Ultimate frisbee athlete Stephanie Graves has received a prestigious award at the top national Ultimate frisbee competition in Canada.
Graves won the award while playing with StellO, a women’s masters team from Ottawa at the Canadian Ultimate Championships Masters competition this July. The team came first in the women’s division.
Graves attributed her achievement to her teammates and her excitement to play with a new team.
“I played on a really good team full of people who made me look good,” said Graves.
Graves said she was attracted to StellO because the team is known for a high level of competition.
“I heard lots of great things about the team and wanted an opportunity to play with a team that was well known for being really competitive, really gunning to win nationals,” said Graves.
Graves said she enjoys Ultimate in part because of the opportunity to progress and work hard at the sport.
Graves said she feels somewhat limited in the East Coast to reach new milestones. She said the opportunity to play with a team from another province was a good option to continue hone her skills.
Graves made the tough decision to play with StellO instead of the local master’s team, Sour, at the national master’s competition. However, she also played the season with Salty, the senior women’s team in Halifax.
“I love playing with the team here, Salty,” said Graves, “but it’s sort of like balancing being part of the community here with wanting to see how far I can go.”
Graves isn’t the first East Coast athlete to play with the Ottawa team. Two other local female players have played with StellO in previous years, one receiving the national MVP award in 2023.
Bigger impact on the field
Graves first started playing Ultimate in 2015 and joined a women’s league after moving to Halifax in 2021.
Graves said she values playing with a team and competing as an adult in addition to the mechanics of the sport itself.
“I just really love chasing a frisbee around, that’s the basics of it,” said Graves.
Graves said she became more excited about the sport after playing in a women’s division. She said there are more opportunities to be involved in the gameplay without men on the field.
“Every person can have a bigger impact, and you don’t have specific people dominating, like men dominating the game as much,” said Graves.
While she enjoys women’s games, Graves has taken advantage of opportunities to play with top male athletes in Halifax to improve her skills.
Graves said that training with male athletes who are typically faster and stronger has allowed her and other women to grow in the sport at home.
“Women in Halifax have had more success making national teams,” said Graves. “Right now we’ve got several women who are on national teams and have made it in the past.”
Graves is on this year’s national seniors team for beach Ultimate. This is her first experience on a national team. Other female athletes from Halifax are on the rosters for the national beach Ultimate teams across the divisions.
The World Beach Ultimate Championships will take place in Portugal this November, 2025.