Kin-Ball
The black team is about to strike the ball.
Highest governing bodyInternational Kin-Ball Federation
First played1986 (1986) in Québec
Characteristics
Mixed-sexNo, separate
TypeGym/court sport
Equipment
  • - Black, grey, or blue Kin-Ball
  • – ball diameter: 1.2m (48 inches)
  • – ball weighs 1 kg
  • – court size is 20×20 meters (66×66 feet) (court lines are included in measurement)
VenueGymnasium or court
Presence
Country or regionWorldwide
OlympicNo

Kin-Ball is a team sport created in Quebec, Canada, in 1986 by Mario Demers, a physical education professor.

The main distinctive characteristics are the large size of the ball (1.2m (48 inches) in diameter)[lower-roman 1][1] and that the matches are played by three teams at the same time.

The International Kin-Ball Federation counts 3.8 million participants, primarily from Canada, the U.S., Japan, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Spain, Germany, Denmark, the Czech Republic, Malaysia, China and Hong Kong. The newest country is the UK with Kin-Ball UK having formed in 2018.

Game

The official Kin-Ball team colours are black, grey and blue. (Sometimes pink is used instead of blue). The Kin-Ball's diameter is 1.2 m (48 inches)[1] and the ball weighs 1 kg. The court size is 20×20 meters (66×66 feet; court lines are included in measurement). Three teams play per game and each team has four players.

The team in possession of the ball is the Attacking Team. To make a play, the Attacking Team will designate a Defending Team, by calling out their colour. The designation has to start with the declaration "Omnikin!" followed by the colour of another team. After the designation, the ball has to be hit with a body part above the hips, while all other members of the Attacking Team touch the ball, in some way. If the Defending Team is able to control the Kin-Ball successfully, it becomes the Attacking Team.

A Kin-Ball game is usually played until one team has won three periods. Each period takes about 10 minutes to play. When the first team reaches 9 points in a period, the team with the fewest points has to leave the court and the remaining two teams play until one team reaches 11 points.

A player can commit a series of fouls during the match:

  1. Not being able to catch the ball before it touches the ground.
  2. Hitting the ball out of bounds or stepping out of bounds while touching the ball.
  3. Walking with the ball after the third player touches the ball during a play.
  4. Hitting the ball with a downward trajectory.
  5. Hitting the ball less than 1.8 meters.
  6. Not all players of a team being in contact with the ball.
  7. Making a mistake during the colour announcement (wrong colour, more than one player talking, etc.).
  8. Having more than 1 player within 1.8 meters during the hit (close defense).
  9. Intentionally interfering with a defending player.

Whenever a team commits a foul, the other two teams receive 1 point each. This ensures that teams of a lower skill level are kept in play, so long as they do not commit too many fouls of their own in a row.

International competitions

Men

Year City Gold Medal Silver Medal Bronze Medal
2001 Canada Québec Canada Japan Belgium
2002 Canada Québec Canada Japan France
2005 Belgium Ans Canada Japan France
2007 Spain Bilbao Canada Japan France
2009 Canada Trois-Rivières Canada Belgium Japan
2011 France Nantes Canada Japan France
2013 Belgium Pepinster Canada Japan Belgium
2015 Spain Torrejón de Ardoz Japan France Czechia
2017 Japan Tokyo Canada Japan Czechia
2019 France Les Ponts-de-Cé Canada France Japan
2022 Czech Republic Hradec Králové Canada Canada France

Women

Year City Gold Medal Silver Medal Bronze Medal
2001 Canada Québec Canada Japan Belgium
2002 Canada Québec Canada Japan France
2005 Belgium Ans Canada Japan France
2007 Spain Bilbao Canada Japan France
2009 Canada Trois-Rivières Canada France Japan
2011 France Nantes Canada Japan Switzerland
2013 Belgium Pepinster Canada Japan Belgium
2015 Spain Torrejón de Ardoz Canada Japan France
2017 Japan Tokyo Canada Japan France
2019 France Les Ponts-de-Cé Canada Czechia Japan
2022 Czech Republic Hradec Králové Belgium Czechia France

References

  1. ↑ Unit conversions, and any rounding variations, are as given in the official rulebook.[1]
  1. 1 2 3 "Official Kin-Ball sport Rulebook". International Kin-Ball Sport Federation. 2018.
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