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All my friends are heathens take it slow. #tournamentday #quidditch #usf #ucf #chargeon #cfquidditch (en University of South Florida)

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Quidditch: From Books To Brooms up

Any fan of harry potter will hear the word “quidditch” and think back to scenes of flying brooms, rouge bludgers, and of course the golden snitch, a ball worth 150 points that ends the game. It’s no wonder whenever newcomers or onlookers approach the team one of the first questions is always “how does the snitch work?” almost immediately followed by “how do you fly?” while to the seasoned player these questions may be tiresome, there are many differences that have emerged through the transition to “muggle play”. This piece plans to highlight the games magical origins and how it evolved to the international sport it is today. Over the next few weeks’ UCF quidditch will be highlighting every position and its players to help answer “what is quidditch?”

Our journey begins with chapter 11 of the sorcerer’s stone, the chapter harry learns the rules of this famous wizarding sport. The chasers (3 on each team) fly across the pitch and attempt to score points through one of three hoops set about 30 feet into the air. Their path is a gauntlet of opposing chasers attempting to wrestle possession of the quaffle from them and bludgers, metal balls flying around the pitch attempting to knock anyone and everyone off of their broom. These bludgers are fought off by beaters (2 per team) armed with a bat to strike the bludgers off pitch or at the opposing teams chasers. Each team also has one keeper, the player charged with defense of the teams hoops and the last line of defense from a goal. And last but not least, our seeker. Each team has one seeker whose only job during the match is to find and catch the golden snitch, a ball about the size of a golf ball and as hard to catch as a hummingbird. The catch of the snitch ends the game and awards the team 150 points often winning them the game.

Fast forward to 2005, Middlebury college, Vermont. The first game of quidditch is played with towel capes and makeshift brooms. The rules are a little iffy but everyone has fun. By November, seven teams were formed. The sport begins to grow in popularity. Other schools form teams and tournaments are hosted; articles are being published highlighting the sport which only made it gain more momentum. Now there are hundreds of teams both in the us and worldwide, official rulebooks and regulating bodies, and plenty of tournaments no matter what region you are from. And with that growth came a regulation of play and a set of clear rules.

Today, Quidditch is a contact coed sport played worldwide. The capes have disappeared been replaced by mouth guards and the brooms have lost their bristles. However, the concept is generally the same. Chasers marked by white headbands run across pitch to score in the (thankfully lower) hoops. Their progress is often blocked by opposing chasers willing to wrap and tackle to slow quaffle progress and opposing beaters. With beaters, marked by black headbands, come some of the technical differences. There are 3 bludgers on the pitch but 4 beaters between both teams. the beaters job is to throw the bludger at opposing players to disrupt forward momentum. Once beat players must dismount their broom and run back to home hoops before returning to play. Keepers with green headbands still serve as the last line of defense against approaching chasers however, they now also move freely across the pitch serving almost as a fourth chaser. “ok but how does the snitch work?” well dear reader, the snitch is a person wearing a special pair of shorts fit with a Velcro attachment on the back to remove and capture a ball. The snitch and seekers, marked with a yellow headband, are released 17 minutes into the game. A snitch catch still ends the game but only awards the team 50 points.

Every year this organization continues to grow and evolve. This past year world cup saw a record number of participants almost including a team from Uganda. While the sport is stepping away from its harry potter roots, at its core this is still a community founded by harry potter fans, we just got a little more athletic.

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