International Pelota Tournament in the US

This note about the renown Basque sport appeared at Inside Bay Area:

Handball variant makes U.S. debut in South City

By Julia Scott, STAFF WRITER

Article Last Updated: 09/10/2007 02:36:38 AM PDT

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO

HAD IT BEEN televised, few Americans would have recognized the sport being played by men and women from Spain, France, Venezuela, Argentina and other countries at the Basque Cultural Center in South City on Sunday.

In a scene evocative of handball, participants of the World Pelota Championship competed to lob an oversized golf ball against the floor and sides of a two-walled court using either their hands or a paddle. But this court was longer than a handball court, and the cowhide-covered ball was so hard that players would sometimes have to use helmets to protect themselves.

The cheering crowd in the stands came to see pelota, a European-derived sport best known inside Spain's Basque region. Mostly sons and daughters of Basque immigrants, they grew up watching and playing pelota the way other Americans learn baseball.

Put on free by the Basque Pelota and Associated Sports World Council, the first-ever international pelota championship tournament held on U.S. soil will take place all week and culminate in a final match between finalist countries on Saturday.

Choosing South San Francisco as the tournament location was not an accident, said Kepa Arroitajauregi, technical director for the Basque World Council. It's a key part of the World Council's new effort to promote pelota in countries where it's less well-known, especially the U.S., Chile, Bolivia and Venezuela. It didn't hurt that the Basque Cultural Center had a ready-made pelota court.

"It's not only about putting tournaments together, it's about improving the level of play around the world. It's about giving players the opportunity to play in tournaments like this to better themselves," Arroitajauregi said.

Versions of pelota have existed for centuries, reaching Mexico and Latin American countries as a form of European tennis called "Jeu de Pomme" popular with priests and aristocrats starting in the 1600s. Other versions of handball-oriented pelota are attributed to the Incas, Greeks, and other cultures.Following the Spanish Civil War, a Basque diaspora brought the sport to many new countries, where grandfathers and fathers taught their sons and daughters how to play. Today, some forms of pelota are played outdoors, against one wall; others are played with tennis balls or leather balls.

The International Federation of Basque Pelota has put on world pelota championships since the 1950s — primarily in Spain, Mexico and Cuba. The Basque World Council, founded in December 2006, was formed partly as a result of political differences with the International Federation, which would not allow Basque players to compete on their own (the self-governing region has long fought for autonomy from Spain).

Arroitajauregi said the International Federation had not done enough to promote pelota abroad. His organization's goal is to establish pelota coaches in countries with just a handful of players, and teach children the sport as well.

"First we need to bring people to the court and show them what the sport is," he said. "It's a beautiful sport."

Young Iker Urcelay, of Venezuela, was grateful for the rare opportunity to compete with pelota players from other countries. The 23-year-old, who learned pelota from his Basque grandfather when he was 10, says he only has three other players in all of Venezuela to practice with.

"It's a legacy. I love it. I like to watch games on TV," said Urcelay, whose small Venezuelan team has traveled abroad to compete three times this year. He waved aside congratulations on his team's trouncing of Argentina, 22-3, in a preliminary match on Sunday.

"It will happen the same to us on Thursday when we play the Basque country," he said.

The world pelota championships continue through Saturday at the Basque Cultural Center, 599 Railroad Avenue, South San Francisco. Admission is free except for Saturday's games, when tickets are $15. For schedules, visit http://www.euskosare.org/blogak/pilota—2007/partiduak—wpc—2007—es.

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