Bill > S1589

Introduced Session

This bill designates Ultimate as the State sport of New Jersey. This bill recognizes the contribution of New Jersey residents in developing the sport of Ultimate. Ultimate, also known as Ultimate Frisbee, is a self-officiated, non-contact disc sport played between two teams of seven players. The object of the game is to score goals against the other team while maintaining Spirit of the Game. Spirit of the Game is a set of principles that places the responsibility for fair play on the players. These principles encourage highly competitive play but not at the expense of mutual respect between competitors, adherence to agreed-upon rules, and the basic joy of play. Joel Silver of Maplewood, New Jersey introduced the idea of Ultimate in 1967 at Columbia High School in Maplewood. The first game of Ultimate was played between students of Columbia High School the following year. Mr. Silver, Bernard "Buzzy" Hellring, and Jon Hines then developed the sport's first two sets of rules. As the sport's popularity grew, more early developments in the sport of Ultimate Frisbee soon followed. New Jersey is home to the most firsts for the sport of Ultimate. Columbia High School and Millburn High School in Millburn competed in the first interscholastic game of Ultimate in 1970. The first collegiate match was played between for Rutgers University and Princeton University in 1972. Rutgers went on to prevail at the first National Collegiate Championships for Ultimate Frisbee in 1975 and won National Ultimate Frisbee Championship in 1976. In 2015, the International Olympic Committee officially recognized Ultimate, paving the way for the sport to be showcased at the Olympics. Today, millions of people play the sport across more than 100 countries. Players worldwide represented by 103 member associations of the World Flying Disc Federation, an official member of the International Olympic Committee. As of 2022, the United States is home to three professional Ultimate leagues. The premier Ultimate League and the Western Ultimate League primarily consist of athletes who are women or non-binary, while the American Ultimate Disc League primarily consists of athletes who are men. As the sport of Ultimate continues to grow and develop, the players tasked with upholding the principles and rules of Spirit of the Game are continuously challenged to be aware of the potential for implicit biases when considering and discussing interactions with and impressions of other teams and their own teams. This is especially important given that mixed-gender teams often play together on the same field. This bill recognizes that it is important for New Jersey to acknowledge the State's historical significance to the sport of Ultimate and the shared commitment of New Jersey and Ultimate to challenging implicit biases for the betterment of our shared communities.

Committee Categories

Andrew Zwicker (D)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Commerce Committee (on 01/09/2024)

Official Document