WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-Quidditch Comes Alive on Campus
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Middlebury, Vermont - October 26, 2008
A new sport is "sweeping" college campuses.
"Brooms up!" the referee shouted, calling the game of Quidditch to action on the field of Middlebury College.
Quidditch was made by wizards in the pages of Harry Potter's fictional world. But non-magical Muggles have made it their own. They came in capes and costumes for the first-ever Quidditch World Cup. "Obviously people can't fly on brooms," said Alex Benepe, a Middlebury senior. "Not yet at least. So you've got to hold it between your legs and run around. That gives the game a whole air of ridiculousness."
Benepe organized the tournament to help bring attention -- and bragging rights -- to the sport. "We've come a long way," Benepe said. "Quidditch has been around for about four years on the college scene, but right now we have twelve colleges from around the country, one from Washington State, one from Louisiana State, all the way up here in Middlebury, Vermont."
Other competitors included teams from Green Mountain College, Princeton University, Vassar, and the University of Massachusetts.
Although it's background is literary, players said the game was a break from the academic rigors of college life. "I think it's popular because it brings the fantasy world to life," said Reid Robinson, a member of the McGill University team. "Normally you think, oh it's not real, it's just a book. But this brings it to real life, it brings it right here, right now."
Of course, turning fantasy into reality required a tweaking of the rules -- there's no flying or magic here, as there is in the book. But there is artistry and athleticism. Benepe described the game as three sports in one. "There's like a game of dodgeball happening; a game of sort of a combination of rugby and basketball happening -- you have to run down the field and throw it through the hoops to score," he explained. "And then there's sort of like tag with chasing down the snitch."
Tagging the "snitch" -- here, a runner dressed in bright yellow -- earned a team a game-winning 30 points.
And it wasn't just the players who were inspired by the books. Middlebury junior Will Surrette dressed as the giant, Hagrid, to cheer on his team. "It's really silly," he said, "but I feel like a big part of college is being silly and doing silly, nostalgic things."
The team from Montreal's McGill University made this an international event. And organizers are hoping future competitions will draw more teams from around the world. Robinson said he hoped Quidditch would one day be an Olympic event. "2012 is in London, so it would make sense to have Quidditch at the birthplace," he said.
What began with a British boy wizard -- now casting a spell worldwide.
Kate Duffy - WCAX News
