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Added on the 02/06/2021 07:38:42 - Copyright : Auto Moto EN
With traditional war paint and outfits worn by the ancient sportsmen of Central America, two teams stepped foot onto sacred ground to compete in one of the oldest known sports on record. Teams from Mexico and Belize gathered in the pre-Hispanic city of Teotihuacan last weekend, to play a modern variation of a pre-historic Mesoamerican ballgame called Ulama, a sport played by the ancient Maya and Aztecs where the ultimate prize was on the line - the lives of the competitors. The game is played with a rubber ball weighing around four and a half pounds, while the teams consist of four players each who are only allowed to move the ball using their hips. The object of the game is to keep the ball in play and in the limits of the field. Players drop down onto the ground and swing their hips toward the ball to keep it moving. The ancient game was known as Ullamaliztli by the Aztecs and called Ulama in colloquial Spanish after the conquistadors emerged victorious over the Aztecs. It is thought to have been invented in between 2500-100 BC and was an important part of daily Mayan and Aztec life. It was played across Central America before being forbidden by the Spanish conquistadors, after which the exact rules of Ulama were forgotten. However, this ancient sport hides a dark past. The ballgame was associated with a ritual to certain Mayan gods. After the game was over, the captain of the losing team, or even the entire losing team, were sometimes sacrificed to the gods, often by decapitation. However, the revival of this ancient sport is a proud moment for the descendants of the ancient Mesoamerican cultures.
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