How roller derby works
Never watched a derby bout before? A couple of minutes and you'll know exactly what you're looking at.
The basics
Two teams of five skaters race counter-clockwise around a flat, oval track, with plenty of physical contact. A game is made up of short sprints of up to 2 minutes: the jam. Both teams put one point-scorer and four defenders on the track at the same time. The defenders skate together as one group, the pack, which the other team's jammer has to break through.
The roles
You can tell everyone apart by their helmet. Watch for the star and the stripe.
Jammer
Star on the helmet. The only player who scores points.
Pivot
Stripe on the helmet. Leads the defence and can take over the jammer role via a star pass.
Blocker
Stops the opposing jammer and helps their own jammer through. Together the blockers form the pack.
Scoring points
On the first pass the jammer breaks through the pack, with no points yet. After that every opponent passed scores 1 point. Whoever breaks through the pack legally first becomes lead jammer and can call off the jam early to deny the other team points.
Penalties
Illegal hits, back blocks, trips or playing out of bounds earn a penalty: 30 seconds in the penalty box. A team skating short-handed makes it much easier for the other team to score.
This tournament
The Small Teams Tournament runs short 20-minute bouts (no halftime): a compact take on the regular 60-minute game. Otherwise the official rules apply.
Want to know more?
This tournament follows the official ruleset of the WFTDA (Women's Flat Track Derby Association), which also has in-depth explanations and visuals about the sport.