Pelota Vasca or Pelota Valenciana (in Spanish; pilota in Basque, Valenciano and Catalan; pelote in French, from Latin pila) is a name for a variety of court sports played with a ball using one's hand, a racket, a wooden bat (pala), or a basket propulsor, against a wall (frontón in Spanish, frontoi in Basque, frontó in Catalan) or, more traditionally, with two teams face to face separated by a line on the ground or a net. Their roots can be traced to the Greek and other ancient cultures, but in Europe they all derive from real tennis (see Jeu de Paume). Today, pelota is widely played in several countries: in the Basque Country and their neighbours; in Valencia where it is considered the national sport; and in rural areas of Ireland, Belgium, North of Italy, Mexico, Argentina and other American countries. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Catalan (Català, Valencià) is a Romance language understood by as many as 12 million people in portions of Spain, France, Andorra and Italy, although the majority of active Catalan speakers are in Spain. ... Latin is the language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ... Look up ball in Wiktionary, the free dictionary A ball is a round object that is used most often in sports and games. ... Racket can denote: a systematised element of organized crime a sporting implement, otherwise: racquet This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Categories: Stub | Marine propulsion ... A wall is a usually solid structure that defines and sometimes protects space. ... Catalan (Català, Valencià) is a Romance language understood by as many as 12 million people in portions of Spain, France, Andorra and Italy, although the majority of active Catalan speakers are in Spain. ... Real tennis is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of lawn tennis, or tennis, is descended. ... Jeu de paume was originally a French precursor of tennis played without racquets. ... Edit: It is important to underline that there has never been anything even similar to a basque state or independent country whatsoever. ... Capital Valencia Official languages Valencian (Catalan) and Spanish (Castilian) Area  – total  – % of Spain Ranked 8th  23 255 km²  4,6% Population  – Total (2003)  – % of Spain  – Density Ranked 4th  4 326 708  10,3%  186,05/km² Demonym  – English  – Valencian  – Spanish  Valencian  valencià/valenciana  valenciano/valenciana Statute of Autonomy July 10...

Recently, some initiatives have organised pelota championships trying to unify the different modalities played all around the world, in order to standardise them into two or three simpler modalities, with fixed ball weights, rules and court sizes. There are, of course, criticisms on this, since the original traits of each particular modality would be lost. The matches between Basque and Valencian teams have always been the most leveled ones, due to the quality and versatility of their players.

Basque pelota

The most characteristic trait of Basque pelota is that it is played against a wall (frontón in Spanish, frontoi in Basque). There are modalities played with the bare hand (pelota a mano in Spanish or eskupilota in Basque) or with a wooden bat (pala), or a basket propulsor (cesta, xistera), the latter being very famous in Florida as the jai alai modality, and also played in Macao. A wall is a usually solid structure that defines and sometimes protects space. ... Categories: Stub | Marine propulsion ... State nickname: Sunshine State Other U.S. States Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Governor Jeb Bush (R) Official languages English Area 170,451 km² (22nd)  - Land 137,374 km²  - Water 30,486 km² (17. ... Now defunct Milford Jai-Alai Fronton in Milford, Connecticut. ...

To foreign spectators, it may appear as squash in a larger court. Nevertheless it has only side wall in the left flank, while the right limit of the court is just marked on the floor. Squash racquet and ball Squash is an indoor racquet sport which was, until recently, called Squash Rackets, a reference to the squashable soft ball used in the game (compared with the harder ball used in its parent game Racquets or Rackets--see below). ...

Basque pelota has been an exhibition olympic sport in Mexico '68 and Barcelona '92 and could be an exibition sport in London 2012. International competitions are dominated by Basques playing in either the Spanish or the French national teams. Professional games are open to betting on the results. A large number of sports have been conducted at the Olympic Games. ... The Games of the XXV Olympiad were held in 1992 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. ... The British Olympic Association has been working on a London Olympic Bid for the 2012 Summer Games since 1997. ...

Valencian pilota

The most characteristic trait of Valencian pilota is that it is always played with the bare hand (with some minimal protections) and it is not generally played against a wall. Instead, as the ancient Greeks played it and modern tennis is played, two individuals or teams are placed face to face separated by a line on the ground or a net. Another relevant and funny trait of Valencian pilota is that the spectators can be seated in several parts of the playing ground and they frequently suffer from impacts as the match develops.

Valencian pilota can be played in the streets or in special courts, known as trinquete (trinquet in Valenciano and Catalan), which can be quite different in size and form. There are many different modalities, the most frequently played are escala i corda, raspall, galotxa and llargues. A trinquete (also trinquet) is a special court for various indoor versions of pelota. ... Catalan (Català, Valencià) is a Romance language understood by as many as 12 million people in portions of Spain, France, Andorra and Italy, although the majority of active Catalan speakers are in Spain. ...

Spectators of Valencian pilota can also bet on one of the two sides, and the trinquets and the marxador get a commission of these bets.

External links

• http://www.pilotavalenciana.com
• http://www.fed-pilotavalenciana.com/
• http://www.lapelotavasca.com/
• http://www.manista.com/

See also

jai alai, frontenis, trinquete, xare Now defunct Milford Jai-Alai Fronton in Milford, Connecticut. ... A trinquete (also trinquet) is a special court for various indoor versions of pelota. ... Xare is racquet sport, a form of Basque pelota. ...