Kabaddi

Ancient era

Origins of Kabaddi are not clearly understood. There are various theories regarding its place and time of origin. The sport is said to have existed in the Indian subcontinent since prehistoric times.

Rononjoy Sen speculates in his book Nation At Play, that kabaddi originated during the Vedic period (between 1500 BC and 500 BC). There are accounts of Gautama Buddha and Lord Krishna having played an ancient form of the sport.

According to another version of the sport's origins, kabaddi originated in Maharashtra. It was reportedly common among the ayrani maharashtrian people who lived in the pune geographical region of ancient Maharashtra.

There are also accounts of kabaddi having been played in Iran 2,000 years ago.

Modern era

Modern kabaddi is a synthesis of the game played in various forms under different names in the Indian subcontinent. India has been first credited with having helped to popularise kabaddi as a competitive sport, with the first organized competitions occurring in the 1920s, their introduction to the programme of the Indian Olympic Games in 1938, the establishment of the All-India Kabaddi Federation in 1950, and it being played as a demonstration sport at the inaugural 1951 Asian Games in New Delhi. These developments helped to formalize the sport, which had traditionally been played on muddy surfaces in villages, for legitimate international competition.

The first framework of rules for the sport was prepared in Maharashtra in the 1920s, with English sports serving as a model for this formalisation. One of the earliest modern tournaments of the sport, the All India Kabaddi Tournament in 1923, was played according to these amended rules. After being demonstrated again at the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi, Kabaddi was added to the Asian Games programme beginning in 1990.

The advent of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) in 2014 revolutionised the standard style of the sport, with various rule changes being made; for example, whereas previously raids had no time limit, the PKL rules introduced the concept of a standard 30-second time limit for every raid.