Photo: Team Belize in Mexico
by Charles Gladden
PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico, Wed. Nov. 30, 2022
Over the weekend, a national Pok-ta-Pok/Ulama team consisting of seven players from Yo Creek, Orange Walk District; Ladyville, Belize District; and San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye, competed in the 7th Mesoamerican Ball Game Championships in Playa del Carmen, Mexico and won gold medals.
The team, which was sent to the tournament by the Belize Hipball Association, competed in the game, Ulama, which is a ball game played in Mexico, and is derived from the Aztec version of the Mayan ballgame, Pok-ta-Pok, which is considered one of the oldest played sports in the world and the oldest known game using a rubber ball. According to an article about the sport on hobbylark,com, “The objective of the game was to get a ball through a narrow stone hoop placed on the court wall, often as high up as 20 feet from the ground. Players were not allowed to use their hands or feet—only their head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, and hips.”
The Belize team was defeated in their first match, which was played against Mexico, but redeemed themselves in a second match against the USA, which ended in a draw. On the following day, Belize was scheduled to play against Guatemala; however, Guatemala wasn’t present for the tournament, thus giving Belize the victory. The Belize team then won a tie-breaking match against the USA. In the finals, Belize was victorious against Mexico, defeating them 11-10.
“It feels great. I know Belize has been in other competitions they have won also, but in this association, this is the first time. We already experienced winning in the next tournament, when we participated, and it’s been a while. We felt great. I’m proud to represent Belize,” said Eric Cal, president of the Belize Hipball Association.
Cal said that the Mexican team has been invited to play a friendly game in a national tournament in Belize, which is tentatively scheduled for December.
The team has been practicing Ulama since 2017 and has participated in the tournament twice before winning gold.