Hogtown Roller Derby, founded as the Greater Toronto Area Rollergirls (GTAR), is a women's flat track

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played by two teams of fifteen members. Roller derby is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mostly in the United States. Game play consists of a series of short scrimmages (jam ...

league based in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. Founded in 2007, Hogtown Roller Derby is a member of the

Women's Flat Track Derby Association The Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) is the international governing body for the sport of women's flat track roller derby, and association of leagues around the world. The organization was founded in April 2004 as the United Leagues Co ...

(WFTDA).

History

The league was founded as Greater Toronto Area Rollergirls in early 2007 by Cynthia Brooks, known as "Splat Benatar" as Toronto's first not-for-profit roller derby league. In 2009, its skaters included a

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, an

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and an

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

. The league consists of two teams, which compete against teams from other leagues. By 2011, GTAR was one of three roller derby leagues in Toronto. In July, it was accepted as an apprentice member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association.WFTDA Adds Crop of 15 Apprentice Leagues
", WFTDA, 13 July 2011 Several skaters from GTAR were involved in the

2011 Roller Derby World Cup The 2011 Roller Derby World Cup was an international women's roller derby tournament organized by ''Blood & Thunder'' magazine. Teams of amateur skaters from around the world were fielded to compete for their respective nations. The inaugural 20 ...

, which was hosted by

Toronto Roller Derby Toronto Roller Derby (ToRD), is a women's flat-track roller derby league in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Formed in 2006, the league started play in 2007, and held its tenth season in 2016. Operated and managed by its skaters and members, ToRD has f ...

. Three then-league members took part: Canadian Psycho was selected to skate for All-Ireland Roller Derby and Sloppy Boggins was chosen as assistant coach for Team Sweden, while Lee Way Wreck'em was an alternate for Team Canada. On December 23, 2013, GTAR was made a full WFTDA member league.WFTDA Welcomes 22 New Full Member Leagues
, WFTDA, 23 December 2013 In May 2018, the league announced a rebrand as Hogtown Roller Derby, borrowing on the nickname " Hogtown" for Toronto.

WFTDA rankings

References

{{Ontario Sports Roller derby leagues established in 2007 Roller derby leagues in Canada Sports clubs and teams in Toronto Women's Flat Track Derby Association Division 3 2007 establishments in Ontario