Sputnik - The sporting game was included into the UNESCO list as Iran's intangible cultural heritage on December 7, 2017. A spokesman of the Equestrian Federation of Iran, Yashar Bigham, told Sputnik about the history of the game.
Chovgan, an Iranian version ofmodern sport polo, was invented inancient Persia asa team game, Yashar Bigham, a representative ofIran's Equestrian Federation, said.
"Taking intoaccount the documents available tospecialists, we can say withcertainty that chovgan is one ofthe oldest sporting games. It was first mentioned inthe "Book ofthe Acts ofArdashir Papakan, the founder ofthe Sassanid dynasty," Bigham told Sputnik.
The official noted that information aboutchovgan can also be found invarious manuscripts, hymns and literature, butnone ofthem contain the exact rules ofthe game.
"For example, Shahnameh [a Persian poem containing the history ofIran fromancient times tothe time ofthe Islamic conquest] says that the number ofgame players should be 14, while according toQabusnamah [another major work inPersian literature, there should be eight ofthem," Bigham stated.
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SPUTNIK/ ???? ??????? Chovgan, an Iranian version of modern sport polo[/caption]According tothe expert, one thing is, however, 100% clear: the game was born inIran, and only then did it spread toother countries.
Although a number ofother states claim tohave invented the game, chovgan was eventually included intoUNESCO list asIran's intangible cultural heritage onDecember 7, 2017.
The debates aboutthe origin ofchovgan were especially intense betweenIran and Azerbaijan.
"In Azerbaijan they said that intheir culture there is a game called "chovgan," which is played onKarabakh horses and which they wanted tobring toUNESCO, because it needs protection. But they said that they don't lay claim topolo. By the way, this game was eventually recognized asa cultural heritage ofAzerbaijan. And UNESCO told us that we can apply forregistration ofpolo asIran's heritage," Bigham said.
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SPUTNIK/ ???? ??????? Chovgan, an Iranian version of modern sport polo[/caption]Chovgan is a sporting game which is played onhorseback and viewed asa version ofthe modern polo game. The first game took place around600 BC inancient Persia, according toreports.
Each team consists offour riders, who use a special stick tomove a small ball acrossthe field. The goal is toscore goals againstthe opposing team. The game is popular inAzerbaijan, Iran, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
