World Flying Disc Federation

The World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) is the international governing body for flying disc sports, with responsibility for sanctioning world championship events, establishing uniform rules, setting of standards for and recording of world records. WFDF is a federation of member associations which represent flying disc sports and their athletes in 85 countries. WFDF is an international federation recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), a member of ARISF, GAISF, and the International World Games Association, and it is a registered not-for-profit 501(c)(3) corporation in the state of Colorado, USA.

World Flying Disc Federation
SportFlying disc sports
CategoryUltimate, disc golf, Guts, double disc court, freestyle
JurisdictionInternational
AbbreviationWFDF
Founded1985 (1985)
Official website
www.wfdf.org

Membership

WFDF has member associations in 85 countries, from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, The Caribbean and South America. WFDF is a not-for-profit corporation, incorporated in Colorado, US, and it was formed in 1985. Disc sports represented include: Ultimate (outdoor, indoor, beach), disc golf, field events (distance, accuracy, self caught flight, discathon), guts frisbee, double disc court, and freestyle. WFDF is a member of Global Association of International Sports Federations (formerly known as SportAccord), The International World Games Association (IWGA), and the International Council of Sport Science and Physical Education (ICSSPE). In May 2013, under the leadership of WFDF President Robert L. "Nob" Rauch, WFDF was granted provisional recognition by the International Olympic Committee and gained full IOC recognition on 2 August 2015. It is now one of 42 sports that are members of the Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations.[1][2]

History

Flying disc sport rose with the invention of plastic and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2007. The early years of international flying disc play were dominated by the influence of the International Frisbee Association (IFA) which was founded by Ed Headrick in 1967 as the promotional arm of the Wham-O Manufacturing Company. Many of the international affiliates began as Wham-O distributorships that sponsored tours of well-known Frisbee athletes. Several groups of individual disc event stars like Ken Westerfield and Jim Kenner touring Canada in 1972.[3][4] The brothers Jens and Erwin Velasquez and the team of Peter Bloeme and Dan "Stork" Roddick made several tours of Scandinavia and the rest of Europe in the mid-1970s; Jo Cahow and Stork went to Australia and Japan in 1976 and Victor Malafronte and Monica Lou toured Japan around the same time. Stork—starting as head of the sports marketing arm of the U.S.-based Wham-O in 1975—played a crucial role in encouraging the establishment of national flying disc associations (FDAs) in Sweden, Japan, Australia, and in many of the countries of Western Europe. The FDAs began with freestyle and accuracy competitions but as Ultimate and disc golf caught on, the associations began to broaden their focus.[5]

The concept of an independent world organization for the development and coordination of all of the disc disciplines began in 1980 at an Atlanta, Georgia, meeting of 40 international disc organizers. A loose federation led by Jim Powers was formed from that meeting but never took off. The following year, the relatively well-established national flying disc associations of Europe formed the European Flying Disc Federation (EFDF). In 1983 Wham-O was sold to Kransco and the IFA was disbanded. Spurred on by the demise of the IFA, Stork called a meeting at the US Open Overall Championships in La Mirada, California. A plan was presented by Charlie Mead of England and a formal decision was made to establish a worldwide disc association in Örebro, Sweden during the 1984 European Overall Championships. This decision was confirmed later that year by other flying disc countries in Lucerne, Switzerland, during the World Ultimate and Guts Championships, and thus the World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) was born.

The first WFDF Congress was held in Helsingborg, Sweden in July 1985, where the first set of statutes was adopted and the first board was elected. The first president was Charlie Mead (England), the first secretary Johan Lindgren (Sweden) and the first treasurer Brendan Nolan (Ireland). Membership was composed of the national flying disc associations and US-oriented organizations such as the Ultimate Players Association, Freestyle Players Associations, and Guts Players Association. Committees were established to oversee international play and rules for each of the disc disciplines. Over the remainder of the 1980s, WFDF took on an increasing role in overseeing and promoting international disc tournaments with Stork as President and Lindgren as Secretary-Treasurer.

In 1992, Robert L. "Nob" Rauch was elected President of WFDF and Juha Jalovaara become chair of the Ultimate Committee. Over the next two years, WFDF was reorganized to better reflect the increasing growth of Ultimate and the diversity of WFDF's membership. The disc committee structure was simplified into a broad category of team sports (Ultimate and Guts) and individual events (golf and the overall disciplines). The role of the Rules Committee was expanded, headed by Stork, to ensure consistency and an annual rules book was printed. With a variety of representation, the categories of membership were further defined, with national associations able to join as regular, associate, or provisional (non-paying) members depending on level of participation and resources. WFDF's corporate standing was reorganized and incorporated in Colorado, obtaining US tax-exempt status. WFDF, with a fairly nominal budget, found help with the increasing use of e-mail that permitted reasonable communication and coordination. In 1994, the application to join the International World Games Association (IWGA)—championed by Fumio "Moro" Morooka of Japan—was prepared and eventually accepted by the IWGA leading to Ultimate's participation in the 2001 World Games in Akita, Japan, and in each of the subsequent competitions.

In May 2013, under the leadership WFDF President Robert L. "Nob" Rauch, WFDF was granted provisional recognition by the International Olympic Committee and it is now one of 42 sports that are members of the Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations.

Presidents
Name Nationality From To
Charlie Mead  Great Britain 1985 1986
Daniel "Stork" Roddick  United States 1987 1991
Robert L. "Nob" Rauch  United States 1992 1994
Bill Wright  United States 1995 2004
Juha Jalovaara  Finland 2005 2008
Jonathan Potts  Australia 2009 2010
Robert L. "Nob" Rauch  United States 2011 Present

Event results

WFDF World Ultimate Club Championship

Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, 14–21 July 2018

Year 2018 Gold Silver Bronze Bronze
Open SF Revolver Sydney Colony Toronto GOAT Austin Doublewide
Women's Seattle Riot Medellín Revolution Boston Brute Squad Denver Molly Brown
Mixed Seattle BFG Boston Slow White Philadelphia AMP Boston Wild Card

Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, 29 July - 4 August 2018

Year 2018 Gold Silver Bronze
Masters Men Boneyard All Bashed Out Johnny Encore
Masters Women iRot Mu-Syozoku Ripe
Masters Mixed Molasses Disaster 512 SF Bridge Club
Grandmasters Men Johnny Walker Surly Tombstone

Lecco, Italy, 2–9 August 2014

Year 2014 Gold Silver Bronze
Open Revolver Sockeye Johnny Bravo
Women's Seattle Riot Fury Scandal
Mixed Drag'n Thrust Polar Bears The Ghosts
Masters Boneyard FIGJAM Johnny Encore
Women's Masters Vintage Godiva Golden Girls

Prague, Czech Republic, 3–10 July 2010

Year 2010 Gold Silver Bronze
Open Revolver Sockeye Buzz Bullets
Women's Fury UNO Riot
Mixed Chad Larson Experience ONYX Mental Toss Flycoons
Masters Troubled Past Surly Eastern Greys

Perth, Australia, 11–18 November 2006

Year 2006 Gold Silver Bronze
Open Buzz Bullets Thong Chilly
Women's MUD UNO Huck
Mixed Team Fisher Price Brass Monkey Slow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Masters Vigi One Last Ditch Shot at Glory Eastern Greys

Honolulu, US, 4–10 August 2002

Year 2002 Gold Silver Bronze
Open Condors Death Or Glory Sockeye
Women's Riot Ozone Lady Godiva
Mixed Donner Party Hang Time Trigger Hippy
Masters KWA Skeleton Crew Old And in the Way

St. Andrews, Scotland, 12–20 August 1999

Year 1999 Gold Silver Bronze
Open DoG Liquidisc Condors
Women's Women on the Verge Schwa Spirals
Mixed Red Fish Blue Fish Osaka Nato RippIT
Masters Cigar Return of the Red Eye Tempus Fugit

Vancouver Canada, 27 July – 2 August 1997

Year 1997 Gold Silver Bronze
Open Sockeye Double Happiness Furious George
Women's Women on the Verge Schwa Lady Godiva
Masters Beyonders Tempus Fugit Gamecock

Millfield United Kingdom, 22–29 July 1995

Year 1995 Gold Silver Bronze
Open Double Happines DoG NYC
Women's Women on the Verge Ozone Red Lights
Masters Seven Sages Gummibears Princeton Alumni

Madison, Wisconsin US, 24–31 July 1993

Year 1993 Gold Silver Bronze
Open New York Ultimate Double Happiness Rhino Slam!
Women's Maine-iacs Lady Godiva Women on the Verge
Masters Seven Sages Hapa Haolies Rude Boys

Toronto Canada, 22–28 July 1991

Year 1991 Gold Silver Bronze
Open New York First Time Gary Windy City
Women's Maine-iacs Lady Godiva Lady Condors
Masters Three Stages Third Coast Ultimate Mo' Better Masters

Cologne Germany, 26–30 July 1989

Year 1989 Gold Silver Bronze
Open Philmore Elvis Looney Tunes
Women's Lady Condors Smithereens Stenungsunds FC

International World Games Ultimate Championship

Kaohsiung Taiwan, 19–21 July 2009

  1. US
  2. Japan
  3. Australia

WFDF 2009 World Overall Flying Disc championships

Jacksonville, Florida, 9–12 July 2009 Open Division

  1. Conrad Damon – US
  2. Jack Cooksey – US
  3. Harvey Brandt – US

Women's Division

  1. Mary Lowry – US
  2. Stina Persson – SWE
  3. Marygrace Sorrentino – US

WFDF World Ultimate and Guts Championship (WUGC)

London, Great Britain, 18–25 June 2016

2016 Spirit Gold Silver Bronze
Men's  New Zealand  United States  Japan  Australia
Women's  India  United States  Colombia  Canada
Mixed  Finland  United States  Australia  Canada
Masters Men  New Zealand  United States  Canada  Great Britain
Masters Women's  New Zealand  United States  Canada  Australia
Guts  United States  United States  Japan  Great Britain

Sakai, Japan, 7–14 July 2012

2012 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Great Britain  Canada
Women's  Japan  United States  Canada
Mixed  Canada  Australia  Japan
Open Masters  Canada  Australia  Japan
Women's Masters  United States  Canada  Japan
Guts  Japan (Red)  United States  Japan (White)

Vancouver, Canada, 2–9 August 2008

2008 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  Canada  United States  Japan
Women's  United States  Japan  Canada
Mixed  Canada  Japan  United States
Masters  United States  Canada  New Zealand
Junior Open  United States  Canada  Germany
Junior Girls  Japan  Australia  United States
Guts  United States (Red)  Japan (White)  Japan (Red)

Turku, Finland, 1–7 August 2004

2004 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  Canada  United States  Australia
Women's  Canada  Finland  United States
Mixed  United States  Canada  New Zealand
Masters  United States  Canada  Great Britain
Junior Open  United States  Canada  Germany
Junior Girls  Canada  United States  Sweden

Heilbronn, Germany, 12–20 August 2000

2000 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Sweden  Canada
Women's  Canada  Japan  Finland
Mixed  United States  Canada  Finland
Masters  United States  Germany  Canada
Junior Open  Sweden  Canada  United States
Junior Girls  United States  Canada  Finland

Blaine, Minnesota, US, 15–22 August 1998

1998 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  Canada  Japan  United States
Women's  United States  Japan  Canada
Mixed  Canada  United States  Germany
Masters  Canada  United States  Netherlands
Junior  United States  Sweden  Canada

Jönköping, Sweden, 10–17 August 1996

1996 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Sweden  Finland
Women's  Sweden  United States  Japan
Masters  Sweden  Canada  United States
Junior  Sweden  Germany  United States

Colchester, United Kingdom, 21–28 August 1994

1994 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Sweden  Canada
Women's  United States  Netherlands  Canada
Masters  United States  Canada  Germany
Junior  Sweden  United States  Germany

Utsunomiya, Japan, 17–23 August 1992

1992 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  Sweden  Canada  Japan
Women's  Japan  Sweden  United States
Masters  United States  Germany  Japan
Junior  Chinese Taipei  Japan

Oslo, Norway, 8–14 July 1990

1990 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Sweden  Finland
Women's  United States  Sweden  Finland
Masters  United States  Canada  Germany
Junior  Sweden  Finland  United States

Leuven, Belgium, 29 August – 3 September 1988

1988 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Finland  Sweden
Women's  United States  Netherlands  Sweden
Junior  Sweden  Finland  United States

Colchester, United Kingdom, 25–31 August 1986

1986 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Sweden  West Germany
Women's  United States  Great Britain  Finland
Junior  Sweden  Finland  Great Britain

Lucerne, Switzerland, 2–9 September 1984

1984 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Sweden  Finland
Women's  Finland  Sweden  Austria
Junior  Sweden  Austria

Gothenburg, Sweden, 29 August – 3 September 1983

1983 Gold Silver Bronze
Open  United States  Finland  Sweden
Women's  United States  Finland  Sweden
Junior  Finland  United States  Austria

Sources
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References
  1. "Executive Board meeting wraps up in St Petersburg". International Olympic Committee. 31 May 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
  2. Eisenhood, Charlie (31 May 2013). "WFDF Receives International Olympic Committee Recognition". Ultiworld. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
  3. "History of Frisbee and Flying Disc freestyle". FPA. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  4. "Toronto Ultimate History". 1970's. Retrieved 25 October 2014. Note: In 1972 Ken and Jim were retained by Irwin Toy ( Frisbee distributing licensee ) to perform at special community and sporting events across Canada.
  5. "History of Frisbee and Flying Disc freestyle". FPA. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
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