Anonymous immigrant parks to sports heroes in India

New Delhi, April 6. - A group of Indian immigrants who meet on Saturday in a park in Barcelona made ​​the first "selection" Spanish for "kabaddi", a curious sport that attracts these days to tens of thousands of spectators in the northwest India.
The captain, Malkit Singh and his boys have traveled to the Punjab region of India, where his "selection" is dealing with solvency but with no luck to powerful computers in the discipline, such as Canada and Pakistan in World Cup Kabaddi- Punjab 2010.
"We played in a park near the Plaza of Spain in Barcelona. Our nationality is Indian. What happens is that the Government of Spain does not help us. In Spain, only interested in football, and I like, but my sport is kabaddi, "he told Efe the captain, contacted by telephone.
All team members "Spanish" name is Singh, as usual among the faithful of the Sikh religion, concentrated in the Punjab, and divide their residence between Barcelona, ​​Alicante and Palma de Mallorca.
His hobby, "kabaddi" is a contact sport in which, in turn, a team of five to seven members arranged in a midfield attacker tries to catch a lone opposing team, whose task is to "eliminate" with a "touch" to each of his opponents.
During your opponent's field maneuvers, the attacker must hold his breath, so it is traditional that the player constantly repeat the word "kabaddi" as a way of showing who is not breathing, before returning to their camp.
This sophisticated version of "cop-cop" is attracting Hispanic stages, according to the Punjab Cup, an average of 22,000 to 25,000 spectators, fans concitará a game that, if anything, the attention of some curious in parks in Barcelona.
And maybe because its only requirement is to have an open field, the "kabaddi" is popular especially in rural areas of Punjab, where the regional government has decided to organize the first global "youth away from drugs," according the organization.
"There are villages where 50 percent of young people use drugs, so we thought in the sport as an alternative. In addition, so we can unite our people in the diaspora, "he told Efe by telephone Punjab sports director, Pargat Singh.
According to the director, the organization was forced to contact non-professional teams in areas of the world with significant presence of Punjabi community as the "kabaddi" long tradition in parts of Asia, remains unknown in the West.
So says the organization, teams fit like a glove to areas of the world with over Punjabi immigrants, and apart from India and Pakistan come from the traditional recipients of this ethnic group, such as Canada or the U.S..
Although decent, the journey of these "Spanish for adoption" is still insufficient: the team lost to Canada 68-28 in the opening match of the championship and was later defeated by the United Kingdom, but with a tighter 37-28.
"Yes, we lost the first two games, but we had problems with the equipment. Many could not come because they have lost their jobs, "lamented the captain, who has spent three years in Spain but still has difficulties with the language.
The tournament began on day 3 and end on 12 with a cool prize of ten million rupees (about 167,000 euros) for the winner, although the team will pocket Malkit Singh 500,000 rupees for the sake of participating.
And then will return to their lives: "I like playing kabaddi, but what we really need is help getting a job," the player told Efe "Spanish" Shamsher Singh, a few hours before facing today's "kabaddistas" of Pakistan

Football reigns in Calcutta bites of lobster and shad

New Delhi, February 26, 2007. - The city of Calcutta has one of the oldest rivalries in Asia and rough, pitting supporters of Mohun Bagan football club, known as "lobster", with East Bengal (" shad "), with a smaller budget but passion so intense as in Europe and Americ a.
While in India cricket is the most popular sport and hockey is considered the national sport, football holds his scepter in the coastal areas of Kerala and Goa (west) and the region of Bengal (East), whose capital, Calcutta, are remeasured morning the two clubs.
"Cricket is the sport in India. But football is enthusiastic young people, especially those from the lower classes, that after every match is thrown into the streets to celebrate the triumphs of his team, "said Efe Gayatri Bhattacharyya sociology professor at the University of Calcutta.
In New Delhi, the organization Youth Football Association of India (IYSA, acronym in English), carries out projects to promote the sport among the smallest of the nation's capital, with attention also to those with fewer resources, through a street league.
"In our Little League play some 550 children over a period of seven months. And among them, there are about 60 to those who provide transport and equipment. We play every Sunday, "he told Efe IYSA secretary, Arup Das.
However, there is a world between the laudable efforts of NGOs such as the IYSA to promote the sport and passion of football unleashes masses in Calcutta around rojigualda colors of East Bengal, and green and purple of Mohun Bagan, which will meet again on Tuesday.
With deep marks of British colonization, India Calcutta is the city that feels more football, and many still listed as a national landmark building Mohun Bagan's victory against Yorkshire Regiment, a 2-1 in 1911 that considered the end of the primacy of English in the country (football, that is).
In the city, the fervent supporters of Mohun, founded in 1889, is proud that in Bengal had a Football League before there Barcelona or Real Madrid, but have little to celebrate if we analyze the clashes with the opposing team, the East Bengal Club.
The latter squad, knowing that statistics are favorable, includes on its website a comparison with the victories and defeats in clashes with rivals Mohun Bagan, which obviously kept quiet about it.
However, the Mohun Bagan, considered the oldest club in Asia, it boasts a track record longer than the East Bengal and counting in its ranks with "Ronaldinho" Indian, Baichung Bhutia, who leads the classification of the scorers against the eternal rival.
Each time there is a derby as the morning, some 120,000 spectators crammed calcutí of Saltlake Stadium in hopes that his team scores more goals than the opponent, to fill after massive street celebrations and celebrate a great feast of fish and seafood at home.
"Both teams have their own idiosyncrasies and gastronomy. The Mohun Bagan is identified with the lobster, and East Bengal with hilsa shad, a tropical fish. When Mohun wins, the fans go to the fishmonger to buy lobster. And if you win East Bengal, shad runs, "says Bhattacharyyia.
In the city, the more cautious and have bought their ration days before the match, because in Calcutta everyone knows, when Mohun Bagan faces the East Bengal, fish prices rise.