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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; Half court game?; Ball game
finale?
Related crosswordese: JAI
Crossword
puzzle frequency:
once a month
News: Game
of Jai Alai Struggles to Attract US Fans
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".
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