Digor - Bhutanese Boules
Digor is a traditional Bhutanese sport which has some similarities to boules. The objective of the sport is to throw a pair of stones as close as possible to a fixed target. The sport is very popular and is played all over Bhutan.
Digor can be played individually or in teams of up to seven players per team. The sport does not require any specific type of field and can be played anywhere. The only equipment required to play the sport are, a pair of spherical stones for each player, and two target pegs.
There are no specifications for the size and weight of the stones used, and is left for the players to decide what suits them the best.
The two targets are fixed about 20m apart from each other. The game play involves players taking turns to throw the stones towards the target. All throws have to be done underarm like in softball. After all the stones have been thrown, points are calculated based on how close one team's stones are to the target than the other. Players are allowed to strike the other team's balls and move it away from the target.
Besides playing for recreation, digor is commonly played during major occasions like New Year celebrations and other traditional holidays.
Similar Sports
- Pétanque — a type of boules in which the objective is to throw hollow metal balls towards a small wooden target ball.
- Shot Put — the track and field event where the particpants throw a heavy metal ball for maximum distance.
- Horseshoes — players toss horseshoes alternately at stakes in the ground.
- Varpa — an old outdoor game dating back to the Viking Age. It is similar to boules but played with a flat and heavy thrower known as "varpa" instead of balls, once made of shaped stones but nowadays aluminum is more popular.
- Tejo — a Colombian sport in which metal discs are thrown 20m to a target that explodes when hit.
- Lagori — from Southern India, this game involves a ball and a pile of flat stones. A member of one team throws a soft ball at a pile of stones to knock them over, then tries to restore the pile of stones while the opposing team throws the ball at them (also known as Lingocha).
- Calva — a traditional Spanish sport in which you throw a piece of metal to knock down a bull's horn-shaped piece of wood.
Related Pages
- List of Boules-type sports
- About Sport in Bhutan
- Complete list of sports
- The Encyclopedia of Sports
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