Indigenous peoples have been playing stickball for centuries. Every summer since 1975, teams have competed in Mississippi to become champion of perhaps the oldest game in North America. A game of physicality and endurance, stickball is often called the grandfather of field sports. The annual tournament in Mississippi is the game’s premier event.
Pearl River’s Kanyon Jimmie sprints with the “towa,” or ball, while pursed by teammates and a Koni Hata defender during the Men’s Division of the World Series of Stickball title game, hosted by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Choctaw, Miss. With the exception of some wearing mouth guards, the players wear no padding in the full-contact game, which is the precursor to lacrosse.
Stickball, known as ishtaboli in the Choctaw language, is played with 30 players on the field, each carrying two netted sticks called kabotcha, and a small woven leather ball painted bright orange, called a towa.Mississippi can wait to reset legislative districts that dilute Black voting strength, judges sayStickball fans say it remains pure. There are no pads, no timeouts and no mercy. Players typically don’t even wear shoes.
Variations on stickball have traditionally been played by several tribal nations using rules created by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. This year, Koni Hata, the 2023 men’s champion and one of the most dominant teams in the modern era of stickball, defended its dynasty in both the men’s and women’s title games against neighboring Choctaw communities such as Pearl River and stickball powerhouse Bok Cito.
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