Joburg’s Golden City Rollers host the roller derby finals
This year, Golden City Rollers (GCR) held its first post-pandemic home season after more than a year of preparing a new group of skaters. Two new home teams, Chrome Chaos and Mercury Mayhem, comprised of seasoned skaters and rookies, debuted during the season.
The finals of the GCR roller derby on June 24 had fans dazzled by impressive body slams, sprawling falls and lightning-fast feet from participants.
GCR announced the return of the Home Season League, which featured two new teams, Chrome Chaos and Mercury Mayhem.
The Home Season had to be suspended for several years, during which time they trained new skaters.
In a tight finish to the championship game, Chrome Chaos defeated Mercury Mayhem 118–113 to win the Home Season Championship.
With scores of 122-74 and 115-103, Chrome Chaos also won the season’s first two games played in May and June.
The GCR chairperson, Dianne Silva, said the close scores were a testament to both teams’ efforts. The players gave it their all to present to the public the most thrilling roller derby ever in Johannesburg.
“We have some of the strongest players we have ever had this year, several of whom only started a year ago. We are incredibly impressed with their strength and dedication in our league,” said Silva.
The GCR has won every National Derby Festival since the competition was introduced in 2016, making them the sport’s undisputed national champion in SA.
Additionally, it defeated teams from Cairo, Dubai, Cape Town, and Durban in the first Pan-African roller derby event, African Good Time, with a score of 285-37 in March 2020.
A first of its kind, the league was founded on the African continent in 2010 and was the first African league to join the World Roller Derby Association, the sport’s international governing body.
The GCR competed in the Road to Mictlan event in Mexico last November and made history as the first SA roller derby league to play abroad.
