Diabolo
China and
Taiwan's
Sports
Playing the game Diabolo goes back thousands of years. Diabolo is a toy controlled on a string tied to two sticks that are held in the hands. The Diabolo can be whooshed into the air and be back in the hands. Diabolos are made out of bamboo with openings on the sides that create a whistling sound when spinning. Diabolo is a game that young and old can play. It is still quite a popular game today.
The word Diabolo either means "two balls", "throw across" or "yo-yo on steroids". This is an expression to show how the Diabolo works. Since a yo-yo is already a fast moving instrument to play with, having the yo-yo “take steroids” makes it an extremely active instrument/toy to use. That describes how the Diabolo works, and how it looks when it is being used. The Diabolo looks like a “yo-yo on steroids.”
Many believe that the use of Diabolo has died down. However, some Diabolo experts on February 1, 2007 went to my school and even showed us how to play the Diabolo. “I would say that Diabolo is not as popular as modern sports such as basketball and baseball, but it is still one of the traditional sports that people still play in Taiwan,” Janie Lin says.
Many would also think that Diabolo is not considered a sport. “I think that Diabolo is considered as sport, even though some people think of it as a game,” Lin says again. “Playing Diabolo requires strength, special techniques, and body coordinating, just like other sports. It can be played on single person or by a group of people.”