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We discuss what the heck just happened in Budapest with the below panel.
Skippy Jammer – WFDF Freestyle Chair.
Paul Kenny – FPA Executive Director.
Lori Daniels – FPA Board member & onsite commentator at WUG.
Jake Gauthier – Commentator for WUG live stream via The Olympic Channel.
Emma Kahle & Daniel O’Neill – winners of the gold medal at the inaugural WUG 2019.
Enjoy!
Watch the video replay here at the olympic channel.
Scores Sheets as PDFs
Prelim A WUG Prelim
In 2 days Lori and I will be getting on a plane and heading to Budapest, Hungary for the very first World Urban Games (WUG)! I figured I’d take a break from packing to share an update about this event. If you have not heard that Freestyle is at WUG, it’s a huge deal (!) and the first time that flying disc will be represented in a multi-sport event among other urban activities. We wrote an early article about WUG when it was first announced, but be aware that the venue and dates have changed since it was written. Here’s the official WUG site.
First things first: the Olympic channel will officially be streaming WUG, including Freestyle Flying disc. It can be viewed here and here is the official announcement. I’m hoping I can get an embed code so it will also be viewable on FrisbeeGuru.com, but that is not certain yet.
The next obvious question, when is Freestyle happening? Here is the full schedule for Freestyle, which is sharing the same field-of-play with 3×3 basketball. The important times:
This means that semis and finals are on the same day. We’re not sure if the Olympic Channel will stream every round of Freestyle, but they will definitely be streaming the Finals. Also, this will not be “Frisbee time,” and everyone will be adhering to a tight broadcast schedule. Judges have less than 2 minutes to tally their scores and then the next team is up.
There will also be about 5 different Freestyle demos scheduled, one of which Lori and I will be doing for 5 minutes on Friday, 13 Sept. Other demos are being scheduled now.
Who are the international teams freestyling? In case you missed it from the FPA site, here’s the list of the 12 teams and the 9 countries being represented at the first WUG: (List Updated 9/9)
1. Juliana Korver/Ryan Young (USA)
2. Emma Kahle/Daniel O’Neill (USA)
3. Bianca Strunz/Fabian Dinklage (GER)
4. Ilka Simon/Waldemar Wagner (GER)
5. Maxine Mittempergher/Edo Turri (ITA)
6. Anna Bragagnolo/Andrea Rimatori (ITA)
7. Joakim Arveskar/Vendella Arveskar (SWE)
8. Bar Bendek/Yuval Reikoren (ISR)
9. Benedicte Audet/Brett Schramek (CAN)
10. Marysia Ryszarda Krajewska/Kuba Radwanska (POL)
11. Sophie Rickers/Gordon Brown (UK)
12. Paola Andrea Garcia Palaez/Pablo Azul (COL)
The last thing I will mention is a follow up to the discussion Randy and I had in this podcast episode where I mentioned that Bethany and I might be providing commentary for the stream. That is now confirmed, so when you tune in to the Olympic Channel, you will be hearing our voices. How cool is that?! Lori will be the on-site, field-of-play MC with a Hungarian Co-host. We hope to engage, educate, and entertain so audiences become more interested in Freestyle Disc.
What do you think about Freestyle Disc in the WUG? Do you have any predictions about who will win, who will podium, and why? Let me know in the comments, or send me an email.
Photo by Ron Kretschmann
This is such exciting news for Freestyle Frisbee that I just had to share: Freestyle Frisbee is set to be a part of the inaugural World Urban Games (WUG) in Los Angeles, California, USA Budapest, Hungary in 2019! Freestyle Frisbee will be featured in the 5 3 day event (Sept 18-22 Sept 13-15).
World Urban Games is a new event, hosted by The Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF). According to their site, “GAISF’s vision is to present a united voice of sport in support of the Olympic ideals and of the Olympic movement and promote sport at every level and in every corner of the world, from grassroots to elite, wherever its members have national organizations and events.”
The World Urban Games event is an effort to give exposure to up-and-coming, modern sports.
“The programme and festival will showcase all that is best about sports which have been forged by youth and urban culture and which celebrate competition, creativity, lifestyle and the engagement between competitors and fans.” – GAISF President Patrick Baumann
Sounds to me like a perfect description of Freestyle Frisbee. The GAISF must have agreed, since they started with a list 14 eligible sports and narrowed their selection down to 7.
How did freestyle get to be a part of this? Back in 2014 the World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) approached the Freestyle Player’s Association (FPA) about pitching freestyle disc as part of their bid for flying disc to be a part of WUG. As members of WFDF, the FPA gave full support. Various jammers world-wide (Germany, France, USA) provided photos and videos of freestyle in urban settings. From there, WFDF made the proposal to GAISF. Freestyle was eventually accepted for eligibility and then made the final cut for inclusion.
“Having Freestyle added as an eligible sport for the first edition of the World Urban Games means bringing another Flying Disc sport to a Multisport Games presence, which is a major step for the development of Freestyle internationally, opening new opportunities for our community.” – Kevin “Skippy” Givens, WFDF Freestyle Committee Chair
For 2019, the city of Los Angeles will build a new new urban park specifically for WUG in El Segundo (CA). There will be ~700 competitors, a music festival, and the event is expected to be the focus of global media attention. Competition events will include 3×3 Basketball (FIBA), BMX Freestyle (UCI), Sports Climbing Bouldering (IFSC), Break Dance (WDSF), Freestyle Flying Disc (WFDF), Parkour (FIG), Skateboard Street and Park (World Skate), Roller Freestyle (World Skate).
This is quite possibly the largest international venue that our sport has ever been presented on, which is a tremendous opportunity for world-wide exposure of freestyle disc!
The FPA is stepping up to prepare. Their plan is to present a mixed pairs event with 12 internationally represented teams from as many different countries as possible; with a maximum of 3 teams per country. The FPA is also investigating sponsorship opportunities for competitors and staff, to ensure that the best of our sport will be represented at this event. This is an amazing chance for teams to perform in front of a huge crowd, and be pioneers in representing the sport on the world stage.
I, for one, am hugely excited about freestyle being selected for the World Urban Games. I look forward to keeping track of the preparation progress and with helping out in any way I can. If you want to help out too, you can always support the FPA by becoming a member, donating, shopping, or volunteering.
For more details, check out the links below.
What are your thoughts about this opportunity? Let me know in the comments below.
