Rock Hill, SC, Preparing for 2014 IQA Championship

The Rock Hill/York County Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB), in partnership with the Rock Hill Parks, Recreation & Tourism Department (RHPRT) will co-host the International Quidditch Southern US Regional Championship at Manchester Meadows Soccer Complex on February 15 – 16, 2014.

The International Quidditch Association (IQA) is confident in Rock Hill’s abilities to host.

"The IQA is thrilled to be bringing our Southern US Regional Championship to Rock Hill in February,” says Alex Benepe, International Quidditch Association CEO. “Between that event and our World Cup in North Myrtle Beach in April, it's clear that South Carolina is becoming a major destination for sports, and we're proud that Quidditch can be a part of it."

Rock Hill will host between 22- 25 different colleges throughout the south for this championship, including Rock Hill’s own Winthrop University.

"We are excited to welcome Quidditch teams and fans from across the region to Rock Hill and showcase the diverse usages for the Manchester Meadows facility,” states Mayor Doug Echols, City of Rock Hill. “This is a great opportunity to share our southern hospitality, and we expect many people will come out to watch this relatively new sport.”

Bill Shanahan, York County’s new county manager, is hopeful that once the teams and fans experience York County they will come back to visit.

“York County would like to thank the International Quidditch Association for choosing us as the host of the 2014 Southern US Regional Championship,” says York County Manager Bill Shanahan, York County Government. “We are thrilled to have nearly 3,000 people coming to our area, and we look forward to giving the citizens of York County the opportunity to see what the game of Quidditch is first hand.”

History of the IQA: Quidditch was founded in 2005 at Middlebury College by then-freshman Xander Manshel. Looking for a variation on their normal Sunday activities, Manshel and his friends laid the foundation for a game that has grown in leaps and bounds to become a widely respected, physically intense sport.

For more information about the 2014 International Quidditch Southern US Regional Championship, contact Auvis Cole, sports sales manager for the Rock Hill/York County CVB at 803-329-5200. For more information about the Manchester Meadows Soccer Complex, contact Adam Scull, Manchester Meadows Supervisor at 803-326-3792. You may also contact Alex Benepe, CEO of IQA at 917-817-1534.