Chinlone - National Sport of Myanmar

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Tuesday, 24 January 2006 - Written by Eliot Piltz

Chinlon, Myanmar national sport

To define it for the Western mind, Chinlone is acrobatic freestyle kicking with a 12cm woven ball of rattan (cane). The goal is to keep the ball in the air without using hands, playing individually or in a group of up to 6 players. It serves as a popular form of recreation for men, women, boys and girls of all ages (quite literally!) in Southeast Asia. Beyond the casual, participatory game, Chinlone is the national sport of Myanmar (Burma), several centuries old! The ancient and traditional pastime became an official sport in 1908 with the adoption of rules for competition, and today players from around the world gather annually to the Mandalay Waso Chinlon Festival, now celebrating over 75 years.

What I appreciate most is the way they play, which is so much more interactive than footbag freestyle. It's no coincidence that it's more entertaining for the average person.

Update 1: "Mystic Ball" has since been completed and released theatrically. It won many awards, including Most Popular Canadian Feature at Vancouver International Film Festival and Special Jury Prize at Hot Docs. That is great news, and our congratulations to the filmmakers. Read all about it at mysticball-themovie.com.

Links
General explanation	Fantastic Video	Player's perspective	Accurate google results

Thanks to Jon Schneider for bringing Chinlone to my attention!

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Comments

mysweetsara says on Saturday, 14 October 2006
Title: chinlone

After viewing "Mystic Ball" at the Vancouver (Canada) Int'l Film Festival, it became apparent to me that this sport may truly bring a person peace and solitude. Chinlone struck me as being an "absolute" as I described Greg Hamilton's incredible film. I'm on board, suggest others do the same.

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