Corendon became sponsor of the Frisbee Team of the Technical University of Istanbul. Frisbee is a sport that has the interest and support of young people worldwide and the Ultimate Frisbee sport has a growing number of followers. With the help of Corendon’s (logistics and outfit) sponsorship the “European Universities Ultimate Championship” (UUT) was held in Amsterdam on April 4th and 5th 2015. Prior to the games we interviewed the Gözde brothers who participated in the tournament, to learn a bit more about this sport and their Frizbi Teknik team.
We know a bit about frisbee, but we did not know that it can be played as a group sport. What is the origin of this sport? How many years is it played already? And is it especially popular among students?
In 1968 Ultimate was played for the first time in America by two groups of students. In 1969 for the first time a team was established and in the seventies the first rules were agreed upon. In 1975 the Yale University organised a tournament for the first time and 8 teams participated. Since then the number of players and teams increases and this sport becomes more and more popular worldwide. At the moment in more than 90 countries the Ultimate sport is played and especially university students contribute a lot.
Where is Frisbee played? And is the condition of the field of importance?
Frisbee is played with a disk weighing 175 gr. This sport can be played on a grass field, artificial grass court, on the beach or indoor in a sportscenter. In order to play a good and fair game the maintenance is very important. The borderlines and scoresides should be well marked. The field’s measurements and rules are stated by the World Flying Disk Federation.
Can you tell us a bit more about the rules? Are there any federations for this sport in Turkey and abroad?
Some rules originate from football, basketball and American football. Although the rules are simple, it is an attractive and exciting sport. For a normal game the teams consists of 7 players, however during the interval or due to injury a player can be replaced. The playing field is 100 m long and 37 m wide. At both ends there are 18 m scoresides. This sport can be played by women, men, or mixed (men and women)teams.
The game continues until the final conditions are reached (that means until the playing time is over, or until one of the teams has scored a number of points). To score a point the teams gather on the frontline on their side of the field and the game starts by a long throw of the disk, called “pull” by one of the defence players. During the game the disk may only be thrown, to walk with the disk in your hand is forbidden. When one of the teams succeeds to catch the disk in the opponents scoreside, then a point is scored. Afterwards the teams change field and the game is restarted by a “pull”throw made by the rivalteam. Physical contact between players is forbidden. If this happens it is considered as a foul (freeze).
What are the advantages of this sport? Why do you prefer this sport?
The Ultimate sport is based on fairplay and sportmanship. This sport is played with the gentlemanship of every player and the “spirit of the game” prevails. For this reason there is no referee or umpire involved in the game. Of course we intend to play an exciting match, but that doesnot mean that the players should forget about respect, or the rules of the game, or enjoyment of the game.
How is the interest in this sport worldwide? And how is it in Turkey?
There is no federation yet in Turkey. However the World Flying Disk Federation (WFDF) recognizes our ORD association (Oyunun Ruhu Derneği). The ORD organizes national tournaments and applies for participation in international tournaments. Abroad there is the World Flying Disk Federation and in America, Asia and Europe several countries do have a federation for Ultimate sport. In 2013 the WFDF was officially recognized by the international Olympic Committee.
Howmany years does the ITÜ Frisbee Team exist already? What are the successes up to now?
The ITÜ Frisbee Team exists since 2010 under the name “Frizbi Teknik” (Frisbee Technics). We were established as a university team. Our sport as well as the successes we had are recognized by the Federation of University Sports. We are an official university team and since 2010 we are trying to get more publicity for our sport, to give more information about our sport-ethics and to recruit new players for the frisbee sport in Turkey. During the European Beach Frisbee Tournament that was held in Spain in 2012 our players represented Turkey as a national team at an international event and they were awarded the “Spirit of the Game” prize. Some of our successes are:
- 2012, Istanbul Autumn League Championship.
- 2013, Autumn and 2014 Spring Istanbul League was organized by our teamleaders.
- 2013, Istanbul Autumn League Spirit of the Game award.
- 2014 July, free training by Dan Rule, coach of the Australian national team, in the ITÜ stadium.
- 2014, second place in the Frisbee Tournament organized by the Turkish Federation for University Sports.
- 2014, our 30 players Frisbee team has represented our university with an A and a B team. In 2014 we have played in the ITÜ Tournament and participated in the Istanbul Autumn League.
- 2014, Frizbi Teknik players received prizes in the “best” category , the award for “Best progressing Male player ” and “Best progressing Female player”.
- 2015, thanks to the support of sponsor Corendon, participation in the European Universities Ultimate Championship (UUT) in April in Amsterdam.
Can you tell us something about the tournament you will participate in? What do you hope to achieve? What is the UUT?
UUT means University Ultimate Tournament. Since 2007 it is held every year in Europe and only university teams can participate in this international tournament. It was held for the first time in Brussels. Sinds 2010 it is organized by NUTS Ultimate Frisbee Team in Amsterdam. On 4 and 5 April the tournament is held for the eighth time. It is the second largest Ultimate Frisbee event and around 2000 players and audience come together. As the ITÜ Frizbi Teknik team we want to win the “Spirit of the Game” award.
What are the difficulties you are confronted with in the rather unknown sport?
When you ask people about Ultimate or frisbee they often assume that it has something to do with “a disk thrown to dogs on the beach”. We like to break this prejudice and we want to make our sport better known. Everyone is always surprised to learn that this sport can be played with mixed teams and that it doesnot require a referee. “Everyone can cheat and foul play” is an often heard reaction. However as this sport is based on gentlemanship, that kind of behaviour doesnot occur. The aim is to sport together and enjoy it and therefore no one will harm someone. Another problem is the absence of a federation for this sport. Logistically and financially there is no support for our teams and it is difficult to find sponsors. It is also difficult to find sport accommodation. Grass fields and artificial grass courts are often used by football teams.
What are the best known tournaments in the world and in Turkey?
Tournaments organized in Turkey enjoy great interest, such as:
- Hadımköy Şapka Tournament organized since 2007
- Boğaziçi Sport Festival organized since 2008
- Bilkent Tournament organized since 2009
- Kilyos Şapka Tournament (on the beach) organized since 2010
- ITÜ Tournament organized since 2011
- ODTÜPUS Tournament organized since 2011
- Istanbul Competition (autumn and spring) organized since 2011
- Anadolu Şapka Tournament organized since 2014
- Çanakkale Troya Indoor Tournament will start in 2015
- Federation Tournament
Worldwide several events take place, the most important are:
- World Championship
- World Championship for Clubs
- European Beach Championship
- Windmill Windup Tournament
- UUT
- In different countries national Championships
Finally is there still something you want to add regarding this sport, or your team?
We want to emphasize that it is very important for us, as a country that newly starts with this sport, to get more experience in international tournament. We like to thank Corendon for supporting us in our progress and growth and for the chance they gave us to represent our country. We hope that other companies will follow the example of Corendon and will support this sport.
