SPARKS, Md. — USA Lacrosse is set to open its first training event dedicated to the new Sixes discipline, developed by World Lacrosse, beginning today. More than 40 of the nation’s top men’s and women’s lacrosse players will take part in the training camp, which will include a public exhibition during the USA Lacrosse Youth Nationals in Frederica, Del., on July 13.

Sixes is a fast-paced version of the sport played on a smaller field (70 x 36 meters), with fewer players (6 v 6), a condensed game length (four 8-minute quarters) and a 30-second shot clock. Sixes will be the format used for lacrosse at The World Games 2022, a multi-sport Olympic-style event, in Birmingham, Ala., next summer.

The U.S. national teams have conducted scrimmages that helped in the development of the Sixes rules during its Fall Classic in 2018 and 2019 and at the IWLCA President’s Cup the same years, but this will be the first event for the U.S. national teams dedicated solely to the Sixes discipline.

“We’re evaluating the tactics, the players and the coaches and getting familiar with the Sixes discipline,” said Skip Lichtfuss, director of national teams and high performance for USA Lacrosse. “We’re learning it together and we’re open to input from the players and coaches alike. The goal is to have us ready for the World Games next summer.”

USA Lacrosse is working with numerous coaches on the development of this program. Former U.S. team players and current college coaches Erica LaGrow Bamford (Yale), Bobby Benson (Maryland) and Devon Wills (Harvard), the two most recent U.S. box coaches, Tony Resch and Regy Thorpe, and 2018 NCAA men’s national championship coach Andy Shay (Yale) worked on the training curriculum and player selections for this camp.

Additional training sessions will be held during the Lake Placid Summit Classic in August and during an event at USA Lacrosse headquarters in October.

Here are the players competing at this week’s training event, which will take place at both USA Lacrosse headquarters in Sparks, Md., and DE Turf in Frederica, Del.

Men's Players

Women's Players