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Matkot ( lit. "racquets") is a popular paddle sport in
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
similar to
beach tennis Beach tennis is a game combining elements of tennis and volleyball and played on a beach. Recognized * First played 1972. * First championship was played in 1976/1978. * International Federation Beach Tennis (IFBT) was founded in 1995. * Inte ...
, often referred to by Israelis as their national beach sport.


History

Matkot has been played on the beaches of
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
since the 1920s. Early documentation of the game includes a 1932 Tel Aviv beach scene by Israeli artist Nahum Gutman showing two young men holding rounded paddles and hitting a ball back and forth on the beach. The goal of the game is to hit a small rubber ball with a wooden racket as many times as possible without dropping it. Two or more players hit the ball back and forth using paddles. The sport is named after the racquet, the ; the origin of this word is unclear. The racquets are traditionally made of wood, although sometimes the handles are reinforced with a plastic covering. Carbon fiber is also used. The head of a racquet may vary somewhat in size and shape. The heads are circular and about in diameter. The racquet handles are short, and with very little trunk between the handle and the racquet head. The standard ball used is the same ball as is used in squash. However, novice and intermediate players sometimes use a ball that is similar in size to a squash ball, but lighter and/or bouncier. The game has developed a moderate level of popularity outside of Israel as a participatory sport, particularly where there is either a strong beach culture (e.g.
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, where it is also highly popular, but more commonly known as or frescobol), or a significant number of Israelis living abroad (e.g.
Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
). In the United States, the sport is known as . The first Israeli matkot competition was held in 2000, capped by a national championship in Tel Aviv.In Israel, sounds of spring include thwack of paddleballs
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See also

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Racquet sport Racket sports (or racquet sports) are games in which players use a Racket (sports equipment), racket or paddle to hit a ball or other object. A racket has a handled frame with an open hoop that supports a network of tightly stretched strings. A pa ...
*
Sport in Israel Sport in Israel plays an important role in Israeli culture and is supported by the Ministry of Culture and Sport (Israel), Ministry of Culture and Sport. The most popular sports in Israel have traditionally been Association football (mainly) and ...
*
Israeli inventions and discoveries This is a list of inventions and discoveries by Israeli scientists and researchers, working locally or overseas. Mathematics * Johnson–Lindenstrauss lemma, a mathematical result concerning low-distortion embeddings of points from high-dimensional ...
*
Culture of Israel The culture of Israel is closely associated with Jewish culture and rooted in the Jewish history of the diaspora and Zionist movement. It has also been influenced by Arab culture and the history and traditions of the Arab Israeli population and ...


References


External links


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{{Sports of the World Games program Culture of Israel Israeli games Racket sports Sport in Israel Sports originating in Israel Beach sports Words and phrases in Modern Hebrew