Contents
- What is Sepak Takraw Sport ?
- Rules of Sepak Takraw
- History
What is Sepak Takraw Sport ?
Sepak Takraw is a volleyball-like game that originated in Southeast Asia. With a literal translation of ‘Kick Ball’, 3 players compete against their opposition on a volleyball style court with a net across the middle. Unlike volleyball, in Sepak Takraw, players are not allowed to use their hands to play the ball and are required to use their feet, head, knees and chest to touch the ball. Popular across Southeast Asia, it is particularly popular in Malaysia where it is locally known as 'Sepak Raga' and Thailand where it is called 'Takraw'. The object of the game is for one team to score more points than their opposition by causing their opponents to commit a fault, resulting in a score being awarded. However, in a slightly different version of the game called 'Chin Lone' played in Myanmar (Burma), teams actually play together, the game being considered more of an art in which the aim is not to beat any opposition, but to keep the ball aloft in increasingly interesting and graceful ways. 온라인섯다
- Games of Sepak Takraw shall be played by two teams of three players.
- Games should be played on a court that fits the regulation size and markings as set out by ITSAF, with an official Sepak Takraw ball.
- The team to serve first is decided by a coin toss before the match commences.
- Play begins when the server is thrown the ball by a teammate and must then kick the ball over the net whilst keeping one foot in the service circle.
- Players may only touch the ball with their feet, head, knees and chest. Touching the ball with the hand or any other part of the body can result in a fault and a point for the opposition.
- Each team is allowed a maximum of three touches of the ball to return it back over the net without letting it touch the ground.
- Failure to return the ball over the net before it hits the ground results in a point to the opposition.
- Points are always scored in Sepak Takraw by the opposition faulting, and they can do this in a number of ways (see above).
- The first team to reach 21 points wins a set. The first team to win two sets is declared the winner.
History
The game’s history stretches back to the 15th century with slightly differing versions of the game being played in different parts of Southeast Asia. It was in the 1940s, however, that the first set of formalised rules were introduced and the game took the official name of Sepak Takraw with, ISTAF, the International Sepak Takraw Federation governing the sport worldwide where it is growing in popularity year-on-year. Outside of Southeast Asia, the game is particularly popular in the USA and Canada and other western countries where there are significant southeast Asian communities.
