Lacrosse World Championship Starts Today
7/10/2014 2:53:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
Eight current and former Orange to represent their countries
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The 2014 Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championship gets underway today at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City Colo. The festivities begin with the opening ceremony at 7 p.m. and a rematch of the 2010 gold-medal game between the United States and Canada at 9 p.m.
A record 38 nations will compete in 142 games over 10 days. The countries are grouped into nine divisions for pool play, which continues until July 15. Bracket play starts on July 16. The top four teams in the Blue Division (United States, Canada, Iroquois, England, Australia, Japan) automatically advance to the main championship draw.
Syracuse has seven current or former players competing in the tournament:
Matt Abbott (M) – United States
Brett Bucktooth (A) – Iroquois
Cody Jamieson (A) - Iroquois
Drew Jenkins (M) – Bermuda
Randy Staats (A/M) – Iroquois
Sid Smith (D) - Iroquois
Jeremy Thompson (M) – Iroquois
In addition, Gary Gait is serving as an assistant coach for Team Canada.
Fun Fact: Matt Abbott's inclusion on the Team USA roster marks the eighth straight world championship that an SU men's lacrosse player has represented the U.S.
About Team USA: The United States has won every world championship but one since 1982. Overall, the Americans have claimed nine of the 11 world titles (Canada has won the other two) since the event's inception in 1967. The U.S. has defeated Canada to win three of the last four titles, including a 12-10 victory in 2010.
Roster | More Coverage
About the Iroquois: The Iroquois Nationals are making their first world championship appearance since 2006. The Iroquois missed the 2010 games in Manchester, England due to highly-publicized passport dispute. Cortland's Steve Beville is the Iroquois head coach. Virginia associate head coach Marc Van Arsdale is also a member of the Iroquois staff.
Roster | More Coverage
About Canada: The Canadians have won a pair of world titles, most recently in 2006 when the Canucks and captain Gary Gait upset the United States. Team Canada is widely viewed as Team USA's chief competition for the gold medal.
Roster | More Coverage
About Bermuda: Bermuda will compete in the Yellow Division with France, Ireland and Uganda. Bermuda is led by Division III Cabrini College head coach Steve Colfer and placed 18th in 2010.
Schedule: The full schedule for the 2014 FIL World Championship can be found here.
How to Watch: This year's world championship will receive unprecedented coverage on the ESPN family of networks and on the Internet. Click here for complete broadcast information.
A record 38 nations will compete in 142 games over 10 days. The countries are grouped into nine divisions for pool play, which continues until July 15. Bracket play starts on July 16. The top four teams in the Blue Division (United States, Canada, Iroquois, England, Australia, Japan) automatically advance to the main championship draw.
Syracuse has seven current or former players competing in the tournament:
Matt Abbott (M) – United States
Brett Bucktooth (A) – Iroquois
Cody Jamieson (A) - Iroquois
Drew Jenkins (M) – Bermuda
Randy Staats (A/M) – Iroquois
Sid Smith (D) - Iroquois
Jeremy Thompson (M) – Iroquois
In addition, Gary Gait is serving as an assistant coach for Team Canada.
Fun Fact: Matt Abbott's inclusion on the Team USA roster marks the eighth straight world championship that an SU men's lacrosse player has represented the U.S.
About Team USA: The United States has won every world championship but one since 1982. Overall, the Americans have claimed nine of the 11 world titles (Canada has won the other two) since the event's inception in 1967. The U.S. has defeated Canada to win three of the last four titles, including a 12-10 victory in 2010.
Roster | More Coverage
About the Iroquois: The Iroquois Nationals are making their first world championship appearance since 2006. The Iroquois missed the 2010 games in Manchester, England due to highly-publicized passport dispute. Cortland's Steve Beville is the Iroquois head coach. Virginia associate head coach Marc Van Arsdale is also a member of the Iroquois staff.
Roster | More Coverage
About Canada: The Canadians have won a pair of world titles, most recently in 2006 when the Canucks and captain Gary Gait upset the United States. Team Canada is widely viewed as Team USA's chief competition for the gold medal.
Roster | More Coverage
About Bermuda: Bermuda will compete in the Yellow Division with France, Ireland and Uganda. Bermuda is led by Division III Cabrini College head coach Steve Colfer and placed 18th in 2010.
Schedule: The full schedule for the 2014 FIL World Championship can be found here.
How to Watch: This year's world championship will receive unprecedented coverage on the ESPN family of networks and on the Internet. Click here for complete broadcast information.
Saturday, May 23
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