Hundreds of quidditch players from seven international real-life quidditch teams and three continents descended upon Burnaby’s Lake West Sports Complex on Saturday for the 2014 Quidditch Global Games.

Team USA won gold at this year’s event, followed by Australia with silver and Canada earning bronze. An estimated 1,000 spectators attended the day-long tournament.

At the 2012 event played in Oxford, the United States also won gold, with France taking silver and Australia earning bronze.

Quidditch is an intensive full contact, co-ed, real-life adaptation straight from the fictional pages of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter novels. It features seven active players on each team: 3 chasers who attempt to move, pass, or score with the quaffle (a volleyball) by shooting it through their opponents three hoops, 2 players who hurl bludgers (dodgeballs) to temporarily knock opposing players out of the game, a keeper to defend the hoops, and a seeker on each team to chase the snitch, a velcro tail attached to the shorts of a very swift runner dressed in yellow.

The game ends when the snitch is caught, and the winning team earns an extra 30 points, equivalent to three goals.

Real-life quidditch has a significant following at college and university campuses, encompassing 4,000 players, 200 official teams and hundreds of thousands of fans. The sport even has its own international sport federation – the International Quidditch Association – and the Quidditch Global Games is one of the organization’s largest tournaments.

[youtube id=”8Me0hkD_WfA”]

The @QuidditchCanada team greets their fans before their game against @FranceQuidditch pic.twitter.com/Br7GjTtHCF

— 2014 Global Games (@IQAGlobalGames) July 19, 2014

Some older kids at the kidditch session learning @IQAquidditch drills! pic.twitter.com/9qGtdKUaxe

— 2014 Global Games (@IQAGlobalGames) July 19, 2014

The results so far today at the #globalgames : pic.twitter.com/yJ95f0G24Q

— 2014 Global Games (@IQAGlobalGames) July 19, 2014

#TeamBelgium forfeit due to injuries. Great job Belgium! Loved your #SPACESHIP calls 🙂 pic.twitter.com/OFk5GqpFve

— Australian Quidditch (@AQAOfficial) July 19, 2014

General update: 🙂 pic.twitter.com/vUyJmmM5W4

— Australian Quidditch (@AQAOfficial) July 19, 2014

Players and fans formed a tunnel for Belgium after their forfeit: pic.twitter.com/EEjQixqtpg

— 2014 Global Games (@IQAGlobalGames) July 19, 2014

Intensity with the seeker and the snitch @IQAGlobalGames #globalgames pic.twitter.com/R6SWmCNdvn

— canihajoryan (@Kurtified) July 19, 2014

The crowd cheers for their home team taking home the bronze! pic.twitter.com/wDEcFb7N1v

— 2014 Global Games (@IQAGlobalGames) July 20, 2014

The results so far today at the #globalgames : pic.twitter.com/yJ95f0G24Q

— 2014 Global Games (@IQAGlobalGames) July 19, 2014

Go team Canada! @IQAGlobalGames pic.twitter.com/DTXGwHBVBx

— WillRichardsonLittle (@wwrlittle) July 20, 2014

Shots from the AUS x UK match earlier at the @IQAGlobalGames today in Burnaby! #sowicked #quidditch pic.twitter.com/mF55LXVffZ

— Nina Sarabia (@itsninasarabia) July 20, 2014

Featured Image: @itsninasarabia via Twitter