Source text in Chinese | Translation by Shaojie Huang (#4904) — Winner |
足球在中国古代称为蹴鞠,早在春秋战国时期就已广泛开展。汉代出现了中国第一部足球专著《蹴鞠二十五篇》。唐代在制球工艺上有两大改进:一是把用两片皮合成的球壳改为用八片尖皮缝成圆形的球壳。二是把球壳内塞毛发改为放一个动物尿泡,“嘘气闭而吹之”,成为充气的球。由于球体轻了,可以踢高。球门就设在两根三丈高的竹竿上。在踢球方法上,汉代是直接对抗分队比赛,唐代则是中间隔着球门,双方各在一侧,以射门“数多者胜 ”。唐代开始出现了女子足球。女子足球的踢法不用球门,以踢高、踢出花样为能事,称为“白打”。到了宋代,足球在技术上已由射门比准向灵巧和控制球的水平方面发展。而且制球工艺比唐代又有提高,发展为“十二片香皮砌成”。原料是“熟硝黄革,实料轻裁”。工艺是“密砌缝成,不露线角”。做成的球重量要“正重十二两”。足球规格要“碎凑十分圆”。 | A Chinese equivalent of soccer known as cu-ju started to be a popular game as early as in the Spring and Autumn through the Warring States periods. A treaties on this sport, Cu-Ju in 25 Chapters, dates to the Han dynasty and is believed to be the first of this subject in China. Two improvements were made in the Tang dynasty to the techniques used for making the ball. Instead of two hemispherical leather pieces, the exterior of the ball now consisted of eight pieces narrowing on the ends sewed together for a rounder shape. Innovations were also inside the ball. Hair stuff was replaced by a bladder which could be inflated by blowing in air through an opening. An air ball was lighter and could be kicked higher for a goal perched on top of two 7-meter bamboo poles. The ball game was played as a competitive sport in the Han period when two teams played each other. In the Tang era, however, a team shot from one side of a goal in the middle of the pitch to win the game by scoring more than its opponent shooting at the same goal from the other side. The Tang women also played the Chinese soccer but in a different way. Woman footballers did not go for goals but competed with each other in the height of kicks and the acrobatic moves they delivered. Women's soccer featuring this contest orientation was called bai-da. In the Song dynasty ball handle techniques evolved from an emphasis on accurate shots to place more stress on being light in motion and sure in control. Ball making was further advanced to use twelve pieces of finely dressed leather, sewed in fine, inner stitches that were not visible from the outside. Standardization was introduced in ball manufacture for the weight and the shape. A ball was supposed to weigh exactly twelve liang (approx. 544 g) and to be "perfectly round with patchy leather pieces." |