ODD COMPETITIONS

Maria Elena Medina y Javier Augusto Rojas

Publicado en Capital Letter No. 2

Octubre de 2002

When we talk about sports, perhaps we think of a broad­caster presenting news on TV; or we may think in the Olympic games with their orthodox sports. Even we may think in our favourite soccer team. But, do people all over the world think the same? Do people enjoy and have entertainment in the same way everywhere? ;You might know the answer if you talk to a foreign person about "Tejo". Maybe he or she will wonder: How can these people enjoy hurling a piece of metal toward a box full of clay? In his or her eyes, it will definitely be a strange sport, although to our eyes it is not.

Thus, many countries have their own kind of sports which depend on their culture, environment and even myths. Here we have two of those examples:

Malaysia

There is a Malaysian legend about a poet called Ch'u Yuan who fell into a river 2000 years ago. People loved him, so they sailed quickly to rescue him, but they could not find his body. Since that time, Malaysians compete in an aquatic race by boat which is called the Dragon boat, and it is practiced in honor of this poet. Each boat is shaped like a dragon -that is the royalty symbol- an each one can carry up to 28 people. It takes place every summer and people go there with big gongs, drums and horns to support their favorite team.

Italy

On July 2^nd and August 16^th every year, there is one of the most well known horse races around the world, the Palio, which takes place in Siena, Italy. For a while, the historic Piazza del Campo becomes a race course where ten horse riders with their horses compete representing their neighborhoods. Since there are seventeen "Contrades" or neighborhoods, some of them are chosen by lot to participate. The competitors dress up with costumes of the 15^th century: striped socks of several colors, baggy trousers and hats with feathers. The competition is ex­tremely hard and people are really angry when their neighborhoods are losing the race. It is common that the winner has to go out escorted. As well, it is very com­mon that illegal drugs are given to the horses to improve their performance.

United Arab Emirates

Camels seem to be slow but they are extremely useful to travel across the desert, and once a year they become the fastest animal in Arabia. This takes place in the Na­tional Holiday of the United Arab Emirates. More that 200 young men compete on their camels for about 20 kilometers to reach the goal. Many people go there to see the competition but, sometimes, they can not see more than a great cloud of sand when the competitors start to move.