Edmonton Impact

Edmonton Impact is a Canadian professional paintball team based in Edmonton, Alberta. Established around the Yachimec family in the early 2000s, Impact has become one of the most successful international professional teams, winning major championships in the National Professional Paintball League (NPPL), Paintball Sports Promotions (PSP), Millennium Series and National Xball League (NXL). [1][2][3]

The team is owned by Bart Yachimec and has included his sons Zane Yachimec and Zachary Yachimec, together with their cousin Josh Ouimet. [1][2]

Impact's achievements include consecutive NXL World Cup titles in 2016 and 2017, three consecutive NXL professional season championships from 2015 to 2017, and Millennium Series championships in 2014, 2016 and 2017. [4][5][6]

History

Formation and early competition (2001–2006)

The origins of Edmonton Impact date to 2001, when brothers Zane and Zachary Yachimec, their father Bart and cousin Josh Ouimet entered a local rookie paintball tournament. [1]

The family had previously been introduced to paintball during a holiday in Hawaii. Bart subsequently became the team's owner and coach, while his sons developed as competitive players. [2]

The team's early training facility was Paintball Action Games in Edmonton, Alberta. [3]

The earliest major American tournament record for the organisation appears at the 2003 PSP World Cup, where it competed as Team Impact in Rookie 5-man, finishing 27th out of 128 teams. In 2004, Team Impact competed in the Novice 5-man division at the same event. [3]

By 2006, Impact had progressed to Division 1 X-Ball, finishing second in the Open X-Ball division at the PSP World Cup in November. [3]

Entry into professional competition (2007–2010)

Impact entered the NPPL professional division in 2007.

At the 2007 NPPL Huntington Beach Open, the team reached the professional final against Oakland Blast in its debut appearance. Contemporary WARPIG coverage described the result as an unusual achievement for a newly promoted professional team. [7]

Impact also competed in PSP Open X-Ball during 2007, winning the Los Angeles Open and finishing second at the Chicago Open. [3]

The team entered the PSP professional X-Ball division in 2008, continuing to compete in major American tournaments throughout the following seasons. [3]

Its first recorded PSP professional tournament victory came at the 2010 Phoenix Open, where Edmonton Impact finished first in Pro RaceTo-7 competition. [3][8]

International success (2011–2014)

Impact expanded its international competition programme during the early 2010s, competing in North America, Europe and Asia.

In 2013, the team finished second at the PSP World Cup and reached the podium at several other American professional tournaments. [3]

Impact achieved a significant European championship victory in 2014, winning the Millennium Series Champions Paintball League season title. [9]

The championship roster included Dave Bains, Justin Cornell, Nick Leival, Ryan Martin, Josh Ouimet, Danny Park, Justin Rabackoff, Raney Stanczak, Zane Yachimec and Zachary Yachimec. [9]

The team also won the 2014 PSP Chicago Open and finished second in the American PSP professional season standings. [3][10]

NXL and Millennium championships (2015–2017)

The reorganisation of American professional paintball under the NXL in 2015 marked the beginning of one of Impact's most successful periods.

The team won the 2015 NXL Great Lakes Open and Virginia Beach Open, finishing first in the inaugural NXL professional season standings. [11]

In 2016, Impact won the NXL Las Vegas Open, Great Lakes Open and World Cup. Its World Cup victory came against Russian Legion, securing both the tournament championship and the NXL professional season title. [3][4]

Impact also won the 2016 Millennium Series championship and the European World Cup event at Paris-Chantilly. The final against Toulouse TonTons ended in a 6–1 victory. [12]

The team therefore completed the 2016 season as professional champions of both the American NXL and European Millennium Series. [4][12]

Impact continued its success in 2017. The team won the NXL Chicago Open and subsequently defeated San Diego Dynasty 4–3 in the World Cup final. The result secured consecutive NXL World Cup and professional season championships. [5][13]

Impact also won the final Millennium Series season championship in 2017, retaining its European title before the competition was replaced by the NXL Europe tournament structure. [14]

Continued professional competition (2018–2024)

Impact remained one of the leading professional teams in both American and European X-Ball competition.

In 2018, the team won the NXL Las Vegas Open and Atlantic City Open in the United States, together with the NXL Europe Basildon-London and Paris-Chantilly events. [3]

Further tournament victories followed in 2019, including the NXL Las Vegas Open and NXL Europe Prague Open. [3]

Impact won the 2021 NXL Sunshine State Major, defeating Los Angeles Infamous in the professional final. [15]

In 2022, the team won the NXL Golden State Open and Windy City Major. It finished third in the overall professional season standings. [3][16]

Impact returned to the World Cup final in 2023, finishing second to San Diego Dynasty, and repeated its runner-up finish at the 2024 World Cup. [3]

2025–2026 seasons

In 2025, Impact won the professional X-Ball division at the NXL Lone Star Open. It finished fourth in the overall NXL professional season standings. [17]

The organisation also entered the professional 3v3 X-Ball format, winning the 2025 MLPB Pro 3v3 World Championship and finishing first in the NXL Pro 3v3 season standings. [3][17]

Impact continued to compete in 2026, finishing second at both the Tampa Bay Open and Mid-Atlantic Open before winning the Midwest Open professional X-Ball division. [3]

At the Lone Star Open in September 2026, Impact finished fourth. Following the first four tournaments of the season, the team led the NXL professional standings with 733 ranking points, ahead of Red Legion on 720 points. [18]

Notable players and personnel

Individuals associated with significant periods of Edmonton Impact's history include:

Bart Yachimec – Team owner and coach.
Zane Yachimec – Original member of the family-based team.
Zachary Yachimec – Original member and longstanding professional player.
Josh Ouimet – Original member and longstanding professional player.
Dave Bains – Professional player and later coach.
Justin Cornell – Longstanding member of Impact's professional roster.
Justin Rabackoff – Member of the team's championship-winning NXL and Millennium Series rosters.
Raney Stanczak – Member of several championship-winning rosters.
Alex Goldman – Professional player during the team's NXL championship period.
Keith Brown – Professional player during the team's 2010s championship period.
Nick Leival – Member of the 2014 Millennium championship roster.
Brandon Cornell – Professional player during the modern NXL era.
Dalton Vanderbyl – Professional player who joined Impact in 2017.

[3][9][13][19]

Selected tournament achievements

Year	Competition	Result
2006	PSP World Cup, Open X-Ball	2nd place [3]
2007	PSP Los Angeles Open, Open X-Ball	Champions [3]
2010	PSP Phoenix Open, Professional	Champions [3]
2014	Millennium Series Champions Paintball League	Series champions [9]
2014	PSP Chicago Open, Professional	Champions [3]
2015	NXL Professional Series	Series champions [11]
2016	NXL World Cup, Professional	Champions [4]
2016	NXL Professional Series	Series champions [4]
2016	Millennium Series	Series champions [12]
2017	NXL World Cup, Professional	Champions [5]
2017	NXL Professional Series	Series champions [13]
2017	Millennium Series	Series champions [14]
2018	NXL Atlantic City Open, Professional	Champions [3]
2021	NXL Sunshine State Major, Professional	Champions [15]
2022	NXL Windy City Major, Professional	Champions [3]
2025	NXL Lone Star Open, Professional	Champions [3]
2025	MLPB Pro 3v3 World Championship	Champions [3]
2026	NXL Midwest Open, Professional	Champions [3]

Media

Edmonton Impact was the subject of The Impact Series, a documentary production by filmmaker Sina Azmoudeh of Pure Production.

The series followed the team during the 2014 professional season, documenting its training, travel and competition in the PSP and Millennium Series. The production was distributed through paintball media platforms, including PBNation and YouTube. [20]

Legacy

Edmonton Impact was among the earliest Canadian teams to establish a sustained presence in American professional paintball. Its development from a family-based amateur team to a multiple championship-winning professional organisation was documented by Canadian media in 2013. [2]

The team's consecutive American and European championships during 2016 and 2017 established it as a leading international organisation during the transition from the PSP and Millennium Series to the modern NXL competition structure. [4][5][12][14]

Impact has remained competitive through multiple generations of professional X-Ball, retaining its Canadian identity while fielding players from several countries. [3]

References

External links