Athletes From All Over The Country Selected For Team New Zealand Roller Derby World Cup Team

January 14, 2024 – Team New Zealand Roller Derby is proud to announce the selection of its team roster for the 2025 Roller Derby World Cup, scheduled to take place from July 3 to 6, 2025, in Innsbruck, Austria. With 49 teams competing, this marks the largest roller derby world cup ever held.

Roller Derby is a contact team sport played on roller skates, known for its vibrant culture and fast-paced gameplay. Originating in the United States in the 1930s, it has evolved from scripted entertainment to a competitive sport with a strong emphasis on strategy, athleticism, and inclusivity. Roller Derby is distinctive for its DIY ethos, gender inclusivity, and its empowering community, making it accessible to a wide range of participants.

The Roller Derby World Cup is Roller Derby’s biggest international event, bringing together 49 teams from around the globe to compete at the highest level. The Roller Derby World Cup operates under the ruleset of the Women’s Flat Track Roller Derby Association.

Team New Zealand has a strong history in the tournament, placing 10th in 2018, 5th in 2014 and 8th in the 2011 World Cup. There has been a long break since the most recent World Cup in 2018 due to Covid, with Roller Derby as a sport taking a cautious approach to returning to play and allowing leagues and countries enough time to rebuild their charters.

Team New Zealand Roller Derby has been running training and development weekends all over New Zealand since 2021. A series of training squad trials were hosted, with the training squad gradually growing from 2022. The most recent training squad trials were held in September 2024. The full training squad of over 40 skaters has been working together to build skills and teamwork, not just towards the 2025 World Cup, but for the future of the sport in New Zealand. Skaters from over 13 leagues from around the world (most are based in New Zealand but the team does include some New Zealanders living overseas!) have been taking the skills, strategies and their development from the training weekends back to their regional leagues.

The World Cup trials were held over three weekends from October - December 2024, and from these trials a final World Cup Team of 20 skaters and 5 reserves has been selected.

The team comprises talented athletes from across the country, each bringing unique skills and dedication to the sport. The team is set to begin intensive preparations for the World Cup, aiming to build on past successes and make a significant impact on the international stage.

Supporters are encouraged to follow the team's journey through their official social media channels:

Facebook: Team New Zealand Roller Derby

Instagram: @teamnewzealandrollerderby

Potential sponsors are invited to email us at sponsorship.tnzrd@gmail.com

Team New Zealand Roller Derby appreciates the support of fans as they embark on this exciting journey to the 2025 Roller Derby World Cup. There is a Givealittle page to help get Team New Zealand Roller Derby to Austria - https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/get-team-nz-roller-derby-to-the-world-cup

© Scoop Media