Brij Singh: One of the strongest communities in the world

Brij Singh was part of the U19 Men's National Team squad at the World Championships in Sweden. Now he is taking it to the next level as he has been selected to the Men's team for the World Floorball Championship Qualifier in Colorado Springs this weekend.

How did you get started with floorball?
- Floorball was a sport I had very little involvement in until my high school years about 5 years ago. At the time, I was a dedicated hockey player who had been playing roller, ice, and field hockey at a high level for over three-quarters of my young life. One day, while my team was hanging out at the rink after practice, we began YouTube-ing hockey stick tricks, and after a while, we found floorball. Initially, we thought this would be an awesome way to start playing this game as a recreational activity at school. Soon after, we formally created a club that would become one of the largest in the United States and entirely student run. From there, I found Menlo Park FC and began playing as a hobby, eventually I got more and moreinvolved into the sport, Brij Singh tells us.

What other sports have you played?
- I have been a hockey player since my birth. My father was raised in Chicago, and found hockey as his favorite sport growing up. I was put into ice hockey late due to my mother's fear of injury, so I settled for India's national sport and pastime, field hockey. As one of the few boys in the sport, I excelled at a young age, reaching youth national teams by the time I was 13, and being on the U21 Northern California team at the age of 14. In high school, I focused on roller hockey, captaining my high school's team for three years. Currently, I am focused on floorball for the US and my school's rising club team, Michigan Floorball Club, and the University of Michigan Club Roller Hockey Team.

What has made you stick with floorball?
- The community has been unlike any other hockey community I have seen. There is a very strong balance of competitiveness and community building. Coming from a hockey background, where elite teams and squads, and their competitive luggage, are the norm, to find a hockey-like sport where I can learn from the best without fear of being considered beneath them is a nice change, he continues.

How would you describe floorball to someone who has never seen it before?
- I would say it's a game very tactically similar to team handball or rugby, with a foundation of the street hockey many Americans grow up playing. The game is very fluid and free forming, where creativity and and technical skill is highly sought after, rather than brute strength or speed. Being a creative player can be much more rewarding than a strong player, which make this game unique in its desired athletes. The strongest and fastest will be good, but the best are those who think like a grandmaster chess player.

How does the future of floorball look in your area?
- Floorball in my hometown San Jose is a growing game with a small local community. There is a good amount of expatriates from Scandinavia holding the community together, but more and more American's are finding their way to the game. At my current locale of Ann Arbor, Michigan, there has been a very small community in the past, but I hope to revive a community here in the coming months.

How did you get involved with the national team?
- I learned of the U19 floorball team that would play in Helsingborg in 2015, and after making the squad and competing, I found myself in a position to try out and acquire a role for the men's team.

What are your expectations on the WFCQ?
- I expect success. There is no reason for us to go and not achieve our goals of qualifying and competing at the highest level, especially with the talent I believe the squad has.

What do you think of your own floorball future?
- I am currently pursuing a dual-degree in Sport Management and Business Administration at the University of Michigan. After my career in floorball comes to a close, whether it be to fitness or education, I feel I will cross paths with floorball at some point in my future in an administrative sense.

Why would you recommend floorball to someone that never tried it?
- The game is safe, keeps you in shape, and has one of the strongest communities in the world. Besides the opportunities to represent at the highest levels, there is a wonderful opportunity to go and do wonderful things in the communities where hockey-like games might not be as easily accessible.

What do you think of floorball future in the states?
- The future is bright, and one I think will be vital to getting floorball to a greater scene, such as the Olympics. With the right progress and initiatives, there is a wonderful chance for this game to change the world, Brij Singh concludes.

Team USA will start off by facing Jamaica on Friday the 12th of February at 7 p.m. MST. You can find the official WFCQ event site here.

At the same time as the event the IFF will be hosting floorball seminars that are free. Read more here.