San Sebastian:
Traditional Basque Sports

Strength and competitiveness are an important aspect of the Basque culture. For centuries the Basque people have survived under harsh conditions imposed by the environment and as a result their traditional sports derive from the daily chores of farmers and fisherman. The rowing competitions, wood chopping, stone lifting, and Jai Alai tout strength and brawn over strategy.

Jai Alai
Fishing Boat Regattas
Rural Sports
Bullfighting

Jai Alai
(Pelota Vasca)

In the Basque provinces of Spain and France that straddle the rugged Pyrenees mountains, "pelota" or Jai-Alai was invented and played on stone courtyards and against church walls in the 15th century. Today in many small towns the game is played in much the same way.

In the Basque language, jai-alai means "merry festival". Originally it was at religious and holiday festivals that the game became popular. Basques first played pelota with bare hands, then with leather gloves, wooden paddles and primitive rackets. The cesta, the woven basket that is the throwing and catching tool used today, came into use in the mid-1800's.

Legend has it that a young French Basque who couldn't afford an expensiveleather glove tried hurling the ball with a curved basket which he obtained from his mother's kitchen. The new basket or "cesta" was to change the concept of the game. More practical designs for the cesta have evolved and today each one is tailored to the individual player.

Jai-Alai also changed with the discovery of rubber and its use in ball-making. That development transformed "pelota" into the spectacular sport of speed, skill and courage that thrill Dania fans today.

By the latter part of the 19th century, jai-alai was being played wherever Basques lived - Mexico, Cuba, the Philippines and South America. Early in the 20th century, at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, the sport was seen for the first time in the United States.

Before World War II, jai-alai was played in Havana and such exotic places as Shanghai and Tientsin, China. Nowadays, it is a popular contemporary sport not only in Spain and France but also Italy, Mexico, Indonesia, the Philippines and Macao. It was played in the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games. In the United States, it is played in Florida, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Equipment

The equipment in Jai-Alai has not changed in hundreds of years and is still hand-made.

Protective Helmet - Made mandatory in 1968, constructed of a tough acrylic material and provides protection from the rock-hard speeding Pelota. (see "Pelota")

Player Jersey - Designates post position by color and front number; the player by back number. Each game has eight post positions No.1 thru 8, with eight corresponding colors.

Faja (red sash) - The traditional belt worn by the players. In Europe the color of the belt determines the post position.

Cesta - The wicker basket custom made and fitted to the individual player. Used to catch and throw the ball at high velocity.

Shoes - Rubber soled professional athletic footwear; provides maximum traction on concrete floor and side wall.

The Cesta
Wicker basket made from reeds found only in the Pyrenees Mountains ofSpain. The frame is made of steam bent chestnut. The hand is inserted into a leather glove and held in place by a wrap-around called a cinta. Cestas cost over $200. A player uses about 15 per season.

The Pelota
The most lethal ball of any sport, the Pelota is 3/4 the size of a baseball, harder than a golf ball, and has been clocked at speeds in excess of 180 m.p.h. The Guiness Book of Records calls it the world's fastest ball. The pelota is constructed of hand wound Brazilian rubber with two hand-sown goatskin covers. Pelotas cost over $150 each and must be re-covered after 15 minutes of play. No machine has ever been developed to construct a pelota. No two pelotas have exactly the same bounce, increasing the challenge of the game.

Explanation of Jai-Alai

The Game is played in a round-robin, usually by 8 players or teams. The game begins when Player No. 1 (or Team No. 1) serves the ball to Player No. 2 (or Team No. 2). The winner of the point stays on the court to meet the next player (team) in rotation. Losers go to the end of the line to await another turn on the court. The first player (team) to score 7 points (or 9 in Superfecta games) wins. The next highest scores are "place" (second) and "show" (third). Playoffs decide tied scores.

The Object of Jai Alai is to hurl a pelota (ball) against the front wall of the court with so much speed and spin that the opposition cannot catch or return it on the fly or the first bounce.

Jai-Alai is easy to understand with rules similar to handball or tennis. The requirement of returning the ball in "one continuous motion" is unique.

The serve
To start the point one must serve the pelota (ball). The server must bounce the ball behind the serving line and with the cesta, hurl the ball directly to the front wall so that upon rebound it will bounce between lines No. 4 and 7. If it does not, it is an under or over serve and the other team will receive the point. "TWO WALL" SERVE. Only one serve shall be allowed for each point in all games. The serve known as TWO WALL or CAROM shall not be allowed.

Juggling/holding rules
The juggling of the ball will not constitute a foul except in the case where a player holds the ball in the basket more than the required time; the required time to be decided by the judges. Under the rules of Jai Alai, the player or team scoring the designated number of points first will be declared the winner. Official Place and Show positions will be awarded to the player or team having the greatest number of points following the winner.

Interference rule
Interference will be called by any judge when player is blocked from making a play for the ball by his opponent. If, in the judge's opinion, the player that was interfered with had no change of reaching the ball, whether or not he was blocked, no interference will be called. Interference will be called on any Court Judge when he (the Court Judge) has blocked a player from making a play for the ball. The interference rule for players and judges is adaptable in all interference violations.

Scoring points
The ball must be caught on the fly or first bounce and may touch the floor only once. All three walls are in play - the red is out of bounds. In "Spectacular Seven/Nine" scoring point value is 1 until each team has played once, thereafter point value is 2.

Jai Alai Courts in San Sebastian
Jai Alai courts can be found throughout the Basque country and in the city of San sebastian. During the summer months San Sebastian holds a City Tournament.

Jai Alai
Fishing Boat Regattas
Rural Sports
Bullfighting
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Fishing Boat Regattas

In the beautiful surroundings of the Bay known as La Concha, the traditional San Sebastian Boat Races are held on the first two Sundays of September. This is undoubtedly the most important sporting event held in the Basque Country, which is plain to see by the sheer number of spectators present. About 100,000, most sporting the colors of their rowing boat, spread out over the hillsides surrounding the Bay to find the best view.

Leisure boats and fishing boats hailing from nearby ports give the final touchwith their flags and sirens sounding out. The streets of San Sebastian, particularly in the Old Quarter, become the neuralgic center for the "experts" to predict the possible results. Bets on who will be the winner go back and forth among friends in the bars and all over town. But the important thing is to win the La Concha Flag; the most important prize for boat racers every year. It is a day of celebration and the town becomes a hotbed for the locals and anyone coming to witness this splendid sight will see that the hospitality of San Sebastian is first class.

Dates: First two Sundays in September.
Place: La Concha Bay, San Sebastian is where the season's best performing regatta teams will compete for the Bandera de La Concha prize.

Jai Alai
Fishing Boat Regattas
Rural Sports
Bullfighting
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Rural Sports

Among Basque rural sports, the most popular ones are the following:

Aizkolariak: wood choppers who use their axes to chop beech logs always competing against the clock.

Harrijasotzaileak: Stone lifters who lift stone of different shapes, weights, and sizes.

Idi-probak: Oxen who drag stones of over 3,000 kg.

Soka-tira: Tug-of-war game in which two teams pull from the opposite ends of a rope, trying to bring the opposing team to their half of the field.

Jai Alai
Fishing Boat Regattas
Rural Sports
Bullfighting
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Bullfighting

Bullfighting has a long-standing tradition in the Basque Country. The three Basque capitals have bullrings where high-level performances are seen every season. The most renowned bullfighters come to the Basque rings during the fiestas of the three capitals, which are held during the month of August. The staunch followers of the bullfighting fiesta will find in Euskadi a demanding public, less colorful than in other towns, and excessively strict with the matadors.

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