Cuju

We all know that modern soccer originated in England, but the Chinese argue that more than a thousand years ago, in our country, this type of sport was already being practiced. Is it true? In ancient times, did the Chinese also practice sports similar to the contemporary ones, and were they the same as the sports practiced in the Western world? In this article, we will take you on a journey through time to go back to the time of Chinese ancestors. With them, we will learn about the sports of ancient China. About Cuju Modern Painting - From Jiao Xiang Yue Cuju: Chinese soccer One fine day about a thousand years ago, in the imperial enclosure of Bianliang, capital of the Song Empire, a prince was playing "soccer" with his servants, striving to demonstrate his skills in handling the ball with his feet. Suddenly, a ball flew towards him like a flash of lightning and, as the prince could not contain it, it landed outside the field. At that moment, a servant who was passing by with a box in his hand, nimbly picked up the ball, and before it fell to the ground, returned it to the prince.…

Chuiwan: ancient golf In ancient China there was another sport, in which a stick was used to hit a ball. At first there were two ways to play: on horseback or on foot. The first resembles polo, a sport as popular as cuju in the Tang Dynasty. The second is like field hockey today, a highly competitive contest calculated by the number of goals. In the Song dynasty, a new method, called Chuiwan (捶丸), was invented. There were two main differences between chuiwan and the previous game: first, the ball was not hit into the goal but into a hole; second, direct confrontation was changed to indirect confrontation. The game of chuiwan consisted of two teams hitting the ball with a stick into the holes previously dug in the ground. Those who hit the ball the least number of times to get it into the holes or those who had the most goals were the winners. Chuiwan can be played individually or as a team. The distance between the batter and the holes differed from 10 to 20 meters. When one hit the ball and got it into the chosen hole in three strokes, one won a point. The sticks…