September 22, 2015

Ultimate Frisbee team gears up for ‘Olympics’ of university sport

Students to compete in Ultimate Frisbee at Australian University Games on the Gold Coast next week.

Question: What sport includes such terms as, force, bookends, airbender, chicken wing, hammer, pancake and scoober? 

Clue: The name includes the word Ultimate. And we are not talking about Ultimate Cage Fighting, Ultimate Bubble Soccer, Ultimate Roller Derby or Ultimate Table Tennis. 

The answer: Ultimate Frisbee, called simply “Ultimate” by those who play, because the word “Frisbee” is trademarked. 

This is far from the daggy backyard Frisbee you played with your cousins growing up and for some UOW students, Ultimate Frisbee is not only a serious and competitive pastime, but also a fast-growing sport that offers a unique sense of sportsmanship and community to those involved. 

The game, which was invented as a joke in the 1970s and has recently been recognised by International Olympic Committee, is a little bit like soccer, a little bit like netball, and a little bit like nothing you’ve ever played before. The seven a side contest involves handlers, the experienced throwers and cutters, who are responsible for offensive and defensive lines. The goal is to score points by catching a pass in the opponent’s end zone. 

“We train three times a week, three hours a session. It’s a lot of running, a lot of throwing and a lot of fun,” James Nicholls, Vice President of the UOW Ultimate Frisbee Club, said. 

UOW will send two ‘Ultimate’ teams to the upcoming Australian University Games, held on Queensland’s Gold Coast next week from 27 September to 2 October. 

Since its inception in 1993, the Australian University Games has grown to be Australia's largest annual multi sport event, renowned for providing a friendly but competitive environment for Australian university athletes, with more than 30 individual and team sports and in excess of 7,000 students participating. 

“Last year the UOW Ultimate Frisbee team came in fifth place. This year we have an all male team and an all female team, and after all of our intensive training, I’m hoping we can better that result this time on the Gold Coast,” James said. 

All teams competing in the Australia University Games qualify through regional university games, such as The Eastern University Games. 

UOW will host thousands of visiting university athletes from across New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory when the Eastern University Games comes to the university in July 2016.