How a carnival distraction became a sport that has found new life in Canada
Ashley Perkins
Contributor
Allowing your eyes to leave the crisscrossing flow of 12 neon-coloured plastic cups will more than likely result in missing the camaraderie of an entire sport—a sport now known as sport-stacking. To the untrained eye, sport-stacking can easily appear to be a deceptive game seen in movies and carnivals. Usually seen only when a vendor places a ball under one of several cups and shifts it around, then allows you to guess which cup it might be under. But really, sport-stacking is no carnival game.
Athletes are faced with the vigorous task of arranging 12 cups bearing three ventilation holes in the top for less air resistance into several different formations while striving for the fastest time possible. The WSSA (World sport-stacking Association) was founded in the early 1980s in southern California and was later featured on a segment of The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. In 1998, Bob Fox took matters into his own hands after hearing about the sport and built a sport franchise based on exactly what he saw on television and dubbed it “speed-stacking”.
As of summer 2007, more than twenty thousand schools in America had a speed stack program as a part of their PE curriculum. In 2005, Jeff Howell—who worked for the York Region School Board—brought speed-stacking into Canada and gave the sport distinction for our nation by re-naming it sport-stacking. Howell gained the interest of a man named Ahmed Bulaleh, who bolstered sport-stacking in Canada with organized tournaments and classes.
Bulaleh says that the benefit of sport-stacking goes beyond just children.
“The great thing about sport-stacking is it’s not only good for the kids, but the parents as well,” says Bulaleh. “It gets the kids off the couch and away from the video games because it’s a sport that can easily be practised at home. It’s not a discriminatory sport, anyone can compete. We have some members that are under four years old and others that are over the age of 65.”
Sport-stacking allows a way for children to be active and doesn’t cost a hefty price as many recreational sports do in today’s society. To get involved, you need to do the obvious first and purchase a stacking kit. This kit includes all twelve cups required to compete properly as well as a stacking mat and a timer.
“Stacking kits can range anywhere from $45-60 which makes it affordable for people of most economic standards and the cups come with a lifetime warranty so you can use them for as long as you’re involved,” says Bulaleh.
Another key factor in the rapid trending of sport-stacking is the involvement of educators and parents in the lives of children and adolescents everywhere. The main goals educators and parents set for kids are successful academia as well as a healthy lifestyle; sport-stacking promotes both. Stacking at a rapid rate forces the athlete to use both the right and left sides of their brain in combination causing a “midline” and developing a new connection to their brain; thus promoting both peak physical condition as well as a rise in academic achievement.
Bulaleh made it clear that the main reason—other than accessibility—sport-stacking is so popular not only in the greater Toronto area but also worldwide, is the competitive level of the sport. There are several divisions and age categories for fair competition. An official rule book has even been developed.
There have been several world records set in sport-stacking: one of the most resonating records is being held by Tyler Cole, a boy who completed the 3-3-3 division early this year. This consists of stacking and collapsing twelve cups in three separate sequences; Tyler did it in 1.71 seconds. Although the sport is aimed towards kids, it sticks with some
“When I spoke recently with one of my best students, I asked how he was maintaining his standards year by year and he told me that he practices every day. He goes to school and then goes home to sport-stack for at least 2-3 hours,” Bulaleh says with some pride.
He says that sport-stacking would not be as wide-spread as it is today—specifically in the GTA—without accessibility and competitive nature. Stack fast enough and you will provide your body and mind with a work out; sport-stacking is easily the underdog of newly discovered sports so when you to get a glass of water, think about doing a bit more than just drinking out of it.
