The Sepak Takraw is a sport that mixes football and volleyball, its native of Southeast Asia, more specifically from the Malay -Thai peninsula and its well known in countries like Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia , Laos and Indonesia. It is similar to futvolei , sport known for many, but with more years of antiquity. Before becoming the sport it is today, it used to be passing a ball to each other in a circule. Nowadays the sport rules only let players use their feet, knees , chest and head to touch the ball .
This game has more than one name. In Malaysia its called Sepak Raga or Takraw, while in Thailand is known just as Takraw. But in Myanmar it is known as the lonely chin and in the Philippines, besides of Takraw , it is also known as Sipa , which means to kick.
But the curious thing about this sport is not your experience in the past or their different names, but the adventures that players perform during games.
This original game is governed by the rules of the International Sepak Takraw Federation (ISTAF) and already has Olympic level in Asia. In addition, each year The King World Cup Championship of Sepak Takraw is celebrated in Thailand.
REGULATION
The playing field.
- Its area is 13.40 meters long and 6.10 meters wide. It has to be free from any obstacule.
- The lines that delimit the court should not be larger than 4 centimeters wide. The line that divides the court into two equal parts has a width of 2 cm.
The posts
- They will be 1.55 meters long, 10 centimeters less for women, from the ground. They must be sufficiently strong to support the tension of the mesh. They are made of wood and they dont have more than 0.04 m radius .
- They should be positioned 0.03 meters from the sidelines and aligned with the central lines.
The ball
- It must be spherical and contain 12 holes and 12 intersections. It is made of synthetic fiber. The circumference cant be less than 0.42 meters and not more than 0.44 meters (0.43 to 0.45 for women).
- The weight must be between 170 and 180 grams ( 150 to 160g for women) .
Players
- The » Regus » are the three players in each side of the court .
- One must be in the part of behind and will be called » Rear «
- The remaining two will be in front , one on each side . The player on the right is called «Right Front » and on the left is called » Left Front» .
Uniform
- Male players must wear a jersey or shirt and tennis shoes with rubber soles . While women have to wear shirts with round collar and sleeves and shorts.
- It is not allowed to use any clothing that helps to increase ball speed .
- The team captain will lead a band on his arm out from other players.
- The clothing will be numbered from 1 to 15. However the size of the numbers may not be less than 19 centimeters tall.
Players position during the match
- The «Rear» player at the beginning of the match should have one foot inside the circle of service. With the other foot that is outside the circle, is the one with which he will kick the ball.
- Players receiving the ball can be anywhere on their side of the court.
Starting the game
- La bola será válida siempre que pase al otro lado, a pesar de rozar la malla.
- The team that selected field side is who starts the game .
- The ball never can be launched before the referee calls the score . If this occurs, the ball must be thrown again and the player will be notice of his error.
- Once the ball is thrown all players can move freely around the court.
- The ball will be valid if it gets to the other side, despite of touching the mesh.
With all this information you know about Sepak Takraw you can already start to practice it, organize leagues and win. Good luck!{:}