This is the sport that Muggles have only dreamed of. Not only have Harry Potter fans taken flying lessons alongside the boy who lived, but we’ve sat at the edge of our seats as he dodged whirling Bludgers and tumbled through the air to snatch the game-winning snitch. Sometimes you can’t help wondering; what would it be like to fly like that?
Quidditch is a lacrosse-type sport from the book series phenomenon Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling. In the series, players pass flying balls (called quaffles) and throw them through hoops for points. All of this is played on flying broomsticks in the air.
The International Quidditch Association was founded in 2005, with countries competing in two World Cups since (iqaquidditch.org). This sport has been closely replicated to the book series except for one key component of the game: getting the broom off of the ground. Not until now, that is.
The past week a group of eight skydiver’s from Colombia brought Quidditch to life thousands of feet in the sky. After hurling themselves from a plane, the skydivers proceeded to act out the game with flying brooms, a quaffle, and a goal ring.
The stunt was originally created to advertise the Colombian telecommunications company ETB, but the footage has since gone viral ever since. It is the first game of Quidditch to ever be played in the air.
Playing Quidditch off of the ground is a neat idea in itself, but the fact that it actually succeeded is extraordinary. Not only did the skydivers manage to grab the quaffles in the air, but one succeeded in flying over to the goal and sinking the shot. Even Harry would be impressed.
To top things off, the skydivers were hard-core Harry Potter fans. They were even dedicated enough to make a short video clip, which can be seen here.
So Potterheads, polish off your brooms. This could very well be the future of Quidditch worldwide.