About Us
Our Story
Maryland Area Roller Sports Junior Roller Derby AKA MARS Jr. Derby was founded in 2015 in order to allow children, ages 7-17, the opportunity to learn the sport of roller derby. MARS Junior Roller Derby’s mission is to provide a fun, safe, and supportive environment for young athletes where they can come together and play this highly exciting sport of speed, strategy and teamwork. Junior Roller Derby helps empower our skaters by developing character, social skills, and athletic abilities, building self-confidence, and teaching leadership skills while improving overall fitness.
MARS Jr. Roller Derby offers year round practices and game play with brief breaks during the summer and holiday seasons. Our Level III team participates in competitive, sanctioned game play from January to July while our Level I & Level II teams play inter-league scrimmages throughout the year. In additional to scrimmages & bouts, MARS hosts a number of clinics and mixers throughout the year!
Our junior skaters are trained by a team of qualified current or former roller derby athletes including members of Team USA, Team Maryland, Beast Side Roller Derby and other local leagues. Roller derby provides a unique community with participants coming from very diverse backgrounds. The MARS Junior Roller Derby League draws from this community to achieve its goals and prepare young athletes for adulthood. The junior program is designed to nurture and develop both skilled athletes and provide them the opportunity to discover their inner champion. Participating athletes will gain the opportunity to develop leadership, sportsmanship, and teamwork skills, in addition to confidence, ability, and a sense of accomplishment that can carry over into life long skills!
Mission Statement
"Empowering Youth through Wheels and Unity: Our Open Division Junior Roller Derby Team's Mission"
At MARS Junior Roller Derby, we believe in the transformative power of roller derby to inspire, build character, and create lifelong connections. Our mission is to provide a welcoming and inclusive environment for young skaters of all backgrounds and skill levels to come together, learn, grow, and excel.
Our goal is to foster a sense of empowerment, resilience, and teamwork among our junior athletes. We strive to cultivate not only strong roller derby skills but also a strong sense of self-confidence, sportsmanship, and leadership. We aim to instill in our team members the values of dedication, perseverance, and mutual respect both on and off the track.
Through dynamic coaching, strategic training, and a commitment to continuous improvement, we aim to offer our skaters the tools they need to thrive in roller derby and beyond. We envision our team as a united force that supports one another, celebrates each other's successes, and learns from challenges as a cohesive unit.
As we embark on this journey, we invite skaters, families, and the community to join us in creating an environment that is inclusive, spirited, and filled with the joy of roller derby. Together, we'll roll, learn, and grow – united by a common passion and a shared vision of youth empowerment through wheels and unity.