Ghanaians as from may this year be introduced to a new sport- tchoukball This was revealed in an interview with Mr. Alfred Kobina Arthur, the man behind the introduction of the tchoukball and the president of the Ghana Tchoukball Association. .jpg)
He said tchoukball is a real team sport which demands good observation, constant attention by all participants and intelligence of all facets of the game as is good athletic ability.
He said the game of tchoukball was created by an eminent Swiss biologist Dr. Hermann Brandt who did not feel comfortable with the shocking injuries associated with other sports which discouraged people from participating and sometimes stopping even the toughest of athletes from taking part further events due to injuries.
Mr. Arthur stressed “unlike the other sports, tchoukball came out of a scientific research with the aim to introduce a sport that abhors physical contact”.He said the basics of the game are simple, with throwing and catching at the heart of the game. He further indicated that no physical contact whatsoever is allowed, therefore making mixed teaching of the game not only possible but to be encouraged.
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The game could be played both indoor and outdoor, stressing that Ghana would begin with the outdoor as indoor facilities are constructed in the future. He said beach lovers now have a great game to play and would enjoy it as such.
He said countries like Argentina, Austria, Brazil, India, Italy, Malaysia,Pakistan, Singapore, Switzerland, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Great Britain, Japan, Kenya, Taywan, South Korea and the United states of America among many other countries play tchoukball and with the support of the FITB (International Tchoukball Federation) they also take part in international championships held every two years for men, women and junior players.
Mr Arthur opined that the game holds the potential of raising future champions from Ghana and are committed as an association to ensure that the necessary materials needed for the game are made available. He indicated that students in second cycle institutions would be among the first group of individuals to experience the game.
In may 20th, was held the first tchoukball presentation in Accra with the presence of the director of international development of FITB, mr Julio Calegari. The FITB donate to the GTA a pair of tchoukball frames and some promoting and teaching material..jpg)
The game is played in 3 periods of 15minutes each with 7players on each side on a field of 14x26 meters, but adaptations are possible accordingly with the number of players and space available. There is also the beach tchoukball version that is officially played in a 10x20 field with just 5 players a side.
Mr Arthur said his outfit was committed to ensuring the successful introduction of the game to Ghanaians and invited corporate institutions to come on board. He said his outfit takes inspiration from Taiwan, who in the 1980’s took tchoukball to a different level with substantial investment making it the 3rd sport of Taiwan and having consistently over 100 teams for their national championships. He revealed that Switzerland and Great Britain, two founder countries of the Federation International de Tchouckball (F.I.T.B) the games governing body cemented the international presence of tchouckball in Europe and Italy is now developing the game at an extremely fast rate.
Mr Arthur expressed confidence that he believes Ghanaians would excel in the game and indicated that after a period of about a year of introduction of the game, a national league would be introduced.
He said the mission of his outfit was no different from the governing body’s mission which is to govern, manage and develop a prominent team sport with a high national awareness.
He stressed “the aim of fair play in tchoukball is not to create champions, but to contribute to the building of a more harmonious society”. He said it idea which guided the creator Dr Hermann Brandt’s thoughts.
Mr. Arthur indicated that his body’s goal is to ensure that Ghana participates in the next world championship which comes off in 2010.
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He said tchoukball is a real team sport which demands good observation, constant attention by all participants and intelligence of all facets of the game as is good athletic ability.
He said the game of tchoukball was created by an eminent Swiss biologist Dr. Hermann Brandt who did not feel comfortable with the shocking injuries associated with other sports which discouraged people from participating and sometimes stopping even the toughest of athletes from taking part further events due to injuries.
Mr. Arthur stressed “unlike the other sports, tchoukball came out of a scientific research with the aim to introduce a sport that abhors physical contact”.He said the basics of the game are simple, with throwing and catching at the heart of the game. He further indicated that no physical contact whatsoever is allowed, therefore making mixed teaching of the game not only possible but to be encouraged.
.jpg)
The game could be played both indoor and outdoor, stressing that Ghana would begin with the outdoor as indoor facilities are constructed in the future. He said beach lovers now have a great game to play and would enjoy it as such.He said countries like Argentina, Austria, Brazil, India, Italy, Malaysia,Pakistan, Singapore, Switzerland, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Great Britain, Japan, Kenya, Taywan, South Korea and the United states of America among many other countries play tchoukball and with the support of the FITB (International Tchoukball Federation) they also take part in international championships held every two years for men, women and junior players.
Mr Arthur opined that the game holds the potential of raising future champions from Ghana and are committed as an association to ensure that the necessary materials needed for the game are made available. He indicated that students in second cycle institutions would be among the first group of individuals to experience the game.
In may 20th, was held the first tchoukball presentation in Accra with the presence of the director of international development of FITB, mr Julio Calegari. The FITB donate to the GTA a pair of tchoukball frames and some promoting and teaching material.
The game is played in 3 periods of 15minutes each with 7players on each side on a field of 14x26 meters, but adaptations are possible accordingly with the number of players and space available. There is also the beach tchoukball version that is officially played in a 10x20 field with just 5 players a side.Mr Arthur said his outfit was committed to ensuring the successful introduction of the game to Ghanaians and invited corporate institutions to come on board. He said his outfit takes inspiration from Taiwan, who in the 1980’s took tchoukball to a different level with substantial investment making it the 3rd sport of Taiwan and having consistently over 100 teams for their national championships. He revealed that Switzerland and Great Britain, two founder countries of the Federation International de Tchouckball (F.I.T.B) the games governing body cemented the international presence of tchouckball in Europe and Italy is now developing the game at an extremely fast rate.
Mr Arthur expressed confidence that he believes Ghanaians would excel in the game and indicated that after a period of about a year of introduction of the game, a national league would be introduced.
He said the mission of his outfit was no different from the governing body’s mission which is to govern, manage and develop a prominent team sport with a high national awareness.
He stressed “the aim of fair play in tchoukball is not to create champions, but to contribute to the building of a more harmonious society”. He said it idea which guided the creator Dr Hermann Brandt’s thoughts.
Mr. Arthur indicated that his body’s goal is to ensure that Ghana participates in the next world championship which comes off in 2010.
