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ALAI
Jai
Alai (HY-lye): Game played in a court with a ball and a
wickerwork racket
Common
clues:
Jai
______; Half a Basque game; Jai follower; Game ending?; Jai
tail?; Betting game ending
Related
crosswordese: JAI
Crossword
puzzle frequency:
once a month
Video:
Jai-alai
Documentary
Jai-Alai
means "Merry Festival" in the Basque language. The term
is used to denote a fronton
(or open-walled arena) used to play a variety of Pelota called
Cesta Punta, and, more broadly, to the game itself. The game is
characterized by the fast pace of play, in which a 125g ball (or
pelota) covered with parchment skin can travel faster than 180
mph. The ball is placed into play and volleyed by players wearing
a wicker basket glove approximately 63 to 70 cm long. The glove,
Cesta-punta
(in Spanish) or xistera
(Basque) was invented by the French Basque Gantchiqui
Diturbide
(also Gantxiki
Iturbide)
in the 19th century.
[Courtesy
of Florida
Gaming Corporation]
In
countries such as France, Spain and Mexico the game of jai-alai
is popular where, in some regions, the game is played in almost
every town and city. In the United States, jai-alai enjoyed some
popularity as a gambling alternative to horse racing and remains
popular among gamblers in Florida, where the game is used as a
basis for pari-mutuel gambling.
In
contrast, the popularity of jai-alai in the north-eastern and
western United States waned as other gambling options became
available. As a result frontons in the Connecticut towns of
Hartford and Milford permanently closed while the fronton in
Bridgeport was converted to a Greyhound race track; and a fronton
in Newport, Rhode Island had been converted to a main stream
gambling facility replacing the fronton. Jai-Alai enjoyed a brief
and popular stint in the western United States with the opening
of a fronton at the MGM Grand Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas,
Nevada however by the early 1980s the fronton was losing money
and popularity and as a result MGM Grand owner Kirk Kerkorian
decided to close the fronton and replace it with a more
profitable entity.
This
article is licensed under the GNU
Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the Wikipedia
article "Jai alai".
ALAI
(621)
436 Tu+ >1 05 Jai ___
16
Th+ NYT 92 Turkish regiment
15
Th- >1 08 Kyrgyzstan range
14
We- NYT 91 Jai ——
12
Th- >1 08 Kyrgyzstan's ___ Mountains
11
Mo+ >1 04 Jai follower
9
We- >1 96 Jai___
5
We+ >1 03 Half court game?
5
Tu- >1 02 Jai ___ (Basque sport)
5
We >1 96 Kirghiz range
4
Fr- >1 99 Jai --
4
We+ >1 87 Russian range URAL
3
Th >1 98 Game ending? STER
3
Tu+ >1 05 Half a Basque game
07
Jai follower?
3
We+ >1 03 Jai tail?
3
We+ >1 07 Jai-___
3
Fr NYT 99 Kyrgyz range
2
Th NYT 07 Asia's Trans ___ mountains
2
Fr- >1 03 Asia's Trans ___ range
2
Tu LAT 97 Asian range URAL
2
Th- >1 00 Ball game finale?
2
Tu >1 96 Betting game ending
00
Jai ___ (fast-moving sport)
2
Tu- >1 01 Jai ___ (pelota)
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