Dodgeball no laughing matter

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This article was published 06/08/2024 (671 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Nick Grenier is usually thrown a few laughs when he tells others that he travels the world to play dodgeball.

Heck, he can’t help but chuckle when he thinks about competitively playing a sport that is often left behind in grade school.

“In a sense, you kind of giggle about it because it’s an investment on my end,” Grenier said.

“But it’s also kind of a pride thing just to get to represent your country in this sport.”

Grenier, who didn’t stop ducking, diving or dodging after high school, is one of six Manitobans — three men and three women — who will represent Canada at the World Dodgeball Championships in Austria, beginning Sunday.

Canada will be among the top contenders in each division.

Grenier, 27, won gold as a member of the Canadian mixed team at the 2022 championship but won’t defend his crown after being selected to captain the men’s squad this time around, which won bronze two years ago.

More than 30 countries will court teams in the men’s, women’s and mixed divisions. The representing countries will range from the ones you’d expect to see at a world sporting event — U.S., Australia and England, to name a few — to nations you might have a hard time pinpointing on a map: Togo, Benin, Sierra Leone and Tunisia are a few to fall in that category.

Grenier, who owns and operates Dodgeball Winnipeg, a local league for players of all skill levels, said the sport has grown considerably since he began playing competitively in 2019.

“The sport is growing pretty fast right now and other countries are getting better every year so we don’t know, it could be a surprise where there are really strong other countries that show up,” he said.

“It’s one of those things where we’re seeing the sport grow so much that who knows where it’s going to be in two to five years. So, it’s a pride thing to be a part of something that’s growing and to help it grow and create that environment or create that culture of growth in the sport.”

The local talent has increased with the sport’s popularity, too.

Manitoba’s men’s team broke through to claim the Canadian championship last month, marking the first time a province other than Ontario has won. Meanwhile, the Manitoba women’s team won silver for the second year in a row at the same tournament.

“Manitoba is really getting better and I think it’s due to (the) really strong league here,” said Grenier. “It’s nice to see some of those players then take the step up at the world level, as well.”

Jaycie Morris has been at the forefront of the women’s game since joining in 2017, when she claims she “barely knew” what competitive dodgeball was about. She will captain Canada’s mixed team at next week’s event.

A softball pitcher in college, Morris returned home after spending four years south of the border and, like many former athletes, was looking to scratch her competitive itch.

“It’s a good progression because we find a lot of baseball players and softball players, they have that throw down already, they have the mechanics of that throw, which is half the battle,” said Morris, 31.

Morris still leans on her background often, hurling a dodgeball using the windmill wind-up that is seen in softball. It’s common to see the windmill pitch in North America, she said, but it’s rather foreign to European teams.

“It’s a lot of fun because I was a pitcher for so long and I get to place the ball wherever I want to place it and this time I get to hit people instead of a glove so it’s a lot of fun,” she said. “They were amazed by my throw and just thought it was the coolest thing, and were getting hit out just looking at it because they’re like, ‘What is that throw?’”

The Canadian mixed team will be pooled with Italy, Argentina, Columbia, Sierra Leone and Tunisia for round-robin play next week. Morris said she holds no fear about taking a hard shot from one of the men. In fact, she’s learned to welcome the challenge that comes with playing with and against them.

“Honestly, I love playing mixed. It’s a different game from men’s or women’s… and to get to play against and with men is awesome. I’m very competitive as a person and it doesn’t scare me to play against guys that are six-foot when I’m like 5-5,” Morris said.

“It’s a different game because if I’m on a women’s team I might be one of the first targets, but when I’m on a mixed team I kind of get looked off a little bit and I can get some sneaky plays in and get people out when they’re not focused too much on me.

“I think it’s pretty cool that men and women can play together and play at the world level and just make it work.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jfreysam