By Michael Preston “The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part; the essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well.” - Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the International Olympic Committee who is considered the father of the modern Olympic Games. Consider which present day athletes might endorse such sentiments from more than a century ago and you could be forgiven for assuming it would be those entering a tournament with the aim of competing without the expectation of winning a medal for a championship. On the contrary. That is the philosophy of Darrell “Housh” Doucette quarterback and gold medalist of the reigning IFAF Flag Football world champions who also led his nation to glory at The World Games. Housh embodies all that is positive about the sport. “The camaraderie among all the teams is just unbelievable,” he says, recalling his experience at those tournaments from the past two years. “We’re there to compete, but most of all, we look forward to seeing each other, catching up with people we haven’t seen in a long time and meeting new people. “We’ll be competing and of course we plan on bringing home the gold, but it’s about much more than that. We’ll be having fun, I’ll be watching the other games and watching the younger kids in the USA Football competition that’s also taking place. It’s a family environment that IFAF has created at these tournaments and it’s about more than just winning.” Isn’t that what Pierre de Coubertin said? In case you’re wondering, Housh got his nickname when he first started playing flag football after college and his resemblance to the then Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver TJ Houshmandzadeh, with his hair in a similar ponytail style, led to friends giving him that moniker. It stuck. Housh never got a shot at the NFL, his 5 feet 7 height falling short of the modern tackle game’s prototype quarterback, but in flag, he excels. “The quarterback position is size-less in flag because you don’t have to look over a big offensive line’” he explains. “Height doesn’t matter. There are no big, tall rushers and having a mobile quarterback is an advantage to elude the rushers. A mobile passer who can do everything is the best.” Housh ran track in high school and won state championships in bowling. Then, having moved back to his native New Orleans, flag football caught his attention again. “I’d played before and then I heard there was a flag football league, so I was eager to get out there, to do something I loved to do,” he says. The experience was amazing, and I realized once we started traveling to games that we became more of a family than a team. The growth of the game since then has been amazing; I can’t even explain it. Now here I am, playing for my country and for world championships.” The U.S. Men’s national Team’s recent successes bring with them a level of expectation and heading into this week’s IFAF Americas continental championship, all eyes will be on Housh and his teammates to see if they can again triumph on home soil. “The pressure isn’t as much as people might think since we’re used to playing in those situations,” he insists. “We will go out and play our game and if we do that, we should be unbeatable. If we become divided then things could go south, but we’ll adjust. There is a great attitude within the team and we can all give and take criticism and not be offended by it. We all have a great relationship.” From a personal standpoint, Housh still has to pinch himself when he lines up under the stars and stripes. He has thrown touchdowns in Israel, won gold medals, and has discovered other sports he didn’t even know existed. “It’s a surreal feeling because I grew watching track – Tyson Gay, Usain Bolt, Michael Johnson – and the basketball Dream Teams, so I never thought that I’d be in a similar situation, representing my country. It’s just amazing to know I’m doing the same thing those men and women I looked up to were doing. “At The World Games, I really enjoyed watching every other sport and supporting USA in those sports that I would never have otherwise experienced in my life. I learned about fistball, which is like volleyball, but the ball is allowed to bounce. In sumo wrestling I learned the rules as they went along, and there was karate and kickboxing. And we did the same with other athletes with flag football, teaching them about our game.” As for this week’s championship in Charlotte, despite his personal achievements, Housh is looking forward to continue to improve his game and renew old rivalries. “I pride myself on being a student of the game,” he explains. “I’m always willing to learn. I’ve learned quickly and I’m grateful that my coaches have always been willing to teach me and allow me to implement my own plays within their playbook. Coach Jorge (Cascudo) is more the stay in the pocket and throw type, but I’m more mobile, so we put those things together and it works. He lets me be me. “I’m looking forward to playing Mexico of course, given our past games. They along with Italy and Panama are the top three teams I’ve faced and I’m sure Canada has some great talent as well. But you can’t underestimate anyone, and we’ll give all our opponents the respect they deserve.” The IFAF Americas Continental Championship will be played at the United States Performance Center in Charlotte, N.C. and the University of North Carolina Charlotte from July 5-7. The full schedule of men’s and women’s games featuring Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Mexico, Panama and the United States is available here: https://ifafamericaschampionship.com/game-center. Housh and the United States open against Brazil at 10.45am on Wednesday, July 5, followed by games against Canada (2.30pm, July 5), Mexico (5.30pm, July 5), Panama (9am, July 6), Chile (4pm, July 6) and Argentina (9am, July 7). Placement games will be played on Friday, July 7, with the men’s Gold Medal Game at 7.30pm. (All times Eastern.)