Cuju - an ancient Chinese ball game
Cuju is an ancient ball game that is played in China. It is a ball sport that involves kicking a ball through an opening in a net. Using your hands are not allowed in this game. The sport has some resemblance to Association football which is played thousands of years later.
There are two main styles of cuju, the zhuqiu and the baida.
Zhuqiu was performed at feasts which will celebrate the emperor’s birthday or international events. In this type of game, two teams play with 12 to 16 players each.
The baida style of play was popular in the Song Dynasty. In this game version, there were no goals scored, the players kicked the ball within the set limits of a field enclosed using thread. The winner was decided depending on the number of fouls of a player and the team with the most points. Points are deducted for some faults, for example, when a ball is not passed far enough to reach the other player. Low points are scored when the ball is kicked too low or kicked at the wrong moment.
Similar Sports
- Jianzi — a traditional Chinese national sport, where players aim to keep an shuttlecock-type object (called a Jianzi) in the air by striking it predominantly with legs. Jianzi is said to be derived from Cuju.
- Kemari — Japanese traditional sport with the aim to keep one ball in the air.
- Sepak Takraw — an Asian sport like volleyball but using the feet to kick a ball over a net, which also uses a rattan ball.
- Freestyle Footbag — performing various tricks with a footbag.
Related Pages
- About Sport in China
- About Extinct and Ancient Sports
- List of Extinct Sports
- Complete list of sports
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