Hmong Sports

Hmong like to play soccer, volleyball, kato, and top spinning. In Thailand now they still play all these sports. Soccer and volleyball are the most important sports for Hmong people in the United States. Kato and top spinning are the most important sports for Hmong because they were the first sports that the Hmong had to play. These sports were played in Laos. Hmong people learned to play these sports from the Laotians, Thai, and Chinese.
Soccer is one of the most important sports for Hmong. In soccer, there are 11 people on each side of the field. Mostly people dribble the ball and kick the ball in soccer. Soccer can be fun for younger kids to older adults. Sometimes soccer can be rough, but mostly soccer is fun. Each person that plays soccer has four positions to choose: forwards, mids, defends, and goalie. There is a Hmong soccer tournament in St. Paul. Some people come from other states to play soccer there, too. This is probably the biggest soccer tournament in the United States. In Winona, some people play for the YMCA in the spring and some people play soccer for the Winona Youth Soccer Association in the summer. We can only play if we are 10 years old to 18 years old. Some Hmong people are going to make a soccer tournament in June, 1996, in Winona.

Kato is a very old game. It is a game played with a small woven ball. There are three players on each side who hit the kato back and forth over a net. In kato you can do head spikes and the spinning flying foot kick. You can hit the ball with your head, your legs, your arms, your shoulders, but not with your hands. There are some kato teams in the U.S.A. Toua Xiong from Minneapolis was one of the first Hmong people to play kato in the USA. In Winona, we play kato in the summer.
Top spinning is a game that Hmong adults and young children play. The top is made out of wood. We cut out a thick branch from a tree and carve the top with a knife. It has a flat top and a pointed bottom. A top needs a long strong string about a yard long and a stick to spin the top. More than one player can play at a time. One players wraps the string around the top and spins it hard off the stick. The other people try to hit the spinning top by tossing their tops at it. The person whose top spinning spins the longest wins. Back in Laos and Thailand, the game was played all year round, but people had a special interest on New Year's. People played all day. In Winona, Hmong people don't play all year round, but sometimes we play on New Year's or in summer.
Soccer is a very fun sport. If you have a chance to play it, you will like it. Kato is a game that people enjoy playing. It is a very fun game and it happens at every soccer tournament. Top spinning is a game mostly for young kids, but adults play, too. To play all these sports, you don't need to be good. Which sports do you like to play?