Tyler Freier-Ritchie might only be the tender age of 15 but in the world of PokĂ©mon, he’s a senior and a champion to boot.
The Grade 9 Elmer Gish student won first place in the senior division (ages 10 to 15) at the 2014/2015 Pokémon City Championships in Sherwood Park.
“It felt good!” he enthused.
It’s a game with cartoon creatures (called PokĂ©mons) that are captured by humans and trained to fight each other in sporting competitions. Players collect cards featuring different PokĂ©mon creatures, each with unique abilities and various levels of skills and strengths. The game sees players pit their PokĂ©mons against each other.
He speculated that he probably has more than 1,000 cards in his collection.
He got his start at Mission Fun and Games with its Saturday league. Now he plays with the older, more competitive group at Happy Harbor Comics in Edmonton.
“St. Albert is almost like a training ground for kids,” said mom, Dawn Robinson. Apparently, the talent runs deep in the family. Tyler’s brother, Landon, went to PokĂ©mon World Championships last year.
“Tyler has a better shot this year, I think.”
Freier-Ritchie admits that there is a fair bit of chance involved but success is mostly due to practice. He added that he has put three years into the game.
“It takes a lot of strategy, and sometimes luck too.”
Along with the bragging rights of being titled PokĂ©mon City Champion and getting to show off his trophy, Freier-Ritchie has also earned championship points that can count toward potentially being invited to compete at this year’s PokĂ©mon World Championships.
The next level of competition is the Alberta Provincial Championship at the Holiday Inn in south Edmonton on April 11. That’s followed by the Alberta Regional Division at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel in south Edmonton on May 30. Just like all other PokĂ©mon competitions, there are levels of play from juniors to seniors to masters.
This year’s PokĂ©mon World Championship takes place in Boston in August. There are reportedly tens of thousands of competitors across the world who compete at various local league events and sanctioned tournaments on their quest to become the world champion.
