Circle City Rollers take home the gold!

On Saturday, June 9, the Circle City Rollers overcame their archrivals, the Atlanta Synergy, to win the title of Power Soccer National Champions! The shutout took only 50 minutes, but the team has been preparing for this moment for close to a year. After winning the 2007 East Coast Regional Championships in Atlanta, GA, this spring, they knew they were well on their way.

Power soccer is an adapted sport for power wheelchair users that mirrors the fast-paced action of able-bodied soccer. It is quickly sweeping the nation and the world as the only truly independent sport available for power wheelchair users.

The first United States Power Soccer Association (USPSA) National Tournament was held June 7-9 in Fishers, IN. In the opening ceremonies, Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson welcomed 132 athletes on 21 teams from 10 states competing for the title of National Champion in Division 1 and Division 2. The Tournament was hosted by Power Soccer of Indy, Inc. that boasts the largest number of power soccer athletes in any region across the nation, with 90 athletes on 11 teams in Indiana.

The victory was especially sweet for two athletes on the team. One is player Michael Archer who will represent the United States on Team USA in the inaugural World Cup in Tokyo, Japan in October. Archer scored 2 of the 3 goals to win the game and was awarded Division 1 MVP and the "Golden Guard" award for most goals scored. Another player, Laura Medcalf, scored the last goal of the season. "I've never felt anything like it before. It was one of my goals to score in the last 30 seconds of a game ... it was such a feeling of accomplishment to do this in the last game." Medcalf heads off to Ball State University in the fall to study secondary education and English.

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This competitive sport has been played in various countries around the world for more than 30 years, but is just now exploding onto the public scene. USPSA was recently created to govern power soccer in the United States and the Federation Internationale de Powerchair Football Association (FIPFA) governs the sport at the international level with 10 member countries.

The game is played on a basketball court with power wheelchairs outfitted with footguards that the players use to kick the ball. Participants live with a range of disabilities, including muscular dystrophy, quadriplegia, multiple sclerosis, and cerebral palsy among others.

2007 National Championships Results

Division 1

(1) Circle City Rollers, Indianapolis, IN

(2) Atlanta Synergy, GA

(3) Tampa Thunder, FL

Division 2

(1) DASA Dynamites, St. Louis, MO

(2) Tidewater Piranhas, VA

(3) Turnstone Varsity, Ft. Wayne, IN

2007 Individual Awards

Division 1 MVP: Michael Archer, Circle City Rollers

Division 2 MVP: Nathan Mayer, Courage Blizzards (MN)

Division 1 "Golden Guard": Michael Archer, Circle City Rollers (15 goals)

Division 2 "Golden Guard": Kevin Mulholland, Tidewater Piranhas (17 goals)