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Jianzi (Shuttlecock)

Jianzi is a traditional Chinese sport which was derived from another ancient Chinese sport Cuju. The sport is named after the object that is used to play the sport with, called a jianzi, which loosely resembles a weighted shuttlecock. In English, both the sport and the object with which it is played are referred to as shuttlecock or featherball. Other names referring to this pastime is capteh and kikbo.

The objective of the sport to always keep the Jianzi in air by striking it predominantly with the legs. Other body parts except hands can also be used to strike the jianzi.

There are several variations of game play depending on whether the sport is played at a recreational level or at competitive level. At a competitive level, matches are played in courts that are similar to that of badminton courts, with a net in the middle. The most popular format of Jianzi, which originated in 2009, is called Chinese JJJ (which stands for "competitive Jianzi-kicking), and most Jianzi tournaments are conducted in this format of the sport.

a kid trying to keep the Jianzi "shuttlecock" in the air

In Chinese JJJ, a badminton court with only the inner markings and a low net of height 90 cm is used. This enables for football types of kicks and makes the sport more exciting. Matches are played in both singles and doubles format. Tournaments are conducted for men, women and mixed doubles teams.

At a recreational level, several formats are used for game play like, 8 to 10 players assembling around a circle and play till one player is left, or players individually competing to keep the jianzi in air for the longest time.

Similar Sports

• Kemari — Japanese traditional sport with the aim to keep one ball in the air.
• Freestyle Footbag — performing various tricks with a footbag.
• Basse — a bag ball game from Norway in which the ball is kept from landing in the player's area, using any part of the body except the hands.
• Picigin — a traditional water sport from Croatia in which the aim is to prevent a small ball from touching the surface of the water.
• Cuju — an ancient ball game that involved kicking a ball through into a net.
• Peteca — played by hitting the shuttlecock with your hand over a high net.
• Chinlone — the traditional sport of Burma or Myanmar, a team sport combined with dance (also known as Caneball).
• Sepak Takraw — an Asian sport like volleyball but using the feet to kick a ball over a net.
• Badminton — an indoor game with rackets in which a shuttlecock is hit back and forth across a net.

Related Pages

• Sport in China
• Complete list of sports
• The Encyclopedia of Sports

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