Sepak Takraw is widely popular in most of Asia, where sepak takraw courts are as common in parks as hockey and soccer fields in Canada. The sport that originated in Malaysia and Thailand is catching on in the rest of the world.
For Rick Engel, the president of the Sepak Takraw Association of Canada (STAC), sepak takraw is one of the most exciting spectator sports on the planet.
"It is just so incredible to watch," said Engel.
The Asian game is best described as soccer-volleyball on a badminton court. It incorporates the precision of badminton, the speed of volleyball and the kicks of soccer. The three players on each side of the net can use anything but their hands and arms to pike the unique hand-woven ball into the opponent's court.
What is addicting for players is the motivation to improve their ball handling skills. For skilled players, it means to be able to break their own record of consecutive kicks, to kick the ball in different ways with both feet, to "kick hoops", to jump up and spike the ball and to anticipate where the ball will be coming over.
These incredible moves make the game of sepak takraw probably among of the most high-energy sports, according to Engel. But, it can also be played at a beginner level and still provide as much pleasure and exercise.
Engel started promoting the sport in 1993 in Saskatchewan, but the excitement over it did not reach out other provinces until six years later.
Ten of thousands schoolchildren have been introduced to the sport in the last decade. At the present nine Canadian provinces out of ten currently have schools playing sepak takraw.
And it is still growing. Engel estimates that there are about 75-100 new schools per year playing sepak takraw through the public school system. It represents a total of 4,000 to 5,000 new students per year play the game at one level or another.
Already incredibly popular in Southeast Asia, there are now fans in North America and Europe. Last year, Germany became the first nation to read the quarterfinals in the King's Cup, held in Thailand.
"I will probably always wish the sport would grow faster than it is in Canada," he said. Still, he believes that "sepak takraw can be like NBA in 50 years."
In the meantime, Saskatchewan's Provincial Sepak Takraw Tournament will take place on July 1st as a part of Regina's Canada Day Celebrations.
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