The first-ever roller derby World Cup kicked off in Toronto on Thursday and the home team was well-represented.
In the opening match, Canada trounced France 244-17. That's not a typo: the team, led by co-captain Brim Stone, racked up two hundred and forty-four points.
"It's going to get tougher and tougher as the tournament goes on," Stone said.
"The [World Cup] is huge. To have people see that it's a real sport, that we're training, that we have nutritionists...We want people to watch."
To score points, a jammer - a skater with star on her helmet - has to
skate past the pack of eight other skaters once -"cleanly, without being
hit." On the second pass, the jammer earns a point for every skater she
passes, Slam Wow of
Toronto Roller Derby (ToRD) explained.
"There's a lot of hard hitting, it's a fast and slow game, there's a lot of strategy, and a rowdy crowd," she added.
ToRD and
Blood and Thunder magazine organized the tournament.
Click here for the tournament schedule.