Mention the word ‘dodgeball,’ and the image may take you back to the horrors of elementary school lunch hours, where it was bean-or-be-beaned time. Or maybe it’s of the Ben Stiller-Vince Vaughn film from 2004 that turned it into a savage parody.
Most of us put the game behind us long ago, just like chicken pox, and may still twitch at the recall of being overwhelmed by a blizzard of melon-shaped missiles sailing in from everywhere.
It’s fair to say Burnaby’s Aska Nakamura has a different take on it.
As a competitor in this weekend’s Western Canadian Dodgeball championships, Nakamura is embracing the idea of knocking her rivals out of the game, in a sport where the battle can end in a fistful of seconds.
“People say dodgeball is just a kids’ game, but it’s so much more,” remarked Nakamura, 26. “I like the passion of the people who play it. I see it on the court and off the court.”
There’s no time for wincing in the competitive square, and the sport requires some fleet feet to be the last one standing.
Nakamura, at just over five-feet tall, has turned what many view as a disadvantage in the sports world into an edge.
She’s got agility on her side, and when lined up against larger opponents she presents a challenge to hit.
Still, no one is happy to be pummelled by an accurate, for-the-game fatal shot.
“Sometimes there is a huge difference in size,” she said. “Some people have hands the size of my thighs.”
A counsellor in the Burnaby school district, Nakamura first tasted the sport as a child growing up in Japan. It was purely a school activity, but upon moving to the Lower Mainland she searched for events and places where she could meet new people, and dodgeball, for some reason, appealed to her.
“I saw it and I thought it looked like so much fun. You’d compete and then you’d hang out. It’s a great social sport.”
Teams consist of six players, each with a ball. Avoiding being hit means you can catch your opponent’s throw and fire it right back at them. But time is of the essence because the attrition on the gym floor is quick, with some games done as quickly as 20-something seconds, and the longer affairs lasting up to five minutes in length.
“We are always striving to introduce new players to the sport, and multiple members of past B.C. provincial teams will be competing with the hope of inspiring more folks to take their game to the next level,” noted Dodgeball B.C. president Ian Kopp.
With that in mind, the Western Canadians held an open registration that invited players of all levels and experience, and hopes to be a means to attract new players. This is the second year for the western-based tournament, and Nakamura would love nothing more than to help B.C. defend its women’s title.
The team has been working together and training at BCIT’s gym, so there is a definite serious element to it.
“The first time I played it (as an adult) I didn’t expect people to be so aggressive,” she recalled. “When you play as a kid you don’t think about tactics or strategies. But that’s a big part of the game here.”
The tournament, which is open to the public, goes Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., with playoffs starting Sunday around 3 p.m. All action is at SFU’s main gym.
