A tchoukball match in progress. | |
First played | 1970 |
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Characteristics | |
Contact | No |
Team members | 7 |
Mixed-sex | Not in international championships, but very common in some national championships |
Type | Ball sport, team sport |
Equipment | Tchoukball, rebounder |
Presence | |
Country or region | Worldwide |
Olympic | No |
World Games | Invitational sport at 2009 World Games |
Tchoukball /ˈtʃuːkbɔːl/ is an indoor team sport developed in the 1970s by Swiss biologist Hermann Brandt. Brandt was concerned about the number of injuries in sport at the time and as part of an educational study he wanted to create a sport that reduced injuries, was not aggressive between players and enabled people of all shapes, sizes, genders, cultures, and backgrounds to play together.
The sport is usually played on an indoor court measuring 27 metres by 16 metres. At each end there is a rebounder (a device similar to a trampoline off which the ball bounces) which measures one square metre and a semicircular D-shaped forbidden zone measuring three metres in radius. Each team can score on both ends of the court, and comprises 12 players, of whom 7 may be on the court at any one time. In order to score a point, the ball must be thrown by an attacking player, hit the rebounder and bounce outside the 'D' without being caught by the defending team. Physical contact is prohibited, and defenders may not attempt to intercept the attacking team's passes. Players may take three steps with the ball, hold the ball for a maximum of three seconds, and teams may not pass the ball more than three times before shooting at the rebounder.
Tchoukball is most popular in Singapore, Switzerland and Taiwan, but has become an international sport, with national federations in over 60 countries. It is governed by the International Tchoukball Federation (FITB), which was founded in 1971.
Tchoukball was created in Switzerland by Hermann Brandt, who was concerned by the numerous serious injuries among athletes resulting from sports prone to aggression and physical contact. He believed that sports should be not only for champions, but also contribute to the creation of a better and more humane society.[1] He designed tchoukball to contain elements of handball (it is played with hands, and the balls used are similar), volleyball (as the defending team must prevent the ball from falling) and squash (since there is a rebound).
Court
Ball
Depending on the category of players (Men/Women/M18/M15/M12), different sizes of balls are used ranging from a circumference of 54 cm to 60 cm and weighs between 325 grams to 475 grams.
Scoring
Two teams of 7 players each (men or women) compete to score points with the team with the most points at the end winning the game. When a team gains a point, control of the ball is transferred to the other team.
Each team comprises the following positions:
Each side of the court comprises a left shooter, right shooter and 1 or 2 defenders, while the centre usually stays near the middle of the court if this formation is used. The shooters are generally in charge of shooting although in some cases the defender can also take the shot. The defenders are in charge of coordinating the first line of defence while the centre pivot takes charge of the second line of defence. However other formations include not using a centre pivot, the team would bypass the centre and throw full length court passes directly to the shooters/inners. This gives an extra first line defender or a dedicated second line defender.
The FITB, founded in 1971, is based in Geneva, Switzerland. It now comprises 47 member associations and 22 (15+7) countries with a designated FITB Representative. It supports and advises national associations and individuals willing to spread tchoukball in new areas. For instance, tchoukball was recently integrated in the school program of some regions of Senegal. The FITB was a demonstration sport in the 2009 World Games, which took place in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
69 Members in March 2022:[2]
Number of Members by Regions:
Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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1971 | The 1st World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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1976 | The 2nd World Tchoukball Championships | |||
1980 | The 3rd World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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1982 | The 4th World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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1984 | The 5th World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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1987 | The 6th World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2000 | The 7th World Tchoukball Championships | Geneva, Switzerland | ![]() |
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2004 | The 8th World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2011 | The 9th World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2015 | The 10th World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2019 | The 11th World Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2005 | The 1st World Beach Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2017 | The 2nd World Beach Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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1989 | Tchoukball at the World Games 1989 | ![]() |
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2009 | Tchoukball at the World Games 2009 | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | M-18 Boys Winner | M-15 Boys Winner | M-12 Boys Winner | M-18 Girls Winner | M-15 Girls Winner | M-12 Girls Winner |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2004 | The 1st World Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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- | - | ![]() |
- | - |
2011 | The 2nd World Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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- |
2013 | The 3rd World Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2015 | The 4th World Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2019 | The 5th World Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
---|---|---|---|---|
2017 | The 1st World University Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2017 | The 1st World Youth Beach Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
---|---|---|---|---|
2003 | The 1st Asia Pacific Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2006 | The 2nd Asia Pacific Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2008 | The 3rd Asia Pacific Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2010 | The 4th Asia Pacific Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2012 | The 5th Asia Pacific Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2014 | The 6th Asia Pacific Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2016 | The 7th Asia Pacific Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2022 | The 9th Asia Pacific Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | The 1st Asia Pacific University Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2011 | The 2nd Asia Pacific University Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2013 | The 3rd Asia Pacific University Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2015 | The 4th Asia Pacific University Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2019 | The 5th Asia Pacific University Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | The 1st Asia Pacific Beach Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | M-18 Boys Winner | M-15 Boys Winner | M-12 Boys Winner | M-18 Girls Winner | M-15 Girls Winner | M-12 Girls Winner |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2010 | The 1st Asia Pacific Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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- | ![]() |
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- | ![]() |
2013 | The 2nd Asia Pacific Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2014 | The 3rd Asia Pacific Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2016 | The 4th Asia Pacific Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2009 | The 1st Southeast Asia Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2011 | The 2nd Southeast Asia Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2013 | The 3rd Southeast Asia Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2015 | The 4th Southeast Asia Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2017 | The 5th Southeast Asia Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2012 | The 1nd South Asian Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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- |
2014 | The 2nd South Asian Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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- |
2016 | The 3rd South Asian Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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- |
Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2016 | The 1st East Asian Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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- |
2017 | The 2nd East Asian Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2003 | The 1st European Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2006 | The 2nd European Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2008 | The 3rd European Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2010 | The 4th European Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2014 | The 5th European Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2016 | The 6th European Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2018 | The 7th European Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2022 | The 8th European Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year/Dates | Competition | Host Nation | M-18 Boys Winner | M-15 Boys Winner | M-12 Boys Winner | M-18 Girls Winner | M-15 Girls Winner | M-12 Girls Winner |
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2016 | The 1st European Youth Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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- | ![]() |
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2022 | The 2nd European youth Tchoukball
Championships |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2010 | The 1st African Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2012 | The 2nd African Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2014 | The 3rd African Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2016 | The 4th African Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2014 | The 1st East African Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Year | Competition | Host Nation | Men Winners | Women Winners |
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2010 | The 1st Pan American Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2012 | The 2nd Pan American Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2014 | The 3rd Pan American Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2016 | The 4th Pan American Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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2022 | The 5th Pan American Tchoukball Championships | ![]() |
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Name | Nation | Years | FITB headquarters |
---|---|---|---|
Dr Hermann Brandt | ![]() |
1971–1972 | Geneva, Switzerland |
Dr Théodore Werey | ![]() |
1972–1984 | France |
Liu Zhengfeng | ![]() |
1984–1996 | Taoyuan County, Taiwan |
John Andrews | ![]() |
1996–2000 | United Kingdom |
Michel Farve | ![]() |
2000–2004 | Switzerland |
Daniel Bushbeck | ![]() |
2004–2009 | Geneva, Switzerland |
Huang Chin Cheng | ![]() |
2009–2017 | Kaohsiung City, Taiwan |
Fang Shen Szu | ![]() |
2017–2021 | New Taipei City, Taiwan |
Huang Chin Cheng | ![]() |
2021–present | Kaohsiung City, Taiwan |