Roller Derby is modern entertaining and adventurous, contact sport. It is a team sport consisting of five players each side. The teammates are required to perform their roller skating counter-clockwise direction in their designated course or track. Roller derby was originated in the banked-track roller skating marathons of the 1930s.
In the modern age, roller derby has successfully emerged out as an International sport, which is mostly played by amateurs. Majorly the teams are dominated by women, but nowadays, the number of men is also increasing.
The primary aim of roller derby is straight. Each team tries to score more points than their respective opposing team. If the offensive player of a team, regarded as a jammer, laps over the member of the opposing team, then points are awarded.
The blockers who are the defensive players of the opposing team use their physical strength so that they may easily block the jammer as well as clear the way for their jammer.
There are four blockers in a team; one of them is known as the Pivot who can become a jammer during a jam. The Pivot is the experienced player who makes effective winning strategies on the court.
In the mid-1880s, the endurance races began to transform into the contemporary form of the sport by 1930s. Later, promoter Leo Seltzer created the Transcontinental Roller Derby, for professional skaters. Gradually, roller derby began to popularize in another form as "sidewalk skating" in various countries.
On 29th November 1948, Roller Derby was first time broadcasted on New York television. Later, a massive number of spectators was recorded watching the live matches of roller derby. During the 1949-1950 seasons, Seltzer formed the National Roller Derby League (NRDL), which comprises six teams.
But, in 1999, Jerry Seltzer enhanced the sport and used the standard rules with a banked oval track. Inline skates were prominently allowed in the new matches, debuted in TNN (Spike TV). Roller derby then followed its modern revival in the early 2000s as an all-female women-organized amateur sport in Austin, Texas. After six years of the sport commencement, 135 similar leagues were conducted globally. Till today, there are over 2000 amateur leagues that are played worldwide in various countries, including Canada, Australia, France, Brazil, Germany, Norway, UAE, Egypt, etc. In February 2012, Roller Derby was recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as an official sport and later included it in the eight games of the 2020 Olympics. By May 2013, there were over 140 roller derby programs in the United States.
Roller derby championships are now streamed online, and there are archived videos of past sessions and tournaments. The WFTDA offers live streaming videos on Derby News Network. The FiveOnFive magazines cover, roller derby and diverse aspects such as business, training, junior roller derby, and nutrition.
The gameplay consists of a series of short matches (jams) in which both teams designate a jammer who wears a star on their helmet. The jammers score points for the team by lapping members of the opposite team. The members of one team try to hinder the opposing team members. The team altogether attempt to cross over the opposite team's jammer while assisting their own jammer.
