Manchester Roller Derby (MRD) is a flat track

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played on an oval track by two teams of five skaters. It is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leaguesA Roller Derby league is synonymous with an individual club or team in other team sports, as ...

league based in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, England. Founded in 2010, as the first co-ed league in the UK, they became members of the

Men's Roller Derby Association The Men's Roller Derby Association (MRDA) is the international governing body of men's flat track roller derby. It was founded in 2007 under the name Men's Derby Coalition (renamed to Men's Roller Derby Association in 2011), and currently has 59 ...

in December 2012 and of

United Kingdom Roller Derby Association The United Kingdom Roller Derby Association (UKRDA) was the member-led National Association for roller derby in the UK, with the aim of promoting and lobbying for the sport. The association was formed in 2008 but formalised in 2010 with 14 member ...

in November 2013.

History

Initially formed in 2010, MRD attracted attention in early 2011 when the league's original women's team played Hot Wheel Roller Derby at the

Manchester Academy The Manchester Academy, originally known as the University of Manchester Main Hall, is composed of four concert venues, located on the campus of the University of Manchester, in Manchester, England. The four venues are: Academy 1, 2 and 3 and ...

in a sell-out bout. In November 2012, MRD hosted a bout as part of the New York Shock Exchange's 'Shock the UK' tour, which saw New Wheeled Order bout against the

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

team. This was the first intercontinental men's flat track derby game. The league formed a co-ed team known as the MRD Allstars to participate in the UK's first co-ed roller derby tournament in January 2013. MRD Allstars won this tournament against competition from

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

's Wheels of Mass Destruction,

Nottingham Roller Derby Nottingham Roller Derby is a flat track roller derby league based in Nottingham, England. Founded in 2013, from a merger of two local leagues, it was the first league in the UK to host a co-ed roller derby competition. League Structure The l ...

and Sheffield Roller Derby. , New Wheeled Order are ranked 7th in the MRDA. , Manchester Valkyries are Manchester Roller Derby's WFTDA team. The team was formed in 2022 as part of the return to track effort, in the wake of the global

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Manchester Valkyries' first public game was the Five Nations Roller Derby (5NRD) “Back on Track Showcase” in August 2022. Since then, Manchester Valkyries have continued to compete and most notably were crowned the North West Quest tournament winners in October 2022. In 2023 Manchester Valkyries will be competing in tier 3 west of the Five Nations Roller Derby tournament.

League Structure

The league consists of four teams: * Valkyries (A, WFTDA-aligned, formed 2022) * CheckerBroads (A, WFTDA-aligned, formed October 2010 - Retired in 2019) * New Wheeled Order (A, MRDA-aligned, formed December 2011) * Furies (B, WFTDA-aligned, formed 2012) * Chaos Engine (B, MRDA-aligned, formed 2013) The league has a skater induction program, called Zero 2 Hero, to teach the skills needed for playing roller derby.

Affiliation

In December 2012, MRD was accepted as one of the first three non-American members of the

. The league became a member of the

in November 2013. MRD league members have expressed interest in being affiliated with the

Women's Flat Track Derby Association The Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) is the international governing body for the sport of women's flat track roller derby. It sets the international standards for rankings, rules, and competition in the sport, and provides guidance and ...

, but the league did not meet the WFTDA membership requirements due to it being a co-ed league consisting of both women and men until 2020. The Valkyries have been a WFTDA team since September 2020

External links

Manchester Roller Derby's official website

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References

{{Men's Roller Derby Association Roller derby in England Roller derby leagues in the United Kingdom Roller derby leagues established in 2010 Sport in Manchester Men's roller derby Women's sports leagues in England Men's sport in England 2010 establishments in England