IFAF kicks off a look at the early preparations for The World Games among the eight nations on the Road to Chengdu with an update from tryouts held in England to determine which 12 women will represent Great Britain in China this August.

In his first session with a group of established players and newcomers hoping to make the squad, head coach Jack Reed put 65 athletes through their paces at Loughborough University and College in the East Midlands.

A native of Leominster, Massachusetts, Reed has stepped up from the offensive coordinator role having helped GB to a European Continental Championship title in 2023 and The World Games qualification as a member of the coaching staff at the 2024 IFAF Flag Football World Championships last summer.

During the weekend camp, the hopefuls went through individual testing, flag football drills and competitive situations on the first day then played in a series of games on the Sunday.

“I was really pleased with the energy and talent level of the players there,” said Jack. “It was our first camp of the new Olympic cycle and we’ve taken positive steps towards building the program and culture that we need to be successful.”

Five more camps are planned for Great Britain with April’s session to include those selected from the tryouts and additional trialists who were unable to attend in March.

In attendance to watch proceedings in Loughborough were British American Football Association CEO Chad Ehlertson and IFAF Managing Director Andy Fuller.

Jack’s dedication to coaching GB sees him cross the Atlantic to meet up with his team and a coaching staff that includes from five different countries.

“We have a tremendous staff with diverse backgrounds and a desire to push each other to develop all aspects of the program,” Jack explained. “We are focused on fielding the most competitive team possible for the major competitions coming up in 2025, but equally as important is the foundation we are building to keep the GB women’s team ranked in the top five for years to come.”

Great Britain will compete at The World Games for the first time in Chengdu and face Mexico and Japan, who won the silver and bronze medals respectively at the world championships in Finland. GB lost a heartbreaker to Japan when they last met on the world stage, suffering knockout round defeat when a pass fell incomplete on the last play of the game. The fifth-ranked nation in the IFAF Flag Football World Rankings will also face Italy, a nation they beat 28-12 in Finland to claim seventh place overall.

In Limerick in 2023, Great Britain were crowned European champions, posting an 8-1 record, beating Italy, Denmark, Finland, France (twice), Sweden, and Ukraine on the way to a 26-19 final victory over Spain. In addition to traveling to China for The World Games, GB will defend that European title at this year’s continental championship.