Girl Chasing

The game will not stop if you need to be carried off the field. There are no player substitutions either. The pursuit of members of the opposite sex has been a major theme throughout human history. Historically, men have been pursuing, wooing, or even chasing women. And who knows, perhaps this is where the Kazakh tradition of Girl Chasing originated.

Unlike the romantic kind of chasing a girl, this one is frenetic and slightly terrifying because it involves literal horseback chasing. Kazakhs have historically been some of the world's best horsemen, and they invented stirrups. So "hunting" might be a better name. Nonetheless, this traditional game, also known as Kuuz Kuu, is part of Kazakh tradition and has been passed down through generations. A girl on horseback is pursued by boys on horseback in the game. It's similar to a race, with a predetermined finish line. The boys must catch the girl before she reaches the finish line. The benefit to her? She has a whip with which she can chase them. If a boy catches her, he will receive a kiss. If the girl escapes, she has the ability to whip them even more.

Location: Kazakhstan