Mallakhamb is combination of Yoga, Gymnastics, and Martial Arts. The Exercises of poles of mallakhamb and rope are played against the Gravity during upward and downward movement. This Sport provides the maximum exercises in minimum period of time for maximum muscles of mallakhamb players. Strength endurance play a vital role in the game of mallakhamb. Mallakhamb imparts proper tone and form to every muscle and going here perfect control over each part of the body.
Mallakhamb – From Training Armies to Fostering Olympic Stars
He retreats to the yellowing books and papers on Ayurveda and Indian sporting traditions that line the cupboards along his walls, pulling out mallakhamb’s limited literature for consultation. Originally developed as a training methodology for wrestlers, mallakhamb’s own name entwines Sanskrit and Hindi to literally mean pole wrestling. The ritual of greasing both the equipment and athlete in castor oil mirrors the Indian kushti wrestling tradition of dousing both ring and wrestler in ghee. “Mallakhamb is history’s hardest sport that no one knows,” says coach Uday Deshpande before he catapults into a forward flip, landing 4 feet up a wooden pole by catching it between his thighs.
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- Bal, Kaur, and Singh (2012) indicated the significant effect of 6-week rope mallakhamb training on speed of movement, vital capacity and peak expiratory flow rate.
- In 2023, the second Mallakhamb World Championships took place in Dhubri, Assam where more than 40 countries showed interest in taking part.
- The breathing control and the balance control helps the development of mind.
- After the sport’s initial introduction in the 11th century, mallakhamb resurged in a fantastical merging of history and myth.
- There are a number of different types of pole, although the most common is a free-standing upright pole, some eight to ten inches in diameter, planted into the ground.
- Besides these, a number of asana postures and aerobatic feats are also performed.
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With roots in Hindu monkey god mythology, bellicose ancient fighting traditions, and an unexpected brush with British colonialism, mallakhamb may be history’s oddest sport, too. A, B, C class elements are performed on Pole Mallakhamb ( Boys &Men), Hanging Mallakhamb ( Boys & Men) and Rope Mallakhamb ( Boys and Men, Girls and Women). These three class elements are chosen from the five groups of exercise i.e. mounts, hold parts, acrobatic elements, catches and dismounts by all mallakhamb players. Castor oil is applied to it, in order to reduce friction and prevent abrasive injuries to the body of the player.
Inside the book, neatly drawn diagrams of men standing atop poles outline the rules and regulations of the sport. Though some of the skill names look unfamiliar, stitching together Hindi and Sanskrit, other later-era terms lift directly from British gymnastics. As students pour in through the front door, he rifles quickly through the manual, a melding of the languages and images of mallakhamb dancing on the page like a flip book turning backwards through time.
As per Uday Deshpande, who has been doing pioneering work in popularizing this sport, there is a lot of interest evinced from people of many countries in learning Mallakhamb. But he feels that there is still a lot more that has to be done to make Mallakhamb become more popular sport worldwide. The use of pole might look crazy, but this is like no other sport on planet. Mallakhamb first traveled outside of India during the Berlin 1936 Olympics where it was showcased as a demonstrative sport. By 1958, it was demonstrated in Delhi where the Gymnastics Federation of India hosted the first Mallakhamb National Championships.
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It stimulates the mind and builds the body.The controlled and rhythmic breathing and smooth balanced movements in mallakhamb help in the development of the mental and physical faculties of our body. Mallakhamb training improve the speed of movement, vital capacity and peak expiratory flow rate, enhance concentration based performance and voluntary control of breathing of players. The origin of mallakhamb can be traced to the 12th century, where it is mentioned in Manas-Olhas – a classic by Chalukya in 1135 A.D.
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Which Indian state has declared “Mallakhamb” as its state sport?
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In the 19th century, Ali and Gulab wrestlers from the Nizam of Hyderabad came to the Darbar of Shrimant Bajirao Peshwa and threw open challenge to the State wrestlers for a bout. 18 year young Guru Balambhattdada Deodhar accepted their challenge. He started practice practicing yoga and tricks of wrestling.
During the deep meditation, he saw a vision of Lord Hanuman demonstrating a few tricks on a wooden pole. He rigorously practiced the tricks from his vision on the wooden pole and defeated his opponents easily. In Mallakhamb, athletes perform a series of acrobatic and gymnastic movements while using the pole or rope as a support. Some of the common movements include climbing, spinning, hanging, twisting, and balancing. Initially, Mallakhamb was developed as a form of training for wrestlers to improve their core strength, agility, and balance. It was also used as a form of physical exercise to improve overall health and fitness.
It will be included as a showcase sport in the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi and new associations are springing up all over India. International Mallakhamb Championships are being conducted for last 5 years in different countries viz. Argentina, Brazil, Portugal, Spain and Italy and recently, the International Mallakhamb Federation has also been formed.
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