WEIRD SPORTS

 Hello ladies and gents this is the Viking telling you that today we are talking about 

Sepak Takraw!

Sepak Takraw, commonly known as Takraw, is one of the most popular sports in Thailand. Over the years, it has gained a lot of popularity in several other countries of Southeast Asia as well. Also known as Kick Volleyball, the sport is generally played between two teams, each with three players, on a court similar in size to the badminton court. The players use their head, feet, knees, chest, shoulders etc. to touch the ball and send it over the net. Here, let’s learn some more facts about the spectacular sport.

Sepak is a Malay word meaning “kick”, while Takraw is a Thai word for “woven ball”.

Sepak Takraw is now a widely played sport in Thailand along with other countries of Southeast Asia. But if we go through the history, would find out that the sport dates back to the 15th century in the Malacca city of Malaysia. Initially, it was known as Sepak Raga and considered as a part of the workout sessions.

The ball used in this sport is spherical. Also, it is made of synthetic fiber.

The court, in which the sport is played, is 13.4 meter long and 6.1 meter wide. Also, the net height should never exceed 1.52 meter.

Similar to volleyball, Sepak Takraw can be played both indoors and on the beach.

The sport has two separate categories: the regu (each team consisting of three players) and the doubles regu (each team consisting of two players). In the regu category, one player (known as Server or Tekong) stays at the end of the court. The other two players take position in the front, in two different sides of the court. Feeder refers to the player on the left side, while Striker refers to the player on the right side.

The players are not allowed to use their hands or arms to touch the ball.

A team can use maximum of three touches to send the ball over the net of the other side.

A single event comprises of maximum three sets. A team needs to get 21 points (sometimes 15) with 2-point lead to win a set. The team winning two sets is declared as the winner of the match.

International Sepaktakraw Federation (ISTAF) governs Sepak Takraw in the international platform. ISTAF SuperSeries (ISS) and ISTAF World Cup (IWC) are the two most prestigious international tournaments of the sport. The sport is now also a part of the Asian Games and Southeast Asian Games. Thailand remains at the top position at most of the tournaments in the world.

And as always have a chilled day from the Viking