Top dart throwers from all over Canada are in St. John's this weekend for a unique championship.

Competitors are vying for one of the top sporting titles for the nation's deaf community — the Canadian Deaf Darts Championship.

The salons in the Capitol Hotel are strikingly quiet, yet full of non-stop action and people chatting.

Although competitors communicate with sign language, regional differences can be tough to translate. CBC

"Darts is a fantastic sport. It's probably the top deaf sport," said the event's chair, Bryan Johnson, speaking through sign language interpreter, Debbie Newport.

"It's sometimes difficult when you're playing with a mixed league of both deaf and hearing," he added.

"At least this way, there is no barrier, we can just chat freely."

But players have noticed that even in sign language, people from different parts of the country say things a little differently.

There are lots of chatter and plenty of jokes, passed on to those who don't understand sign language through interpreters hired by the event.

But even they admit they have trouble translating the Newfoundland accent.

"There's Maritime sign language, Newfoundland, then you have Ontario signers, and they sign their own way," said deaf dart player Rosalind Chaffey-Johnson, listing the variations of signing she's witnessed at the competition.

She says culture, attitude and mannerisms all come through in sign language.

But it's not just a distinctive accent that made Newfoundlanders stand out.

The provincial team is leading in the championship, and on Thursday night, stole a coveted title from Manitoba.

"[It was] their third year in a row winning the mixed championship," said team member Melvin Burden.

"We're so glad we were able to beat them, it was a great laugh last night."

Next October, the city will host the World Championship, bringing together players from 40 different countries and languages to experience darts — the Newfoundland way.