There are some weird sports in the world: soccer, the luge,camel racing, but these sports are tame compared to others. Everthrow a tennis ball down the hallway in your residence hall? Well,the sport I'm going to tell you about is kind of like that. Onlyit's played in a much longer hallway; the ball is made of rubber;it's played with mitts similar to those used in lacrosse, and itrequires helmets (for your safety).
Jai-Alai is a descendent of the ancient Greek game of Handball,which was played in the original Olympics. The Dania Jai-Alaicourt, or "cancha," is about 180-feet long, 34-feet high to ared-foul area and 35-feet wide to the metal/wood apron. Basically,it's a big hallway.
The "cancha" is a three-sided court with one side open to thepublic protected by a chain-link fence.
One team stands close to the front wall (think the ends of thehallway) while the second team stands close to the back wall. Thesecond team will serve the ball to the first team by throwing it ashard as they can at the front wall. It must bounce off the wallinto a zone around the fourth of the court where the first playeris. Like tennis, the object is to make the other team unable to hitthe ball back.
If the other team happens to catch the ball, they mustimmediately return the ball or lose a point. This continues untilone team is unable to return the ball. Then another team is broughtin because this game is played in a round-robin fashion. Each gameis worth a point, and the first team to seven points wins.
While Jai-Alai players originally used their bare hands to catchthe ball, they now use baskets that were created by a young kid whocould not afford leather gloves.
It's a good thing, too. According to the Guinness Book of WorldRecords Jose Ramon Areitio of Newport, R.I., made Jai-Alai thefastest ball sport in the world when he threw a ball at 188 mph.That speed, by the way, is faster than Jeff Green's pole-winningspeed at this year's Daytona 500. Randy Johnson, eat your heartout.
So who would play such an insane game? It is very popular inCuba, Mexico, the Philippines and South America, but it is onlyplayed in Florida, Connecticut and Rhode Island in the UnitedStates.
Want to know more about Jai-Alai? Every Jai-Alai court in theUnited States has a Web site, and most of them explain this uniqueand insane sport.
Jai-Alai facts:
Gene Hackman, Larry King, Art Garfunkel, Paul Newman and EdMcMahon are all known to play Jai-Alai.
The court where Jose Areitio set the world record closed down in2003, ending 28 years of Jai-Alai in Newport.
Left-handed players must play with their right hands. Traditionand safety have made play right-hand only.
Five people have been killed playing Jai-Alai.
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