See the greatest plays and most decisive moments, with commentary, from Sarasota, Fla. Thirty-minute highlight videos for all four divisions from the 2009 UPA Club Championships are now posted online.  

The UPA would like to once again recognize each of the four champions at the 2009 UPA Club Championships, which wrapped up on Sunday in Sarasota, Fla.: Masters Division’s Troubled Past (Arcata, Calif.), Mixed Division’s Axis of C’Ville (Charlottesville, Va.), Open Division’s Chain Lightning (Atlanta), and Women’s Division’s Fury (San Francisco). Read on for final standings, 2010 World Ultimate Club Championships team qualifiers, and individual/team Spirit of the Game award winners.

Get the inside story on your favorite team at the 2009 UPA Club Championships from our on-site staff of writers. Recap stories and photos for each Division are posted every night in the Results section.

The UPA practices and promotes Ultimate as a self-officiated sport which emphasizes personal responsibility and integrity in competition. The UPA has also found that the use of officials in some capacities facilitates and improves the game for both players and spectators. As the organization and the sport continue to grow, it is important to consider where the line should be drawn between the player-officials and third-party officials. The UPA would like your feedback: please take a short survey and visit the UPA Board of Directors Blog for more information.

Follow the UPA on Twitter, or see what everyone is saying about the UPA Club Championships here.

Posting? Use #upa09 as the event hashtag.

The schedule of live-streamed games and video highlights for the 2009 UPA Club Championships represents the most comprehensive level of online video coverage to date and is brought to fans free of charge through UPA.org.

All video footage is produced by UltiVillage.com.

Discraft has donated six vintage Ultra-Stars, which will be located at HQ as part of a silent auction. The bidding will take place Thursday, Friday and Saturday, with the highest bidder winning each disc. The auction winners will be announced on Sunday, when payments also will be required before receiving the disc(s). All money raised will be donated to the UPA Youth Outreach Program.

The countdown has begun until the first pull and now you can get the inside scoop on each team in Sarasota by checking out our expert correspondents' preview stories. Read the pool-by-pool breakdown of each Division at the 2009 UPA Club Championhips under the Results section of the tournament website.

The Ultimate community lost a remarkable member this year. Marty Bakko, an enduring fixture of the Minnesota Ultimate scene for more than two decades passed away on July 24. Over the years, Marty played on many great teams in the Open and Masters Divisions, helping them capture eight National and five World Championships. Last year, too weak from his cancer treatments to play, Marty inspired his Surly teammates by roaming the sidelines imploring them to play their best – and they returned the favor by winning the Masters finals. Those who had the pleasure to know Marty will remember him for his dry wit, competitive spirit, uncompromising sportsmanship and love of the game of Ultimate. The UPA is paying a special tribute to Marty at the beginning of the Masters Division finals on Saturday at 3:45 p.m. with the ceremonial first pull of the game.

To honor and celebrate the gold medal captured this past July by the U.S. National Team at The World Games 2009 in Kaohsiung, Chinese Taipei, the UPA will present each team member with a special token of appreciation during a ceremony held between the Women’s and Open Division Championship Games on Sunday (approx. 2 p.m.). Please join us in congratulating the Team USA athletes on their remarkable accomplishment.

The World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) has informed the UPA of the United States’ initial bid allocations for the 2010 World Ultimate Club Championships (WUCC), to be held July 2010 in Prague, Czech Republic. The U.S. has initially been awarded the following number of bids to the 2010 WUCC in each division: Masters – 3, Mixed – 4, Open – 4, Women’s – 4. Please note that it is possible that not all initial bid invitations will be accepted by other countries. Additional bids will be re-allocated if they become available. Qualification for these bids and any additional U.S. bids awarded to the UPA by the WFDF will be initially based on final placement at the 2009 UPA Club Championships.  

All Club Championship participants are cordially invited to attend a UPA Member Forum hosted by representatives of the UPA Board of Directors on Thursday, Oct. 29 immediately following the conclusion of play (approx. 5:30 p.m.) at Tournament Central.

UPA President Peri Kurshan and Board of Directors member Gwen Ambler, among other UPA Board members, will be in attendance. The forum is designed to allow members to meet and interact with their Board members, as well as to introduce new UPA CEO Tom Crawford and Managing Director, Business Development & Communications Chuck Menke to the Ultimate community.

In addition, Board members will be taking questions about various topics, including the ongoing college restructuring plans. Please come by and say hello!

The UPA today announced the official seeds/pools and competition schedules for the 2009 UPA Club Championships, to be held from Oct. 29-Nov. 1 in Sarasota, Fla. A culmination of 93 qualifying series events held throughout the nation, the Club Championships will feature Ultimate’s best adult teams competing in four divisions: Masters, Mixed, Open and Women’s. Only two out of the four returning championships earned top seeds this year – Surly (Twin Cities, Minn.) in the Masters Division and Mental Toss Flycoons (Missoula, Mt.) in the Mixed Division.

What players have switched teams since last year? Which team is bringing the most players to Sarasota? Want to check out the team website of your first opponent? Who is the tallest player on the defending champion in your division? All of these questions and more can be answered by checking out the team rosters on the UPA Score Reporter. Just click on a team page to get an official roster.

VC Ultimate is excited to introduce the VC Green Program Award. VC  and the UPA have worked tirelessly for the last past three years to offer recycling at the UPA Club Championships. This season, we're asking for your help to make this program even better. Each team captain will receive three recycling bags when he/she checks-in at registration. More bags will be available throughout the weekend at the VC tent. The team that returns the most recycling bags (minimum 60 percent full) throughout the competition will be awarded the VC Green Program Award - a VC gift certificate for $1,000. 

Bags can be turned in behind the VC tent, where a running tally will be kept for each team. Aluminum, plastic, glass (reminder: glass items are not permitted to be used by participants and spectators) and cardboard will be accepted. The minimum contribution in order to be eligible for the award is 10 bags. Ideas for collection:

-- Clean up your sidelines
-- Replace a bag from a recycling container

The final count will be taken prior to the Masters finals, and the prize will be awarded during halftime. Thanks for your help in making this the "greenest" UPA Club Championships ever!