BUZKASHI

Yesterday I traveled to Camp Phoenix to watch an exhibition of Buzkashi, Afghanistan's National Sport. Although it is often compared to polo, or even "rugby on horseback", this is not a team sport. It's every man for himself. The object is to wrestle a goat carcass away from other riders and throw it into a circle in the middle of the field.

The players are battling it out over the goat carcass. This reminded me of a rugby "scrum." The players push and shove each other with their horses while trying to reach down and pick the carcass up off the ground. It's very hard to follow from the sidelines until someone breaks free from the crowd.

The player has the goat carcass and is dashing towards the circle in the middle of the field. Other players pursue him and try to take the goat away. When a player scores by dropping the goat in the circle, he rides over to the sidelines to receive accolades and applause from the crowd.
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