The Cochrane sports world will soon be filled with wizards and spells. Well, not entirely, but there will be an exciting new team that will be attracting many Harry Potter fans.
The Kumon Math and Reading Centre is working alongside the Calgary Quidditch club to establish Cochrane’s first youth Muggle Quidditch team.
“The great thing about this sport is there is no girls or boys team, it’s all mixed together, you don’t necessarily need any kind of experience, it’s just about coming out and having fun,” said Hirra Memon, instructor at Kumon Cochrane, and one soon-to-be coaches of the newly-acquired Cochrane Owls.
Those who have watched any of the Harry Potter movies might expect a flying broomstick – that would be pretty neat – except it won’t be like it is in the movies. The game will still be the same concept with minor differences, one being, not flying. The snitch will have a Velcro tail, keepers (those who guard the hoops) wear green headbands, chasers (those who score goals with the quaffle) wear white headbands, beaters (those who use bludgers to knock out opponents) wear black headbands, and seekers (those who are after the snitch) wear yellow headbands. Sounds pretty fun, right?
Another strong backbone for the Cochrane Owls will be none other than Kimia Fonounialasl, a Calgary Quidditch Club player who will be dedicating her time as the head coach. She has been taking coaching courses for the sport and hopes to become a young role model for all the youth wanting to excel.
Fonounialasl is no stranger to the game of quidditch. She has been in the community for over four years playing on a number of teams, including Canada’s Western Regional Championship and National Championship teams for the last two years.
When asked about which position she prefers, Fonounialasl usually sticks to chasing and or seeking because she’s just a little too short to be a beater and can’t jump that high.
The Cochrane Owls will be accepting kids ages nine to 15 with a registration fee of $110 plus a $20 “no contact” Quidditch Canada Membership. There will be a season held from September-October, January-March and June-July. All youth are welcome with or without sports experience. All sessions will be held on Fridays from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Mitford Park.
Those interested in joining the team can email [email protected], visit @cochraneyouthquidditch on Facebook or stop by the quidditch booth at the Cochrane Fair from Aug. 16 to 18.
Whether you're team Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin, just remember to take a chance on something new, like professor Dumbledore said, “It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."
