 members dressed in their grungy flannel 90's shirts and competing against each other in unique athletic challenges. Teams include:

Bell Burnaby Firefighters Deloitte Ernst & Young Hewlett-Packard Hilton Vancouver Metrotown KPMG *Defending Corporate Kids Challenge Champion Marsh/ACE McCarthy Tétrault PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Ritchie Bros. Financial Services Samsung Traction On Demand Unity Telecom Triple O's ViaSport BC WPCG Consulting Westminster Savings Credit Union

Members of the public are welcome to attend the sports-day event to cheer on the corporate teams, athletes and celebrities!

After the sports day events, Ritchie Bros. will conduct a live charity auction featuring a two-person, two-night salmon fishing trip and luxury accommodations at the exclusive Warm Springs Resort, located on the private Stuart Island, British Columbia, and other unique auction items donated by local companies and members of the business community. The auction, taking place on site at the event at approximately 6:00 pm, is unreserved—meaning every item sells to the highest bidder, regardless of price. Registration to bid is free; you can register and bid in the auction one of three ways:

1. In person if taking part in the sports day at the Corporate Kids Challenge event (Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers International Head Office at 9500 Glenlyon Parkway, Burnaby V5J 0C6)
2. Live and in real time using Ritchie Bros.' online bidding service at www.rbauction.com (open to all members of the public)
3. By placing a proxy bid ahead of the auction (email: [email protected]) (open to all members of the public)

"Ritchie Bros. is proud to support athletic programs in our community—we are proud and honoured to host this annual event," added Peter Blake, CEO of Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers and Ritchie Bros. Corporate Kids Challenge team member. "We congratulate KidSport on 20 years of doing great things for our communities!"

About KidSport™
Established in 1993 by Sport BC, KidSport™ is a community-based sports funding program that provides grants for financially disadvantaged children ages 18 and under to participate in amateur sport and learn valuable life lessons and skills. The organization operates 177 chapters across Canada, 41 of which are based British Columbia. For more information about KidSport™ and how you can help in your community, please visit www.kidsport.bc.ca.

About Ritchie Bros. 
Established in 1958, Ritchie Bros. (NYSE andTSX: RBA) is the world's largest seller of used equipment for the construction, transportation, agriculture, material handling, energy, mining, forestry, marine and other industries. Ritchie Bros.^TM solutions make it easy for the world's builders to buy and sell equipment with confidence, including live unreserved public auctions with on-site and online bidding (rbauction.com), the EquipmentOne^TM secure online marketplace (EquipmentOne.com), a professional corporate asset management program, and a range of value-added services, including equipment financing for customers through Ritchie Bros. Financial Services (rbauctionfinance.com). Ritchie Bros. has operations in more than 25 countries, including 44 auction sites worldwide. Learn more at RitchieBros.com.

Attention Media: You are welcome to attend this charity fundraising event (an opening ceremony will take place at approximately 1:10 pm, prior to the sports day events. The live charity auction begins at approximately 6:00 pm).

Expected visuals include:

• Speeches by BC government dignitaries as well as KidSport BC™ and Ritchie Bros. officials
• Parade of corporate sponsor teams dressed in their best 90's attire
• Corporate sponsor teams competing in various sports day challenges
• Live charity auction with a live auctioneer and animated "bid catchers" yelling "YUP!" and raising their hands to relay the bids from the crowd to the auctioneer
• Award ceremony recognizing the big players of the event
• Interviews with Olympic athletes, celebrities, government dignitaries as well as KidSport BC™ and Ritchie Bros. officials

Members of the public and the media can follow Ritchie Bros. on Twitter @RitchieBros and KidSport BC™ @kidsport.

 

SOURCE: Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers

Ian Malinski, Corporate Communications Specialist
Phone: [phone] or email: [email protected]