High River is attracting folks from all over the world this week thanks to the 2018 ISA World Championship Shuffleboard Competition.

Taking place at the Bob Snodgrass Recreation Complex, teams from as far as Germany, Japan, and Brazil will compete for the world title.

Competition is definitely strong but according to the past President of the Brazilian Shuffleboard Association, Michael Zellner, it's more about making friends.

"As soon as the games are all over, you forget how many games you won and lost, but you remember the hugs from the Germans and the hugs from the Japanese players and so forth. It's more of a humanitarian thing than it is a competition."

Shuffleboard is growing fast and it's easy to see how passionate the players are about the sport. Captain for the German team, Dieter Hussmann, says he brought the game back home with him after playing it on holiday.

"I played shuffleboard for the first time on vacation in Turkey. I loved it so much, but when I went home, I couldn't find it anywhere. I had a choice. I had to quit playing shuffleboard or start building it from the ground up. I chose the latter and here we are."

Spectators can watch the tournament, free of charge, at the Rec-Plex from Through to Friday, July 20.

 

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