Mexico's Ancient Pelota Purépecha Sport on the Verge of Extinction Is Being Revived

Mexico's ancient sport of pelota Purépecha is not included in the Pan American Games or the Olympics. However, Mexico recently played it at the fourth World Nomad Games in Turkey and it was a success.

According to Mexico News Daily, the biennial competition aims to raise awareness of traditional ethnic sports. Most of the games are from Central Asia.

Still, this year a team from Mexico demonstrated pelota, a Purépecha sport that uses balls and long sticks sort of similar to field hockey or the sport of shinty in Scotland.

Pelota Purépecha has roots that dated back some 3,500 years from what is now the state of Michoacán.

Ana Claudia Collado García, president of the Mexican Federation of Indigenous and Traditional Sports and Games told the outlet that "everyone was very amazed by the performance that we carried out."

The Mexican players discussed the game's history and meaning, exhibited the two types of balls used (one was soaked in gasoline and lighted), and reviewed its rules.

A few of their exhibition games were played in a stadium with a capacity of 15,000 people, which was also used for the opening ceremony. The sport was open to both spectators and participants.

People were interested, according to Collado, whose organization is part of Mexico's Multilingual and Community Cultural Actions Program (PACMYC). She asserted that this was the first time Mexico had participated in this event.

The World Nomad Games returned this year from September 29 to October 2 in Iznik, Turkey, after a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kyrgyzstan hosted the first three World Nomad Games in 2014, 2016, and 2018. It was reported that over 3,000 athletes from 102 countries competed.

What Is the Ancient Sport of Pelota Purépecha?

Pelota Purépecha is a game practiced in Mesoamerica similar to field hockey. However, the pelota Purépecha sport is unique in that it occasionally involves using a ball that has been lit on fire.

According to Health Ahoy, the game's early origins represented a conflict between the sun and the moon, with the players standing in for the movement of the stars and the cosmos.

The sport has reportedly been documented as far back as 1500 BC and it is still played in some parts of Mexico today. It may be one of the oldest hockey sports still being played.

Murals at the Palacio de Tepantitla in the ancient city of Teotihuacan in the Valley of Mexico seemed to depict the ancient sport.

This game has reportedly few archeological remnants, making it challenging to reconstruct much of its past. Since an unknown period, most of what we know has been relayed orally.

How to Play the Ancient Sport Pelota Purépecha?

This is the modern version of the ancient sport's regulations, as the original ones have been lost. Two teams with five or more players square off on a field that measures around 38 yards by 8 yards.

Passing the ball, called the "zapandukua," through the opposing team's goal at the end of the field is the objective of the game.

Each participant controls the ball using a stick that resembles a hockey stick, known as "jatsíraku." Players cannot physically contact the ball with their hands, feet, or other body parts.

In today's games, there is a score or a time limit. The ancient version of the sport was played to a specified score because no timekeeping technology was available.

In one sport variation, the ball is lit on fire, and the game is played at night, according to Health Ahoy. It is impossible to corroborate or contradict the oral tradition that this feature of the sport has existed throughout its history.

Though this is just speculation, the blazing ball likely worked as a timer for the nighttime version of the game, ending it when the flame faded out.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Bert Hoover

Watch: Juego de Pelota Purépecha - From SECTUR Veracruz