World Flying Disc Federation

WFDF was formed in 1985 as a not-for-profit corporation and has member associations representing flying disc sports in countries across Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, the Caribbean, and South America. The federation has distinguishes three categories of membership: national members, provisional members and associate members. National members are defined as: flying disc associations that is the governing body for Disc Games solely within a single national boundary. To be approved as a national member by WFDF, an organization must: • Be organized with bylaws acceptable to WFDF; • Operate under the rules, policies, and programs which are in compliance with all agreements to which WFDF is a party; • Be open to participation without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, politics, sex, or sexual orientation; • Represent a minimum of 50 individual disc players who are members of its organization (“Constituents”) in one or more Disc Sports; • Hold an annual meeting and/or have another representative mechanism for its Constituents to elect a board of directors; • Fairly represent the interests of Constituents for all Disc Games within the country; and • Pay dues to WFDF as established by the Congress, and report annually regarding the number of its Constituents per the requirements as established by the Board of Directors (the “Census”). Continental associations are the central organizing bodies recognized by WFDF for disc sport events and promotion within a region continental region. These associations are responsible for coordinating matters of common interest of the members of their continent with WFDF. African Flying Disc Federation (AAFDF) There are 15 WFDF regular members and 4 provisional members in Africa: Regular members: Provisional members: • Kenya - Kenya Flying Disc Association • Malawi - Malawi Flying Disc Federation • Rwanda - Rwanda Ultimate Frisbee Association • Tanzania - Tanzanian Flying Disc Association Asia Oceania Flying Disc Federation (AOFDF) There are 26 WFDF national members and 9 provisional members in Asia and Oceania: National members: Provisional members: European Flying Disc Federation (EFDF) and European Ultimate Federation (EUF) There are 40 WFDF national members, 4 provisional members, and 2 suspended members in Europe: National members: Provisional members: • Armenia - Armenian National Frisbee Federation • Bulgaria - Bulgarian Flying Disc Federation • Croatia - Croatian Flying Disc Federation • Moldova - Moldovan Flying Disc Federation • Romania - Romanian Flying Disc Association Suspended members: • Belarus - Belarusian Flying Disc Federation • Russia - Russian Flying Disc Federation Pan American Flying Disc Federation (PAFDF) There are 17 WFDF national members and 7 provisional members in the Americas: National members: Provisional members: ==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. 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. 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. Due to the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, WFDF canceled all its world championship events in both 2020 and 2021. It is planning to recommence world championship events in Ultimate, Beach ultimate, Disc Golf, and Overall in 2022, and to participate in The World Games championships in Birmingham, Alabama, U.S. in July 2022 that had been postponed from 2021. ==Disciplines==

Team Sports Ultimate Ultimate is WFDF's largest and most widely played discipline, contested by mixed-gender, open, and women’s teams of seven players on a rectangular field. The sport includes several variants: • Outdoor Ultimate - The traditional 7-on-7 format played on grass fields • Indoor Ultimate - Modified rules for gymnasium play • Beach Ultimate - Played on sand with reduced team sizes and modified field dimensions Ultimate governance has been part of WFDF since its founding in 1985. The discipline is featured in The World Games and is considered WFDF's flagship sport for potential Olympic inclusion. Guts Guts is a fast-paced team sport where opposing teams attempt to throw a disc past their opponents at high velocity. Players must catch or deflect throws to prevent scoring. Individual Disciplines Disc Golf Disc golf involves throwing specialized discs toward elevated metal baskets in the fewest throws possible, similar to traditional golf. It is one of the fastest-growing flying disc sports and features in The World Games. Freestyle Freestyle is an artistic discipline where individuals or pairs perform choreographed routines involving creative catches, throws, and manipulations of the disc judged on technical skill, artistic impression, and difficulty. Field Events Field events comprise several individual accuracy and distance disciplines: • Distance - Maximum throwing distance competition • Accuracy - Throwing precision at designated targets • Self Caught Flight (SCF) - Combination of distance and catching ability • Discathon - Distance running event while throwing and catching a disc These events are contested in the Overall competition format. Overall The Overall competition combines multiple individual disciplines to crown the most complete flying disc athlete. Competitors participate in distance, accuracy, freestyle, and other events with rankings determined by cumulative performance. Double Disc Court Double Disc Court is a discipline where two teams simultaneously throw two discs at each other across parallel courts, attempting to cause the opposing team to drop or fail to throw a disc. ==International events==

• World Ultimate Championships • World Under-24 Ultimate Championships • World Junior Ultimate Championships • World Beach Ultimate Championships ==Presidents==

WFDF organizes and sanctions world championship events across multiple flying disc disciplines, serving as the premier international competitions for each sport. The federation's championship structure includes both national team and club team competitions, with events held on rotating cycles to accommodate the global flying disc community. Ultimate Championships WFDF conducts several categories of Ultimate world championships: World Ultimate and Guts Championships (WUGC) The World Ultimate and Guts Championships feature national teams competing in Ultimate and Guts disciplines. Held every four years, WUGC represents the highest level of international competition, with teams qualifying through continental championships. The event includes Open (Men's), Women's, Mixed, Masters, and Junior divisions for Ultimate, alongside Open and Women's Guts competitions. Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S., 23–31 July 2022 Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S., 14–21 July 2018 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, 29 July - 4 August 2018 Lecco, Italy, 2–9 August 2014 Prague, Czech Republic, 3–10 July 2010 Perth, Australia, 11–18 November 2006 Honolulu, US, 4–10 August 2002 St. Andrews, Scotland, 12–20 August 1999 Vancouver Canada, 27 July – 2 August 1997 Millfield United Kingdom, 22–29 July 1995 Madison, Wisconsin US, 24–31 July 1993 Toronto Canada, 22–28 July 1991 Cologne Germany, 26–30 July 1989 International World Games Ultimate Championship Kaohsiung Taiwan, 19–21 July 2009 United States Japan Australia WFDF 2009 World Overall Flying Disc championships Jacksonville, Florida, 9–12 July 2009 Open Division Conrad Damon – United States Jack Cooksey – United States Harvey Brandt – United States '''Women's Division''' Mary Lowry – United States Stina Persson – SWE Marygrace Sorrentino – United States WFDF World Ultimate and Guts Championship (WUGC) Gold Coast, Australia, 31 August – 7 September 2024 London, Great Britain, 18–25 June 2016 Sakai, Japan, 7–14 July 2012 Vancouver, Canada, 2–9 August 2008 Turku, Finland, 1–7 August 2004 Heilbronn, Germany, 12–20 August 2000 Blaine, Minnesota, US, 15–22 August 1998 Jönköping, Sweden, 10–17 August 1996 Colchester, United Kingdom, 21–28 August 1994 Utsunomiya, Japan, 17–23 August 1992 Oslo, Norway, 8–14 July 1990 Leuven, Belgium, 29 August – 3 September 1988 Colchester, United Kingdom, 25–31 August 1986 Lucerne, Switzerland, 2–9 September 1984 Gothenburg, Sweden, 29 August – 3 September 1983 ==See also==