Safety first for ultimate frisbee community, as on-field accident prompts online petition

SINGAPORE – Two members of the ultimate frisbee community have started an online petition to raise awareness of safety in the sport after a collision between two players at a mixed-gender league game resulted in serious injury to a young woman.

TODAY understands that the accident had occurred at an ActiveSG event at the Kallang Cricket Field on Oct 15, when a male player coming from downfield tried to intercept the frisbee as a female player was running towards it.

Unable to spot her opponent on her blind side, both athletes collided on the field, resulting in the young woman suffering a dislocated knee, two-part fracture in her leg, and multiple ligament tears to her knee.

While there have been injuries in ultimate frisbee games, a number of players told TODAY that this is one of the worst that they have seen in the sport. As a result of this incident, two veteran players from the Thirsty Camels Ultimate club, Matthew Pan and Jocelyn Chua – who have played the sport for eight and 10 years respectively – have started an online petition on www.change.org to raise awareness about sport safety.

In particular, they want to remind players to avoid contact during play and stop further incidents of “bad bids” – poor attempts to catch or block the disc – by players to prevent injuries on the field.

“This is the first time that I’ve heard of something so bad, and that’s why we’re using this example to highlight to the community, and we see the need to educate people on the sport properly,” said Chua, who had previously donned national colours.

“The extent of the injury made us feel that we needed to do something….we hope that people can be considerate of one another. Sports has a competitive element, and when the adrenaline kicks in, they don’t think they can injure someone if they are reckless.”

Pan added: “Our sport is a non-contact one, and we hope this can help assure parents and make the sport safer.”

The petition, which is accompanied by the campaign hashtag “stopbadbids”, has garnered over 3,800 signatures since it was launched two weeks ago, and it will also be delivered to the Ultimate Players Association (Singapore) (UPA(S), clubs, school teams, club leaders and captains, and players of influence. UPA(S) is the body responsible for the governance of flying disc sports in Singapore, and it is a member of the international governing body, the World Flying Disc Federation. Tracie Tan, captain of Freakshow ultimate frisbee club, also stressed that education is key to ensure safety on the field, particularly with the sport played in mixed gender teams. “There definitely needs to be more education on how to make safe bids, and knowing when to hold back,” she said.

“We’re slowly getting there, especially with this incident. For parents, this would be a deterrent if you hear about the incident…but every sport comes with risks, and I feel as long as everyone is responsible, it should not be a deterrent.”

A relatively young sport in Singapore, ultimate frisbee started here in the mid-1990s with a group of expatriates playing the sport on the Padang. It is popular among young Singaporeans, with over 50 competitive teams from private clubs, junior colleges, polytechnics, Institutes of Technical Education (ITEs), and universities registered with the UPA(S).

There are currently more than 4,000 active players in Singapore, and the majority of players are teenagers and adults aged between 17 and 28 years old. In June, Sport Singapore (SportSG) also partnered with the UPA(S) to launch the ActiveSG Flying Disc Club, which aims to provide opportunities for youths, working adults and seniors to learn and play the sport.

The sport’s growing popularity, however, has also raised concerns about how ultimate frisbee and its rules are taught to beginners.

A non-contact, self-refereed game, players are responsible for administering and adhering to the rules, with a “Spirit of the Game” principle that places responsibility of fair play on each player. Some members of the fraternity have also highlighted the issue of uncertified coaches teaching the sport at corporate and sports events.

Responding to queries from TODAY, UPA(S) director of sport development Angelina Dass said: “The UPAS encourages everyone to use coaches who are certified by UPAS. We are also working with the Singapore Sports Institute to improve the coaching syllabus.”

The association also held a forum for community leaders in March to raise awareness of the rules, and update them on rule changes made by the World Flying Disc Federation.

The injury to the ultimate frisbee player is the latest in a spate of sports-related incidents that have occurred in recent months. In September, bodybuilder Pradip Subramanian suffered “cardiac arrest respiratory failure” after a celebrity boxing match and died, while Briton Stephen Begley died at the Singapore International Triathlon after suffering from cardiorespiratory failure during the swim leg of the event.

Dr Ng Chung Sien, a senior registrar at Changi Sports Medicine Centre and a visiting physician of Singapore Sports Institute, told TODAY that measures can be taken to prevent or minimise the risks when participating in sports.

These include pre-participation screening, public education on the dangers and risks associated with the sport, and conducting pre-event medical support drills and practice sessions.

“Based on the 2015 updated Singapore Sports Safety recommendations, ultimate frisbee is a considered a high risk sport for contact and collision similar to rugby, soccer, martial arts and hockey,” he said.

“Even though ultimate frisbee is supposed to be a ‘non-contact’ team sport, serious accidents can still occur. Dedicated efforts should be made to ensure organisers have put in place safety measures such as pre participation screening, weather advisories, promoting fair play, public outreach / education on the do/don’t on the field of play.”

TODAY has also reached out to Sport Singapore for comment on the incident.