Several current and former Hope College students have reaped the benefits of good play by being selected to represent the United States at the 2007 Korfball World Cup.
Hope College was host to the tryouts for the U.S. Korfball team this past weekend (Nov. 10-11).
The Korfball World Cup will be played in the city of Brno in the Czech
Republic in October, 2007.
Korfball is unique in that it is a coed team sport.
Among current Hope students selected for the team are Mike Forbes of Lone Tree, Iowa, sisters Amanda Guijarro and Erika Guijarro of LosAngeles, Calif., Aaron Kenemer of Zeeland, Kate Madison of Charlevoix, Chris Olds of Brainerd, Minn., Matt Simons of Grand Rapids, Antoine Williams of Holland. Chris Maybury of Holland was named an alternate.
Recent graduates who have been picked include Emily Adams of Hudsonville, Gracia Kamps of Hudsonville, Kate Madison from Charlevoix and Julie McGowan from Winthrop Harbor, Ill.
The Korfball World Cup will be played in the city of Brno in the Czech
Republic in October, 2007.
Korfball dates back to 1902 and is billed as the world's only coed team sport.
Korf is a Dutch word for basket and elements of the game are similar to
basketball. There are baskets at each end of the court, but no backboards.
There is no dribbling; only passing. A team consists of four players, two men
and two women. Each goal is worth one point.
A Brief Overview of Korfball
Korfball traces its origins back to the Dutch teacher Nico Broekhuysen.
Broekhuysen developed the game in 1902 and dubbed it Korfball. "Korf" is
Dutch for basket, so "Korfball" literally means basketball, which the game
does mimic in some ways. Korfball was very progressive for its time as it is
a co-ed game where equality and cooperation are the key principles.
Some key components of the game of Korfball include a basket 11 ½ feet above
the ground (compared to 10 feet in basketball) - with no backboard - attached
to a post. There are eight players on the field of play (which can be either
indoors or outside); four on the offensive zone of the field and four on the
defensive side of the field. A zone is very much comparable to a half-court
in basketball. The co-ed aspect of the game is achieved by having two male
and two female athletes make up the four athlete total that the team must have
in each zone.
Other key features of the game include a rule that does not allow a player in
possession of the ball to move - a rule much like that of Ultimate Frisbee's.
Also, to create better equality, members of the opposite sex may not hinder an
opponent trying to pass the ball. Korfball uses a penalty system much like
that of soccer's, with referees giving out yellow cards and red cards,
depending on the severity of an athlete's wrong-doing.
Also of interest, the scoring system in Korfball is derived from soccer, with
each goal counting as one point. A match is typically comprised of two
thirty-minute halves and final scores are usually in high teens for the
winning team and low teens for the losing team depending on the closeness of
the match.