Do You Have What It Takes For Ultimate?

Our spotlight for the week is Ultimate. Initially called Ultimate Frisbee, but as it turns out, "Frisbee" is a trademarked name of the WHAM O Toy Company. So, now the sport just goes by the name Ultimate. Ultimate found its start on college campuses in the 1960's. It combines the best features of football, soccer, and basketball.

One interesting nugget of info is that Ultimate is what you call "self-officiated". Ultimate is unique in that it is refereed by the players themselves, even at World Championship level, according to a code of conduct known as "the Spirit of the Game". This places the responsibility for fair play on the players themselves. In that respect, playing Ultimate is a completely different experience to playing other sports. And believe it or not, Ultimate's system of self-refereeing works. - http://www.whatisultimate.com/

It's called, "Spirit Of The Game" in the Ultimate community.

Ultimate's self-officiated nature demands a strong spirit of sportsmanship and respect. The following description is from the official ultimate rules established by the Ultimate Players Association:

Ultimate has traditionally relied upon a spirit of sportsmanship which places the responsibility for fair play on the player. Highly competitive play is encouraged, but never at the expense of the bond of mutual respect between players, adherence to the agreed upon rules of the game, or the basic joy of play. Protection of these vital elements serves to eliminate adverse conduct from the Ultimate field. Such actions as taunting of opposing players, dangerous aggression, intentional fouling, or other 'win-at-all-costs' behavior are contrary to the spirit of the game and must be avoided by all players.

The game, explained as simply as possible:

Ultimate is played between two teams of seven players on a large rectangular pitch. A line drawn across the pitch at either end creates two "endzones" (like in American Football). These are the goal-scoring areas. A goal is scored when a team completes a pass to a player standing (or more likely running) in the endzone they are attacking.
Players cannot run with the disc. When you get the disc you must come to a stop and try to throw it to another player (a bit like netball). By passing from player to player, the offence attempts to work the disc up the pitch towards the endzone they are attacking. If the disc hits the ground or is intercepted or knocked down by the other team, then the opposition takes possession (a change of possession is called a "turnover", like American Football). Possession also changes if a receiver is outside the playing area when he or she catches it.
The defending team attempts to stop the team with the disc from making progress upfield by marking them (as in soccer or basketball). The theory is that the offence won't want to pass to a player who is being marked closely, as it's likely to result in an interception. So it boils down to the offence players trying to get free of their markers to receive a pass, while the defence makes every effort to stay with them in the hope of forcing a turnover.