Ultimate Frisbee catching on

Joseph Leung dives for a catch in training with the Australian Beach Ultimate Frisbee team at Coolangatta on Saturday.

John Gass

THE Australian Beach Ultimate Frisbee Team descended on the Gold Coast yesterday for their final training camp before the world championships.

The defending world champions hit Coolangatta in a swirl of colour with more than 40% of the squad made of south-east Queensland players.

Australian mixed division co-captain Kristen Nott said Frisbee was the perfect way to combine a love for sport and pride for Queensland.

“Australia has a great history in Ultimate Frisbee, and as a beach-loving nation we have a tremendous potential to dominate the sand,” Ms Nott said.

Beach Ultimate is a fast-paced team sport with similar game play to American football, gridiron.

The objective of the game is to pass the Frisbee down the field and catch the disc in the end zone of the opponent to score a point.

The sport is quickly gaining popularity with around 800 registered players in Queensland alone.

The Australian squad will face 35 other countries at the World Beach Ultimate Championships on the beaches of Lignano Sabbiadoro, close to Venice in Italy from August 21-28.