NAME- MAYUR

PATIL

CLASS- 11 D
TH

ROLL NO. – 110414

TOPIC- KHO KHO

 KHO KHO
Kho-Kho is a traditional Indian sport, which
is one of the oldest outdoor sports, dating
back to ancient India. It is played by two
teams of 12 nominated players out of
fifteen, of which nine enter the field who sit
on their knees (Chasing Team), and 3 extra
(Defending Team) who try to avoid being
touched by members of the other opposing
team. It is one of the two most popular
traditional tag games in the Indian
subcontinent, the other being Kabaddi. The
sport is widely played across South Asia
and has a strong presence in South Africa
and England. It is played most often by
school children in India and Pakistan and is
a competitive game
 1. HISTORY OF KHO KHO
The origin of Kho-Kho is very difficult to trace, but
many historians believe that it is a modified form of
'Tag'/’catch', which in its simplest form involves
chasing and touching a person. Originating
in Maharashtra, Kho-Kho in ancient times was
played on 'raths' or chariots and was known
as Rathera. The present appearance of the game
was an adoption from the time of World War I in
1914. But at that time, there were neither any
dimensions of the playground nor the poles which
demarcate the central line. The time factor was also
missing. The Deccan Gymkhana club of Pune,
Maharashtra so named and baptized by the great
Indian leader Lokmanya Tilak & Bhai Narorkar
drafted the first-ever rules and regulations which
symbolized the metamorphosis of the game soon to
follow. This initial stage marked the limitation of the
playground and yet sadly lacked the poles
demarking the central line in the field. Instead, less
experienced players were posted squatting at the
ends of the latter and chasers ran around them to
return to the midfield.
But, even then the game caught the imagination of
the experts in the field. The experts took no time to
realize that the game demands the highest degree
of quick and brisk movements, very high grade of
nerve reflexes and tremendous stamina which are
characteristic of a supreme athlete. The game
requires all motor qualities alike speed, endurance,
flexibility, agility, strength and neuromuscular
coordination. As per merit, it is appreciated by press,
media and spectators. The game with its fast pace,
so fascinated the spectators that the Governor of
Bombay Presidency H.E. Lord Willingdon also
admired the merits and potentials of the game. The
years 1923-24 saw the foundation of the Inter
School Sports Organization, and Kho Kho was
introduced to develop at the grassroots and
consequently popularize the sport. The move
certainly showed the results and the game of Kho
Kho mainly owes it to the efforts taken by the
Deccan Gymkhana and Hind Vijay Gymkhana.
In the year 1938, Kho Kho moved one step forward
when Akhil Maharashtra Sharirik Shikshan Mandal
organized zonal sports at Akola which attracted
tremendous response from the budding enthusiasts
as well as organizers. The team size was restricted
to 9 players per team and sport was played without
the poles. At the beginning of the match, players
used to take 3 rounds of the court from post to post
and then started the match. This needed yet another
few reforms which were adopted in 1943 as well as
1945.
Kho kho was exhibited in Sweden and Denmark in
the year 1949 but it didn't leave any effect on the
spectators (foreigner). After coming back in 1949,
the poles were featured in the game. Also, the 3
rounds at the beginning of the game were reduced
to one round from pole to pole. In 1951, even the
one round was eliminated. In the year 1955, Akhil
Bharatiya Kho Kho Mandal was established and the
first ever All India Kho Kho Championship was
organized at Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh in 1959-
60 under the auspices of Kho Kho Federation of
India. The years 1960-61 featured Women's
Championship for the first time in Kohlapur,
Maharashtra.
Individual prizes were introduced in the year 1963.
Vishwanath Kayaker won the first Man of the
Tournament named "Ekalavya Award". The Woman
of the Tournament "Rani Laxmibai Award" was
claimed by Usha Anantham of Mysore.
The years 1969 and 1970 featured the Junior age
group competitions at Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh.
Youth under 18 Years and Boys under 16 Years of
age were two new categories introduced where the
best youth player of the tournament was honoured
by "Abhimanyu Award". Junior Girls under 16 Years
tournament was held in 1974 at Dewas, Madhya
Pradesh, where two more categories Sub-Junior
Boys under 14 Years and Girls under 12 Years also
commenced. The best Sub-Juniors Boy & Girls was
awarded "Bharat Award" and "Veer Bala Award"
respectively. In 1970, Arjuna Award was awarded to
Shri Sudhir Parab from Gujarat.
In the year 1982, the Kho Kho Federation of India
organized Men's and Women's Yearly
Championship as Federation Cup. Kho Kho was
featured in the Asian Games, 1982 for the first time
in New Delhi. It was appreciated by Asian countries.
After looking at its grand success Sports Authority of
India and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Govt.
of India deputed their coaches all over the country to
develop the sport of Kho Kho scientifically at grass
root level.
Looking back at its success, it was one of the main
featured during 12th South Asian Games, 2016 held
at Guwahati, Assam from 5 to 9 February 2016. It
happened just because of the sincere efforts of Shri
Rajeev Mehta, President, KKFI & Secretary General,
and IOA. The participating countries were Sri Lanka,
Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal and host country India.
This tournament was well organized under the
leadership of Shri. M. S. Tyagi, Competition Director
(Kho Kho). All the Asian countries appreciated and
ensured of introducing the sport in their respective
countries. 1st Asian Championship took place at
Calcutta, West Bengal in 1996 followed by the 2nd
Asian Championship in the year 2000 at Dhaka,
Bangladesh. The 3rd Asian Championship was held
in the month of April 2016 at Indore, Madhya
Pradesh. The participating countries were Sri Lanka,
Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Korea and host
country India. The test series was played between
India and England in January–February, 2017 at
different venues in India namely Mumbai, Rajasthan
and New Delhi.In 1999, The Asian Kho Kho
Federation was established during the 3rd edition of
the South Asian Games. Member countries
included India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri
Lanka, Nepal and Maldives. The 1st Asian
Championship was held at Kolkata in 1996 and the
second championship at Dhaka,
Bangladesh. India, Sri
Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Japan, Thailand were
participants of this championship.
In 2013, the Kho Kho Federation of England was
formed by Brij Haldania, who had played
competitively for Rajasthan before settling down in
United Kingdom. With the aim of developing the
game to an international level, he built relationships
with M.S Tyagi (Kho-Kho Federation of India),
Sudhanshu Mittal (Asian Kho-Kho Federation) and
Rajeev Mehta (Indian Olympic Association). With the
collaborative efforts of these individuals, the sport
has reached new heights. In 2018, the 'International
Kho-Kho Federation' was formed to govern and
guide the sport of Kho-Kho globally.
2. KHO KHO OUTSIDE
THE INDIA
The ancient Indian game of kho kho is going
international. In what will be the sport’s first ever
tournament outside the Subcontinent, the Kho Kho
Federation of England (KKFE) is hosting a four-
nation contest in London from September 1 to 4.
Dubbed as the 1st International Kho Kho Cup, India,
Scotland, Wales and hosts England will slug it out
for the top honours. The tournament is the result of a
series of interaction between the kho kho
federations of India and England since 2015. Kho
Kho Federation of India (KKFI) secretary general
Mahender Singh Tyagi first toured the UK in 2015 to
conduct a series of kho kho clinics, mainly for Indian
immigrants. The game was demonstrated during the
South Asian Games in Kolkata in 1987 and it was
during the same time that the Asian Kho-Kho
Federation was formed which helped propel the
game of Kho-Kho in countries like Pakistan, Nepal,
Bangladesh and others. Kho-Kho has since grown
from strength to strength, especially in the South
Asian countries but it has failed to strengthen its
hold in other regions. As a sport, Kho-Kho is still in
its early stages and it remains to be seen whether it
would succeed in catching the imagination of the
Europeans, Americans and others like it has
amongst the South Asian countries.

3. GAME RULES
(a) There are two teams each comprising of total 12
members. The game has four quarters/turns, each
of 9 min.
 
(b) There are only three members of the running
team on the field while the eight members of the
chasing team take a knee-down position on squares
that are drawn through field lines in a preset area
between two poles. They sit facing in opposite
directions in the cross-lane without cutting the line.
One member who is called 'chaser' stands near one
pole to chase the runners first.
 
(c) The chaser has to touch or tap the runners
whereas the runners try to defend themselves from
the chaser to get touched. When the chaser touches
all the three runners, three new runners (of the
running team that wait in the entry zone area) enter
the field, and the game continues.
 
(d) The chasing team members take positions on
the cross-lane whereas there are three runners on
the field who can run in a field-range determined by
two poles. The runners are allowed to run over the
cross-lane or change their moving direction while
running.
 
(e) The chaser is not allowed to run over the cross-
lane or to change the direction while chasing the
runners. If it is needed, he has to touch the pole,
turn back and continue chasing.
 
(f) Each time, the chaser touches a runner, a point is
awarded.
 
(g) The chaser can pass-on his turn to any other
sitting player by tapping from behind by pronouncing
a term 'Kho'.
 
(h) There are fouls for early Kho, touching without
saying Kho, changing direction by the chaser,
cutting the cross lane while chasing, getting up
without receiving a Kho, or late Kho.
 
(i) If there is a tie, an extra turn is performed in
which the winner is one that takes less time to touch
one runner on the opposite team.

4. EVOLUTION OF GAME
The current adaptation of the game was actually an
adaptation about the time of World War I in 1914,
but at the same time lacked exacting rules and
regulation that govern the games in the modern
times. There were neither any dimension to the
playground nor the poles which demarcate the
central line, and the factor was also missing!
The Deccan Gymkhana of Pune so named and
opened by the great Indian leader Lokmanya Tilak
formulated the first ever rule and regulation, that, in
a way, symbolized the rules to follow in the future.
The initial stage actually marked the restrain of the
playground and yet sadly lacked the poles
demarking the central line in the field. Instead, two
less talented players were posted squatting at the
place and chasers to run around them to return to
the midfield. It helped to capture the imagination of
experts and they did not waste much time to realize
that the game demanded high degree of quick
reflexes, agile movement, good nerve reflexes and
tremendous stamina, that all amount to a supreme
athlete.
The year 1919 saw the game of Kho Kho delimit an
elliptical field with 44 yards long midline and 17
yards width of ellipse! The 1923-24 saw the
foundation of Inter School Sports Organization and
Kho Kho was introduced to promote at the grass
roots and consequently popularize the sports. The
certainly conveyed the results and the game of Kho
Kho mainly owe it to the efforts taken by Deccan
Gymkhana and Hind Vijay Gmykhana. To develop
expertise and skill in Kho Kho the then prevalent
games of Langdi and Atya-Patya were the
supporting factor. The latter needs special mention
which was well-known because if its scuffle skills of
defending. Akhil Maharashtra Sharirik Shikshan
Mandal (Physical Education Institute) was set up in
the year 1928 when Dr. Abasahib Natu of Pune,
Shri. Mahabal Guruji of Nasik, Shri. Karmarkar
Vaidya of Miraj and Dr. Mirajkar of Mumbai spared
no efforts to negotiate with Kho-Kho experts and
formulated the rules and regulations of the game
which differed just a little from the existing rules of
the Federation today. Hind Vijay Gymkhana, Baroda
and Deccan Gymkhana, Pune had their own codes
of rules which were in variance with each other. The
experts from around sixty Gymkhanas, in 1933,
came together and evolved a joint code of rules
under the banner of Akhil Maharashtra Sharirik
Shikshan Mandal which was circulated all over and
with a few suggestions and alterations. A "new code"
was taken on in 1935. Over the years the rules have
also undergone a major change. The initial system
in 1914 offered 10 points for every opponent getting
out and each innings lasted for nine months. It was
made to 5 points in 1919 and match lasted for eight
minutes. In case the entire team scored out before
time, then the chasers were allotted a bonus of 5
points for every spare minute left not played. Further
changes took place with the shape of the playing
ground as it became rectangular from elliptical. The
distance between two poles shortened to 27 yards
and the free zone beyond each pole a rectangle 27
yards x 5 yards also known as 'D' zone. The free
zone had no barriers for the chaser who could move
to any direction irrespective of change of direction.
It was in the year 1957 the “ All India Kho Kho
Federation “ was formed. The first All India Kho-Kho
Championships were arranged at Vijay Wada in
1959 - 60 under Kho-Kho Federation of India where
only 5 teams have participated and this tournament
was conducted for men only. The championship
was won by the then Mumbai province under the
leadership of Rajabhau Jeste who was a champion
player, expert commentator and redoubtable coach
made in one. 1960-61 featured Women's
Championships for the first time.
In the year 1963 – 64 for the first time award was
introduced for the men and women for the
outstanding performance at national level. The name
of the award was “Ekalaya” and “Jhansi Lakshmi Bai
Award” it was given at Indore. First award was
given to Viswanath Mayekar of Maharastra for men
and Usha Ananth Raman of Mysore for women.
In the year 1970 – 71 the first Junior Championship
was conducted at Hyderabad in which Maharastra
were the winner and Karnataka were the runner.
This tournament is conducted for boys and in the
same year awards for outstanding performance was
initiated. The name of the award is “Veera
Abhimanyu” which was received by “Hemanth
Jagdev” of Maharastra. In the same year first time
Arjuna Award was awarded to Kho Kho players
which were given to Sri Sudir Parab of Gujarat and
Ms Achala Donare of Gujarat.
In 1974 – 75 first Junior girls championship was
conducted along with the boys at Indore. In this
nationals Janaki award was instituted and it was
given to Savitha of Maharastra. In 1977 South Zone
Committee was formed and in the same year First
South Zone Tournamnet was conducted at the
Chitradwiga, Karanataka.In the year of 1980 the
First Junior South Zone Championship and National
Championship for Sub Junior boys and girls was
conducted.

In the year 1982, the game was included as

part of Indian Olympic Association and few years
later in 1989 saw the game as a 'demonstration' in
'Asian Games' Festival. Some new reforms in the
game have taken place that has been incorporated
by the Asian Federation. The poles have been put a
little close distance at 23.50 meters and the play
ground also increased in the width of 16 meters. The
duration of the innings will last to nine minutes. The
year 1998 saw the first ever International
Championship organized in the Indian city of
Kolkata. Sponsors, who come from different fields,
have also been associated with the game, and Bank
of Maharashtra has developed their first ever team
of Professional players when others like Indian
Railways are about to follow the suit.

5. EQUIPMENT
MANDATORY
- Kho Kho playground or pitch is rectangular and it is
29 meters long and 16 meters wide.
- There are two more rectangles at each end. One
side of the rectangle is 16 meters and the other side
is 2.75 meters.
- There are two wooden or iron poles fixed at both
ends of the field. It has a circumference of 28.25 –
31.4 cms.
- The central lane which touches the poles is 23.5
meters long and 30 cm wide in which the players sit
and play.
- The height of the pole above the ground level is
120 to 125 cm whereas the diameter of it is 9 to 10
cm.
- A total of eight lanes lie over the central lane,
whose dimensions are 16 m x 35 cm.
- The types of equipment required to play Kho Kho is
mainly to draw a Kho Kho pitch and to draw a Kho
Kho pitch or ground you will need…

1.Two poles (either wood or iron)

2.Metallic measuring tape
3.Strings
4.Lime powder
5.Stopwatches
6.Wire Nails
5.Two rings with an inner circumference of 30 cm
and 40 cm
7.Stationery to record scores
8.A whistle for the referee

6. ADVANTAGES OF KHO
KHO
1.Kho-Kho helps to increase stamina.
2.It helps in motor development.
3.It helps in social and mental development of the
child.
4.Children become active.
5.Playing Kho-Kho keeps children well, strong,
motivated, enthusiastic and young.
6.It helps in better coordination and flexibility.
7. Fosters learning
Playing kho kho stimulates the imagination and
allows the players to adapt and resolve problems. It
arouses curiosity that results in creativity and
discovery. The major components of kho kho, which
include risk-taking, social etiquette, novelty,
discovery and other adaptive activities, help foster
better learning. In fact, kho kho helps open up the
minds of students and allows them to find new ways
of solving problems.
8. Social benefits
As earlier mentioned, kho kho is a sport that
requires several players in a team. It therefore
allows people to interact and create lasting
connections with other people. Sharing laughter, fun
and joy with other kho kho players strengthens the
community and promotes bonding. Players find that
they develop empathy, trust, compassion and a
greater capacity for understanding.
9. Prevents anxiety
Playing kho kho vigorously triggers a mixture of
endorphins which lifts a person’s spirits and distracts
them from fear pain and other problem. In addition,
when you play this particular sport with others, it
reminds you that you are not on your own in this
challenging world. You can interact with your friends
in a meaningful and delightful way that banishes
loneliness. Regularly playing kho kho may even
assist to prevent depression and anxiety.
Beyond all the above mentioned benefits of playing
kho kho, there is basically the sheer delight of it.
Playing fosters a beneficial state of joy and
happiness. Taking time from your normal duties and
playing this game on a regular basis can nourish
and preserve your body and soul.
7. GROUND
MEASUREMENTS
 Total area requirement 30m x 19m (inclusive of
lobby from all sides measuring 1.5m wide.)
 Playing Area 27m x 16m inclusive of 1.5m x
16m of free zone behind both poles
 Pole Distance 24m Central lane joining two
poles measuring 24m length x 30cm width
 Cross lanes 8 nos. intersecting the central lane.
Each lane measuring 16m x 35m
 Pole Size - Height (above ground level - 120cm
to 125cm, Diameter 9-10cm.)
 The game comprises two teams with 12 players
each (as per the rules of the Asian Kho-Kho
Federation 15 players each) in the team while
only 9 players actually playing.
 The match comprises 4 turns consisting of two
defense and two chase turns.
 Every turn is of 9 minutes duration.
 Every put- out defender brings one point to the
chasing team.
 The high scoring team is declared as the winner.
 The game consists of numerous defense as well
as chasing skills
 Defense: Single chain, double chain, ring game,
dodging and faking
 Chasing: running dives, pole dives, deceiving
(judgment) Kho on the pole, delayed Kho,
moving into cross lanes, etc.
8. SKILLS OF KHO KHO
Each player requires following kho kho skills to
contribute and win the game :
1.Chasing skills :
Pole diving,
Sudden Change of direction,
Tapping,
Diving,
Grasping Direction,
Fake Kho,
Late Kho,
Giving Kho &
Getting in square and getting off from square

2. Running Skills :
Running : Zig Zag,
Avoiding,
Dodging &
Position on Kho Kho Playground.
3.Giving Kho and Chasing the runner:
A chaser must say “Kho” when he gives signal to
sitting chaser so that he can get off from square and
start chasing the runner. If he fails to say this word a
foul is noted and considered as Kho Kho rules is not
followed.
4.Fake Kho and Sudden Kho:
Fake Kho is way to deviate the attention or disturb
the chaser , the chaser pretends that he given Kho
to his fellow team mates but he is actually chasing
the runner.
In sudden Kho the chaser gives immediate Kho to
team mate making it hard for runner to avoid getting
caught.
5.Choosing direction:
Chaser team player must keep his foot out of box
with care as his foot will decide which way he will
run to chase the runner else a foul will be counted.
6.Diving:
This takes lot of training and practice to perform.
This is very effective method of touching the chaser
and catching him. In this process chaser pounces on
active runner to touch him out. one special type of
diving is Pole Diving . In this kind of diving the
runner make sure he takes support of wooden pole
and diving to touch the runner. For developing
above skills players follow some specific Kho Kho
Training Techniques

9. FAMOUS PLAYERS
- SATISH RAI
Satish Rai is one of the most famous kho-kho
players. Very little is known about him except for his
excellent gaming skills. He was a tough, fit
dedicated, and attentive player.
In 2010, the newly formed Kho-Kho Federation of
India had decided to conduct a Kho-Kho World
Series on similar lines to the Baseball World Series
in America. A bunch of Kho-Kho enthusiasts decided
to support the federation and draw attention to the
age-old sport. Satish Rai was an active enthusiast in
promoting and supporting the series speaking to
media about the benefits of the plan.
Moreover, Satish Rai is the most important and
stupendous Indian Kho Kho player. He is a
predominant player. He played for many years and
won many medals
- SARIKA KALE
Sarika Kale, captain of India’s women’s kho-kho
team recently led the national team to clinch a gold
at the 12th South Asian Games (SAG) in Guwahati.
At the age of 10, Sarika began playing kho-kho and
developed an interest in the game. With time, she
mastered the skills of the game and represented her
state Maharashtra in 25 national championships.
In 2016, the renowned kho-kho player was
struggling to find a job. The Railways had a men’s
kho-kho team but were yet to recruit a female kho-
kho player. On this Devarajan, an Olympian and
Arjuna awardee, who won the bronze medal at the
1994 Boxing World Cup in Bangkok said
Sarika has always been confident that her sport, just
like kabaddi, will grow leaps and bounds if the
corporate sector steps in.

- PANKAJ MALHOTRA
Pankaj Malhotra, the very famous Indian Kho-Kho
player is a dominant player with a list of
achievements on his plate.
Born in Jammu Kashmir’s Sainik Colony, Jammu, he
developed an interest in this sport at a very young
age and continued his passion.
He was the captain of the Jammu Kashmir State
Kho Kho Team and represented India in the India-
Nepal Kho-Kho 5-Match Series in 2018.
He trained under well-reputed coaches Ajay Gupta
and Dheeraj Sharma in all departments of the game
at Green Field Gandhi Nagar, Jammu.
The President J&K Kho-Kho Association, S.
Manmeet Singh, Secretary S. Harjeet Singh, and
Treasurer BS Tirthi praised the efforts of the ace
player for his achievement.
They also appreciated the coaches for their
commendable training and conditioning given to
Pankaj.
- MANDAKINI MANJI
Mandakini Majhi also goes by the name, Odisha girl
is the famous Kho Kho player from Odisha. She
became part of the Indian Women’s Kho Kho team
to participate in the 12th South Asian Federation
(SAF) Games 2016 in Guwahati
Coming from poor family background, choosing kho-
kho as a sport was challenging for Majhi. But she
continued to surpass the obstacles and build
stepped up the ladder to success.
- PRAVEEN KUMAR
Praveen Kumar is one of the very talented and
famous Kho Kho players from Mysore, Karnataka. He
played a big role in the University of Mysore’s (UoM)
win in both South Zone and All India Inter-University
Men’s Kho-Kho Championships (2017-18) played in
the city
Praveen started playing Kho-Kho in middle
school( Biagini Seva Samaj ). Later he continued his
passion for the sport by playing the game in High
School at Sarada Vilas HS. Senior players including
Yogesh of Pioneers SC encouraged him to take up
the game seriously.
Praveen completed his study as an M.Com student at
Manasagangothri, Mysuru. Meanwhile, he
represented Karnataka in the Senior National Kho-
Kho Championships two times. He was part of the
Karnataka Senior team which won the silver medal in
2013-14. The team also won third place in the Senior
Nationals held at Telangana in 2015. In 2016-17,
Praveen was part of the team that stood third in the
All India Inter-University level.
10. FAMOUS
TOURNAMENT
- Different Kho Kho Tournaments are :
1.National Kho-Kho Championship.
2.Nehru Gold Cup.
3.Federation Cup.
-Domestic Seasons and Tournaments are :
1. National Championship.
2. Junior National.
3. Sub Junior National Championship.
4. School Championship.
5. Mini School Championship.
6. Primary Mini School Championship.
7. National Women Championship.
8. All India Inter University Championship and
Federation Cup.

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