Palmball
The new sport of Palmball was created by Aiden Jones from North Wales, UK in May 2013. Palmball is a fast-paced, end to end, gripping new sport that he came up with whilst on holiday in Tunisia. It is played with 2 teams of 6 on an indoor court, about 30 metres in length and 15 metres in width. The game requires a lot of skill, and is like no other sport in the world. It's very unique, but has a slightly similar style to football/soccer and basketball.
Equipment Required: A flyaway football/soccer ball, an indoor court, 2 bars (goals), and 2 teams of 6.
Description
Palmball, like a lot of sports, has one primary objective: To outscore your opponent. To do this, players must hit the ball (using their hands) onto a bar. The bar is a pole that lies on each side of the court, just like a goal in football/soccer, and is placed horizontally in the air, about 7ft high whilst being held by a pole stuck in the ground. It is about 4 metres in length, and is different to any method of scoring in any sport worldwide.
When a foul is committed, players have the chance to score by hitting the ball onto the bar from about 15 metres out.
Players cannot hold onto the ball, so to dribble and beat the defender, you have to constantly bounce the ball off any part of your hand in the air. It's a bit like basketball, just the other way around. Players cannot be static at any time if they have the ball, or else that is considered a foul. Whilst dribbling, the ball is allowed to touch the floor, but you are not allowed to bounce it simultaneously, like you are in basketball because that will also be considered a foul.
Defenders can block shots or passes using only their hands, and can also steal the ball from the attacker, without fouling them (pushing, kicking, etc). In front of each bar, there is a semi circle, again like there is in basketball. This is called the area. In your own defensive area, that is the only place on the pitch you're allowed to catch the ball, and hold onto it. This is a useful technique to remember whilst defending, however there can only be three defenders in the area at any time, and if there is more it is a foul.
Inside the area, there is a horizontal line that lies across the width of the court, about 2 metres in front of the bar, called, quite simply, the line. This is the only area you're not allowed to score from. If you do it is again, a foul.
The game is divided by four quarters, each 20 minutes long. At the end of each quarter, there is a break, plus additional time the referee adds on due to pauses, injuries, etc. Up to 3 substitutions can be made during each quarter.
If a player scores, then 2 points are awarded, but just like basketball you can also score 3 pointers by scoring from your own half. Scoring a penalty awards you just one point though.
If there is either a goal or if the ball goes out of play, teams take it in turns restarting, anywhere in their defensive area.
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Related Pages
- Other New Sports
- Complete list of unusual sports
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