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Quidditch Championship Coming to Allendale, Michigan This Weekend
The best of the Midwest region compete in a co-ed, full-contact sport
This weekend, the collegiate and club quidditch teams of the Midwest will gather at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan to determine the regional champion. 30 teams and over 500 players from 12 states – Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin – will all be in attendance. The top 18 teams will also qualify for the US Quidditch World Cup 8, to be held in Rock Hill, South Carolina on April 11-12, 2015.
Real-life quidditch has swept the nation as an intense, co-ed full-contact adaptation of the sport from the Harry Potter books, with more than 170 official teams, 4,000 players, eight annual championship events, and hundreds of thousands of fans. The sport is played with seven active players on each team: three chasers who attempt to move, pass, or score with the quaffle (a volleyball) by shooting it through their opponents’ three hoops, and two players who hurl bludgers (dodgeballs) to temporarily knock opposing players out of the game. There is also a keeper to defend the hoops, and a seeker on each team to chase the snitch – a velcro tail attached to the shorts of a swift runner dressed in yellow. The game ends when the snitch is caught, and the winning team earns an extra 30 points, equivalent to three goals.
Games will run this weekend at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan, at the West Campus outdoor athletic fields, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 8, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 9. This event will feature music, food trucks, children’s activities, and games. Admission and parking for the tournament are free and open to the public. To learn more about the event and to view attending teams, please visit: http://www.usquidditch.org/about/Midwest-RC
The event is supported by the West Michigan Sports Commission, dedicated to hosting a diverse level of youth and amateur sporting events, and the tournament will take place in the greater Grand Rapids area. As an area passionate about sports and fitness, Grand Rapids is proud to host many popular sporting events in addition to this weekend’s quidditch tournament – Fifth Third Riverbank Run, Grand Cycling Classic, Grand Rapids Marathon, Grand Rapids Yacht Club Regattas, Millennium Triathlon and the Meijer State Games of Michigan. To learn more about the West Michigan Sports Commission and the Grand Rapids area, please visit: http://www.westmisports.com/
The Mid-West Regional Championship is organized by US Quidditch, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to governing the sport of real-life quidditch and inspiring young people to lead more active and engaged lives. US Quidditch is not affiliated with JK Rowling, Warner Bros., or Time Warner. To learn more about US Quidditch, please visit: http://www.usquidditch.org
