Games-Profiles of some lesser-known sports at the SEA Games

By John O'Brien SINGAPORE, May 30 (Reuters) - Singapore will host the 28th Southeast Asian Games from June 5-16, where 11 nations will compete for 402 gold medals across 36 sports. While many of the events feature in the Olympics, others are not that well known outside the region. Here are brief profiles of some of the more diverse events. - - - Sepak Takraw Sepak takraw is a type of kick volleyball that uses a rattan ball with players only allowed to use their feet, knees, chest and head. Hugely popular in Southeast Asia, Thailand is the most dominant nation and enjoys a fierce rivalry with Malaysia. The classic version has three players per team but there is also a doubles event. A set is a race to 21 points (25 if scores are level at 20-20) and matches are played over a best-of-three set format. As well as team events for men and women, there is also a 'chinlone' discipline in which players aim to keep the ball in the air as long as possible over a 10 minute period, scoring 10 points for each successful 'pass' between team members. There are 10 gold medals on offer in Singapore. - - Pancak Silat Pencak Silat is a form of indigenous martial art originating from various parts of Southeast Asia. Pencak is the performance aspect of the discipline, while Silat is the fighting and self-defence version of the sport. There are many different techniques in Silat but the focus is concentrated on strikes, joint manipulation and throws. Points are awarded for punches (one), kicks (two) and takedowns (three) in three two-minute round bouts. The two categories are described as Tanding (sparring) for actual combat and Tunggal (singles), Ganda (doubles) and Regu (team) for the artistic event with contestants demonstrating skills in a series of rehearsed movements. There are 13 gold medals on offer in Singapore. - - - Traditional Boat Race Traditional Boat Race (TBR) involves short races in boats painted to resemble a dragon. In the SEA Games, each boat is powered by crews of either six or 12 rowers, supported by a steerperson, who issues commands to the paddlers, and a drummer. Races will be held over 200 and 500 metres for both men and women, meaning there are eight gold medals on offer in Singapore. - - - Floorball Developed as an organised international sport in Sweden in the 1970s, floorball is a type of indoor hockey consisting of six-player teams -- five outfield and a goalkeeper -- using long sticks and a plastic ball. Matches are played over three 20-minute periods. Singapore is a regional powerhouse in the sport and will be making its debut at these Games with the hosts expected to win both the men's and women's events. - - - Wushu Wushu is both an exhibition and full-contact sport based on Chinese martial arts and standardised there around 1949. It was introduced to the SEA Games in 2005 and has remained ever since. Competitive wushu is composed of two disciplines: taolu (forms) and sanda (sparring). Taolu involves martial art patterns and moves for which competitors are judged and given points according to specific rules. Sanda is a modern fighting sport influenced by traditional Chinese martial arts that resembles Thai boxing but includes many more grappling techniques. There are 20 gold medals on offer in Singapore. (Editing by Peter Rutherford)