 Kho kho game in progress at a government school in Haryana, India | |
| Highest governing body | International Kho Kho Federation |
|---|---|
| Nicknames |
|
| First played | India |
| Characteristics | |
| Contact | Permitted |
| Team members | 15 players per side, 12 in the field in 4 batches and 3 extra |
| Mixed-sex | No |
| Equipment | None (except the two poles on the court) |
| Glossary | Glossary of kho kho terms |
| Presence | |
| Country or region | Indian subcontinent |
| Olympic | Demonstration sport: 1936 |
| World Championships | Kho Kho World Cup |
Kho kho is a traditional South Asian sport that dates to ancient India.[1][2] It is the second-most popular traditional tag game in the Indian subcontinent after kabaddi.[3] Kho kho is played on a rectangular court with a central lane connecting two poles which are at either end of the court. During the game, nine players from the chasing team (attacking team) are on the field, with eight of them sitting (crouched) in the central lane, while three runners from the defending team run around the court and try to avoid being touched.[2] Each sitting player on the chasing team faces the opposite half of the field that their adjacent teammates are facing.
At any time, one player from the chasing team (the 'active chaser'/'attacker') may run around the court to attempt to tag (touch) members of the defending team, with one point scored per tag, and each tagged defender required to leave the field; however, the active chaser cannot cross the central lane to access the other half of the field, and cannot change direction once they start running toward either pole. The chasing team can get around these restrictions if the active chaser either switches roles with a sitting teammate (by touching them on the back while saying "Kho") who is facing the other half of the court and therefore has access to it, or runs to the area behind either pole and then switches direction/half. Each team has two turns to score and two turns to defend, with each turn lasting nine minutes. The team that scores the most points by the end of the game wins.[4]
The sport is widely played across South Asia, and also has a presence in other regions with a significant South Asian diaspora, such as South Africa and England. It is played most often by school children, and is also a competitive sport.[5] The first franchise league for the sport, Ultimate Kho Kho, was unveiled in India in August 2022.[6]
- ^ Hard Bound Lab Manual Health and Physical Education, p. 41
- ^ a b "kho-kho | Indian sport | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ Peter A Hastie (2010). Student-Designed Games: Strategies for Promoting Creativity, Cooperation, and Skill Development. Human Kinetics. p. 52. ISBN 978-0-7360-8590-8.
- ^ Nag, Utathya (24 June 2022). "Kho Kho, a kabaddi-like sport linked with Indian epic Mahabharata - know all about it". Olympics.com
- ^ ahmed, usman (14 August 2011). "Trip down memory lane: The games we play…". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
- ^ Scroll Staff. "Ultimate Kho Kho: Squads, format, fixtures – all you need to know about latest Indian sports league". Scroll.in. Retrieved 18 August 2022.