Mesoamerican Ballgame
The Pre-Columbian people of Mesoamerica have played the Mesoamerican ball game for over 3,000 years. Archaeologists found the oldest ballcourt yet discovered - dated to approximately 1400 BC - at Paso de la Amada in Mexico.
The exact rules of the traditional ballgame remain unknown; but researchers believe that the sport probably resembled racquetball or volleyball, where the object is to keep the ball in play. In their Post-Classical Era (1000–1697 CE), the Maya began placing vertical stone rings on each side of the court, with the object of passing the ball through one. Several of these were placed quite high, as at Chichen Itza, where they stand 6 meters from the ground. Players would strike the ball with their hips or forearms, or employed rackets, bats, or hand-stones. The ball, made of solid rubber, weighed up to 4 kg or more, with sizes that differed greatly over time or according to the version played. Games took place between two individuals and between two teams of players. The ballgame played out within a large masonry structure which contained a long narrow playing alley flanked by walls with both horizontal and sloping (or, more rarely, vertical) surfaces. The walls were often plastered and brightly painted. A version of the game called Ulama is still played in the Mexican state of Sinaloa.
Read more about this topic: Sport In Mexico