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| DATELINE:
APRIL 11, 2006 04:30 PM USA |
| 2006
WSSA WORLD SPORT STACKING CHAMPIONSHIPS: Nearly
1,100 competitors from across the United States and around the
world compete in premier sport stacking event in Colorado. |
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DENVER
(April 11, 2006) The 2006 WSSA World Sport Stacking Championships
had the best attendance, the highest number of participants and
the broadest representation of any other tournament in sport stacking
history. On top of that it was filmed for ESPN!
This
year, 1,066 stackers competed in the event, sanctioned by the World
Sport Stacking Association (WSSA), and filled Colorado’s
Denver Coliseum on Saturday, April 8th. Stackers young and old,
representing five foreign countries and 21 states, competed in
a variety of individual timed events, doubles and relay matches.
International participants hailed from Canada, England, Japan,
Australia and Germany, and many are flying home with medals and
trophies as proof of their stacking prowess. |
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The
premier event of the day was the Cycle Stack, which involves a
complex set of sequences and more than 40 separate moves. Taking
the overall championship trophy for the Cycle was Shane Grinnell,
a 14-year-old from Morrison, Colorado, who hit a time of 7.58 seconds.
The Doubles event continued to be dominated by last year’s
winners Chase Demelio and Andy Retting from Colorado Springs who
had the best overall time of 10.11 seconds. Lexi Rindone, from
Prescott, Arizona proved she was the most consistent stacker of
the day, and her combined time of 13.48 seconds for the 3-3-3,
3-6-3 and Cycle earned her the trophy for top Individual All-Around.
“It
was an awesome day,” said Grinnell, who attended last year’s
Championships, but only as a spectator. His practice and dedication
to sport stacking over the past year has now put him on the sport
stacking map. “I definitely wanted to compete this year,
and the adrenaline was flowing,” he said. “I was pumped!”
A strong
showing by Team Germany yielded top overall winners in three events.
David Wolf, 10, set a new *unofficial world record in the Individual
3-3-3 with a time of 2.28 seconds and had the best overall time
of 2.75 seconds in the 3-6-3. The top Timed 3-6-3 Relay award went
to Germany with a time of 16.17 seconds. According to Team Germany
Leader Burkhard Reuhl, the German stackers trained very hard for
the World Championships and it really paid off for them. In addition
to the overall awards, the 29 German stackers took home 91 medals
and 23 trophies in the various events and age divisions.
(*All divisional and overall world records are considered unofficial pending
video review by the WSSA.) |
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For
the uninitiated, sport stacking (formerly called cup stacking)
is an emerging individual and team sport where participants stack
and unstack 12 specially designed cups (Speed Stacks ®) in
pre-determined sequences at lightning speed. (Some call it a “track
meet for your hands!”) This unique sport promotes hand-eye
coordination, ambidexterity, focus, concentration, team skills
and sportsmanship. Competitors race against the clock for individual
times, on doubles teams, and in relays in head-to-head competitions.
A division for stackers with special needs is also included. Sport
stacking is practiced in more than 11,000 schools around the world.
The
profile of sport stacking has elevated to the point that film crews
were in attendance gathering footage of nearly every moment of
the stacking excitement. A stage and set was specially designed
for ESPN to capture the Finals events. ESPN is slated to air a
one-hour special on the World Championships later this summer. |
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| Sport
Stacking - An individual or team sport where participants stack and
unstack 12 specially designed sport stacking cups in pre-determined
sequences as fast as they can.
Speed
Stacks® - The official cups sanctioned
by the WSSA
for sport stacking competitions.
A Sport
Stacker - An athlete who plays or competes in sport stacking.
World
Sport Stacking Association (WSSA)
- As the governing
body for sport stacking, the WSSA standardizes rules and
regulations, provides a uniform framework for sport stacking events and sanctions
sport stacking competitions and records. Formed in 2001, the WSSA promotes
the advancement of sport stacking worldwide. |
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Bob
Fox, Speed Stacks, Inc.
303-663-8083, ext. 203 (work)
303-886-4136 (cell)
bfox@speedstacks.com (e-mail) |
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Mark Lingle, 303-962-5672
pmetz@worldsportstackingassociation.org |
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