How a silambam bout works

Silambam is a martial art from Tamil Nadu built round the long staff. Shown with the stick fight, Kambu Sandai, at the school games.

1. Two fighters, red and blue, fight with staffs in a round court.
2. The staff must keep moving in circles throughout; a fighter who stops it loses a point.
3. Every touch on the body, shoulder or ankle scores one point. Hits to the head, the upper legs and the arms score nothing, and powerful hits are not allowed.
4. Five judges each score the fight out of 20. The highest and lowest cards are dropped and the other three averaged.

How long

Three rounds of two minutes. The other events are two-minute weapon displays, each marked by judges.