Valencian trinquet, or simply trinquet (), is the court used in the
Valencian Community
The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid with ...
for two different modalities of
Valencian pilota
Valencian pilota ( ca-valencia, pilota valenciana "Valencian ball") is a traditional handball sport played in the Valencian Community. Its origins are not known.
Rules variations within the generic ''Pilota Valenciana'' category are frequent fr ...
: the
Escala i corda Escala i corda (, "stairs and rope") is the most prestigious variant of Valencian pilota, and the only one apart from raspall to have professional players.
History
The "Escala i corda" variant began around 1910, when the player Nel de Murla s ...
and the
Raspall
Raspall ({{IPA-va, rasˈpaʎ, "scraping") is a variant of the handball game, Valencian pilota, played mainly in the Valencian regions south to the Xúquer river: the Vall d'Albaida, the Safor, the Costera, the Marina Alta and the Marina Baixa. ...
.
Court
Trinquets are closed rooms of variable size: from 8.5–11 m wide and 45–60 m long.
The short walls are called "frontons", and the long are the "muralles", 4–6 m high. The ball may bounce at them as many times as desired. On the ''frontons'' there are usually seats for the spectators, these are called the "galleries". And sometimes on the ''muralles'', too.
There are also stairs (''escales'' in
Valencian
Valencian () or Valencian language () is the official, historical and traditional name used in the Valencian Community (Spain), and unofficially in the El Carche comarca in Murcia (Spain), to refer to the Romance language also known as Catal ...
) built on one of the ''muralles''. Spectators may seat on them as well at their own risk. The ball is played many times on them since the stairs (and bodies of the people) may cause fast and unexpected bounces.
The court is divided in two midfields, the "dau" and the "rest".
On the corner of the "dau" ''frontó'' and the stairs there is a square draw on the ground, it's the dau (''dice'' in Valencian). That's the place where every ''quinze'' begins.
On the corner of the "dau" ''frontó'' and the other ''muralla'' there is another place for bold spectators, the llotgeta (''little balcony'' in Valencian).
When an
Escala i corda Escala i corda (, "stairs and rope") is the most prestigious variant of Valencian pilota, and the only one apart from raspall to have professional players.
History
The "Escala i corda" variant began around 1910, when the player Nel de Murla s ...
match is going to be played there is a rope ("corda" in Valencian) used as net to divide both midfields. Under that rope there is a special mark on the ground. This mark is where a special player (the "feridor") must bounce the ball before sending it to the ''dau'' in order to begin every ''quinze''.
Spectators
Spectators may sit in different places of the court. The more prudent or simply casual watchers may choose to sit on the ''galleries'' on the top of the walls, where the ball is not sent (in the
Circuit Bancaixa
The Circuit Bancaixa (; "Bancaixa League"), officially Liga Profesional Escala i Corda, is the professional league of Valencian pilota.
Circuit Bancaixa name is taken from its main sponsor, the Valencian Savings bank CaixaBank. During the period ...
league).
But many people prefer to seat on the stairs, the "escala". In
Escala i corda Escala i corda (, "stairs and rope") is the most prestigious variant of Valencian pilota, and the only one apart from raspall to have professional players.
History
The "Escala i corda" variant began around 1910, when the player Nel de Murla s ...
they all are restricted to seat on the "rest" midfield. It is not too dangerous but spectators seated there have to keep an eye on the ball because players may send it toward them in order to cause a special effect or an irregular bounce. In
Raspall
Raspall ({{IPA-va, rasˈpaʎ, "scraping") is a variant of the handball game, Valencian pilota, played mainly in the Valencian regions south to the Xúquer river: the Vall d'Albaida, the Safor, the Costera, the Marina Alta and the Marina Baixa. ...
games the stairs are out of play, so people sitting there may feel a bit safer.
Renowned trinquets
Many towns and cities have ''trinquets'', some of them centuries old. The oldest accounts of these courts are from the 15th century, in
València
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area also ...
.
Two of them are famous:
*
Pelayo trinquet
The Pelayo trinquet ( ca-valencia, trinquet de Pelayo) is one of the most renowned trinquets courts of the Valencian pilota sport in Valencia. The most important Escala i corda competitions, such as the Circuit Bancaixa, have their final match ...
, in
València
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area also ...
, where matches are held since the 19th century and a place every ''pilotari'' wants to win. In fact, hundreds of players have passed by, but only 5 of them were honored to have their pictures exhibited, that's the ''Honor Gallery''.
* ''Trinquet El Zurdo'', in
Gandia
Gandia ( es, Gandía) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, eastern Spain on the Mediterranean. Gandia is located on the Costa del Azahar (or ''Costa dels Tarongers''), south of Valencia and north of Alicante. Vehicles can acce ...
, also called ''The
Raspall
Raspall ({{IPA-va, rasˈpaʎ, "scraping") is a variant of the handball game, Valencian pilota, played mainly in the Valencian regions south to the Xúquer river: the Vall d'Albaida, the Safor, the Costera, the Marina Alta and the Marina Baixa. ...
cathedral.
See also
*
List of Valencian trinquets
List of towns where there is a trinquet at the moment or there has been in the past. Bolded are the active trinquets.
In Valencia city
* ''Trinquet de Cavallers'', at the street of that name.
* ''Trinquet de Centelles'', in the 16th century.
...
*
Basque trinquete
A trinquete (also ''trinquet'') is a special court for various indoor versions of Basque pelota, pelota and it is a modality of the Basque pelota, pelota sport. In South America, especially in Argentina the trinquete is also known as ''close court ...
External links
Virtual trinquet, 3D views
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valencian Trinquet
Valencian pilota
Ball games
Sport in the Valencian Community
Sports originating in Spain