Back on June 22nd and 23rd, the best of the best in the United States converged upon Chicago Illinois to try to secure a highly-coveted spot on the first ever Men’s Team USA Roller Derby squad. The GateKeepers were well represented with ten skaters in attendance. When the dust settled on Sunday’s Scrimmages seven were still in contention. After waiting a grueling couple of weeks, the official roster for Men’s Team USA was released today and five GateKeepers have made the charter.

Magnum, P.I.M.P.

One of the founders of the St. Louis GateKeepers, Magnum, P.I.M.P. leads by example and is a big reason why the GateKeepers are where they are today. His tireless pursuit of perfection and leadership keep the GateKeepers focused and striving for greatness. One of the best players in Men’s derby and one of the founders of Team USA, you can expect his dedication and work ethic to be a driving force behind Team USA.

Percy Controll

One of the pillars of the GateKeepers’ blocking Corps, Percy Controll packs a lot of punch for his size. He is fast, agile and knows how to play the angles to catch jammers when they think they are free and clear. His focus and drive on the track is infectious and you can see it in the pack that is on the track with him. He keeps whoever he is working with on the task at hand. You can expect opposing jammers to always take note of where Percy Controll is on the track.

Debaucherous Prime

One of the premier jammers for the St. Louis GateKeepers, Prime’s speed, agility and recovery skills make him a truly terrifying jammer for opposing blockers. Even if you do manage to knock him down, he is likely to be back up on his skates and gone before you can get back into position. Possibly the most gifted skater on the GateKeepers’ roster, he uses these skills to his advantage getting so low that most defenders cannot even legally hit him. Prime led all scoring this local league season jamming for the RiverFront Crimes who will play the Dogtown Rockets on July 20th for the Turf War Championship.

Neil Death Experience

Pound for pound one of the most powerful skaters in the GateKeepers’ arsenal. He can jam or block and for a big guy he skates like a little guy, that is until he hits you or stands you up. Neil Death Experience has quickly made a name for himself with punishing physical play combined with great positional blocking. Just when an opposing Blocker or Jammer lets their guard down, Neil is there to deliver a vicious hit. His pursuit speed is also excellent allowing him to chase down opposing jammers as they escape the pack only to knock them out of play and cycle them to the back of the pack.

Gnat King Kill

Cut from the same cloth as Debaucherous Prime, Gnat King Kill uses his size and skating skill to keep opposing blockers and jammers guessing. Originally joining the league as a jammer, Gnat King Kill has made a seamless transition to blocker and uses his superior skating skills to positionally block opponents. He may be small, but he can take up a lot of track and make life miserable for opposing jammers.

Here is the rest of the news from the Team USA - Men’s Roller Derby:

Thanks to everyone who participated in Team USA tryouts: skaters, referees, NSOs and support staff. We are a stronger organization due to so many people’s work and effort. Choosing this list was not an easy task. We are proud to announce the following 30 skaters for the USA National Team! From the National Team, our 16 event participating World Team members will be picked. Players with names in parentheses are now skating under their legal names but their previous derby names were included for reference. There were many talented skaters who applied but are not on this list. The future of men’s derby in the United States is very promising!

Abraham Drinkin aka Robert John Wyatt
B.STANG aka Brett Stang
Christopher Smith aka (Powder)
Chuck Best (Quench Ur Thurston)
Cory Pain aka Cory Acklus
Debaucherous Prime aka Corey porter
Dirty Larry aka Larry Hopper
Frank Not Sohotra aka Dante Muse
Gnat King Kill aka Michael Walsh
Heath Frazier (Mega)
Jack Hammer’D aka William Coulter
Streak aka Jeremy Strecker
Jon Wical (Johnny Long Hair)
Jonathan R aka Jonathan Rockey
Jurasskick Park aka Andrew Townsend
Just the Tip aka TJ Binkley
Lucky Charmer aka Jon West
Magnum, p.i.m.p. aka Scott Meyer
Neil Death Experience aka Neil Cawvey
Nicholas Becker (BS)
Percy Controll aka Tony Correnti
Peter Pan aka Tony Muse
Quadzilla aka Mo Sanders
Radillac aka Jeremy Franz
Scott Slamilton aka Christopher Scott Whitkop
Seahorses Forever aka Jason McDaniel
Speed Dealer aka Jeff Dupont
Sugar Boots aka Chris Burkard
TINK aka Mark Weber
TwinkleToes aka Ryan Dearth

1st alt Erich Bennar (Dr. Spankenstein)
2nd alt Ace of Skates aka Chris Szabo

So there you have it. Congratulations to the men who made the squad. Also a big shout out to everyone who tried out for Team USA! Team USA will be taking on the rest of the world at the Men’s Roller Derby World Cup on March 14th, 15th and 16th in Birmingham England.

On July 20th the RiverFront Crimes take on the Dogtown Rockets in the 2013 Turf War Championship bout! You can get tickets online at Brown Paper Tickets!

On July 27th the #2 St. Louis GateKeepers take on Rival #3 New York Shock Exchange in a double-header that will also see the B-Keepers taking on New York’s B-Team the Dow Jones Average!

See you at the bouts!

Star-Spangled Hammer

Star-Spangled Hammer and Magilla Guerilla are the announcers for the St. Louis GateKeepers.

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