Athletic article for use in flag football

The present invention relates to athletic equipment, particularly, athletic equipment and attire used in playing flag football.

Flag football is a sport enjoyed by people of all ages and gender as a safe alternative to tackle football. The sport is played much like the game of American football except that, rather than tackling the carrier of the football, the opposing team attempts to seize a flag dangling from the waist area of the carrier. The flag is secured to the sides of the waist area of each of the players by a belt that is worn around the waist. The belt is worn over the clothing and the flags are secured, by hook and loop fasteners to a location on the belt. The belt typically includes a simple dual ring belt buckle around which the loose end of the belt is looped and pulled tight.

Unfortunately, the belts are often uncomfortable, do not fit, come loose during play or require constant adjustment. Improper fit of the belt can result in improper positioning of the flags on the player\'s body. For example, when a smaller player pulls the belt tight, the flags may be positioned in front of the body, rather than at each side. This can result in giving the player an unfair advantage because the flags are harder to reach and access to the flags is blocked by the body during forward movement down the field. In addition, the belts often move about the waist thereby causing the flags to migrate from the side of the body to the front and back of the body. Also, when the belt is worn with pants or shorts not having belt loops, the loose end of the belt can be a hazard. The loose end of the belt can dangle from the waist allowing another player to inadvertently grab or step on the loose end of the belt. This can result in a sudden over-tightening of the belt and significant discomfort.

The present invention provides athletic equipment and attire used in playing flag football. In one embodiment, the invention provides an athletic article to be worn while, and used in, playing flag football. The athletic article includes a garment having a waist band adapted to extend about a wearer\'s waist and a pair of leg members extending from the waist band and adapted to extend along at least a portion of the wearer\'s legs. A first fastener member is secured to the garment. The athletic article also includes a flag member having an elongate flag portion and a second fastener member secured to the elongate flag portion. The second fastener member releasably mates with the first fastener member to releasably couple the flag member to the garment.

In another aspect, the athletic article includes a garment having a waist region adapted to extend about a wearer\'s waist, a hip region extending from the waist region, and a pair of leg members extending from the hip region and adapted to extend along at least a portion of the wearer\'s legs. A first fastener member is secured to the hip region of the garment. The athletic article also includes a flag member having an elongate flag portion and a second fastener member secured to the elongate flag portion. The second fastener member releasably mates with the first fastener member to releasably couple the flag member to the garment.

In still another aspect, the athletic article includes a garment having a waist region adapted to extend about a wearer\'s waist, a hip region extending from the waist region, and a pair of leg members extending from the hip region and adapted to extend along at least a portion of the wearer\'s legs. A first fastener member is secured to the garment. The first fastener member is adapted to releasably mate with the flag football flags to releasably couple the flag football flags to the garment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above mentioned and other features and objects of this invention, and the manner of attaining them, will become more apparent and the invention itself will be better understood by reference to the following description of an embodiment of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front view of an athletic article in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 1A is a side view of the garment member of the athletic article of FIG. 1;

FIG. 2 is side view of the flag member of the athletic article of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view of an athletic article in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3A is a side view of the garment member of the athletic article of FIG. 3;

FIG. 4 is a front view of an athletic article in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4A is a side view of the garment member of the athletic article of FIG. 4;

FIG. 5 is a front view of an athletic article in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5A is a side view of the garment member of the athletic article of FIG. 5;

FIG. 6 is a front view of an athletic article in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

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