Kabaddi
Kabaddi, 12-a-side field pursuit game (only 7 players on each side may take the field at once) very common in India, and also played in Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and China. Its most remarkable feature is that players must hold their breath for long periods. It is probably the only field game in the world which has categories for age and weight. Moreover, no equipment is needed and there are no goals. Provided the ground is reasonably level a pitch can be marked on many different kinds of surface.

Competition Rules
A match consists of 20-minute halves with a 5-minute interval (15 minute halves for women and juniors). The officials comprise a referee, two umpires, two linesmen, a timekeeper, and a scorer.

In essence it is a highly disciplined form of tag requiring agility and first-class lungs. On taking the field each team occupies its own court. The side that has won the toss sends its first raider into the opponents' court. Before he crosses the centre line he has to start saying kabaddi, and he has to go on saying this word quickly and without drawing breath and loudly enough for everyone within, say, 10 m (32.5 ft), to hear. He continues to do this until his raid is over. This process is called the cant and the object of the raid is to touch as many opponents as possible before returning to one's own court. The raider is obliged to cross his opponent's baulk line at least once and all the time he must keep up his cant. Meanwhile, the opponents try to touch him and also to hem him in to prevent him from returning to his own court.

If the raider manages to cross the baulk line and touch one or more opponents and then manages to get back to his own court without losing his cant (running out of breath), then all the opponents touched are out. If the raider loses his cant while on enemy territory he is out. He is also out if he is touched. A player who is out goes to the waiting block. Each time a team puts a player out they score a point. If a team puts out the whole of the opposition they score a lona (a bonus of 4 points). The team with the most points at the end of 40 minutes wins.

Kabaddi In India

The game of Kabaddi is played across the length and breadth of rural India. This popularity can be ascribed to the simplicity of the game and the fact that it requires no sophisticated equipment.

Since Kabaddi is an Indian game, India has been at the forefront of promoting the game at the international stage. India played a pivotal role in laying down standard rules and procedures for Kabaddi in the 1950s.

The Indian Amateur Kabaddi Federation president Janardhan Singh Gehlot was instrumental in establishing the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF) in 2004 and he was elected the first president of IKF.

India's efforts to popularize Kabaddi has paid rich dividends as the country has won all the Asian Games gold medals since the game was introduced in the 1990 Beijing Games. 

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