Games people play - Geo Trek™ - Illustration

Current Events, Oct 11, 2002 by Noel Neff

Sports are fun to watch and play, but in many cases they are also grounded in history. Early civilizations used games as a diversion from everyday life. Many of today's traditional sports have roots in ancient times. Football, for instance, is a modern version of games that involved Roman gladiators. Those gladiators, if alive today, might be amused to watch heavily padded players advance an oblong pigskin across a well-mowed gridiron. A traditional sport in one culture might seem odd to people from other cultures. Bullfighting captivates huge audiences in Spain. Cricket is big in England But those sports would seem out of place in Japan, where sumo wrestling is the national sport. Look at the sports featured on this poster. What do you think each game says about its country's culture?

Caber Toss

For more than 500 years, burly Scots in kilts have tossed the caber, which is a 20-foot log. Competitors lift the caber at its tapered end and try to balance the pole against one shoulder. Then, using their brute strength and a running start, grunting athletes heave the caber end over end.

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Boomerang

The Australian sport is named after the curved throwing stick used by aborigines for hunting and warfare. The objective is to throw the boomerang in such a way that it returns to the thrower after making a looping arc. Points are awarded for distance, catching, and accuracy.

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Yagli Gures

Also called "grease wrestling," yagli gures is Turkey's national sport. Wrestlers, wearing only black leather breeches, smear themselves with olive oil and attempt to overpower their opponents. Wrestlers as young as 8 years old. compete in what many Turks consider a sacred ritual.

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Sepak Takraw

Played in Malaysia and other parts of Asia, sepak takraw resembles volleyball with one distinct difference: Players may not use their hands or arms. Instead, they use their feet, legs, and body to keep the ball in play. The ball, the size of a large grapefruit, is woven from stems of the rattan plant.

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Buskashi

Played today in northern Afghanistan, buzkashi dates back to the days of Genghis Khan. Two teams of riders on horseback jostle for control of the headless corpse of a calf or goat. Teams try to deposit the boz into a pit called the "circle of justice." The ancient version used the corpses of humans.

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