Fact-file about the unknowns

With cricket not among the 38 sports at the 14th Asian Games, which officially opened on Sunday, India will look instead to another “banker” in kabbadi, which looks — at least to the untrained eye — like a violent version of playground tag.

Believed to date back some 4000 years, kabbadi has its roots in rural India and consists of two teams of 12 players who send a “raider” into the opposing half of the court in an attempt to tag rival team members.

The trick is, however, that the raider must make it back to his half of the court without being tackled by the opposition — and all the time without drawing a single breath.

To prove to the officials that he has held his breath while in Opposition territory, the raider must chant “kabbadi” repeatedly until safely returning to his team mates.

If he returns without being tripped, hauled down or roughed up by the opposition, his team will receive a point for every player he tagged. Players tagged must leave the court.

India’s main challenge will come from the sub-continent, particularly Pakistan, silver medallists at the Asian Games in Bangkok four years ago, and Bangladesh, although Malaysia could sneak a medal.

Thailand, meanwhile, won five of the six sepak takraw gold medals in 1998 and look set to dominate again in Busan. One of the most spectacular sports at the Asian Games, sepak takraw has been played in Southeast Asia since the 11th century. The modern game is played in two formats, both requiring extreme skill and acrobatic ability.

In the “regu” form, two teams of three play a high-speed version of volleyball, except that the players keep the coconut-sized wicker ball up predominately with their feet and heads and are not allowed to use their hands.

Teams of five play in circle sepak takraw, where the object is to get the ball through a hoop high above their heads. Thailand, who won gold in the men’s and women’s regu at the inaugural sepak takraw World Cup in Singapore in August, will be pushed by Malaysia and Myanmar, surprise winners in the women’s regu at the 1998 Asian Games.

Vietnam are pinning their gold medal hopes on the ancient Chinese martial art of wushu with current world champions Nguyen Thuy Hien, Bao Minh, Tran Trong Tuan and Huy Quang among their squad.

Introduced as an official event at the 1990 Asian Games in Beijing, wushu — or kung fu — has hand-to-hand and non-combat forms. Routines are performed solo or in groups, either barehanded or with traditional Chinese weapons. (Reuters)