The present article develops the alternative sport artzikirol in Physical Education. We will analyze a development proposal in the subject of Physical Education.
What is artzikirol?
Alternative sports share a series of characteristics that make them attractive and different, among others, the possibility of participating in them in a mixed way, with unusual rules where the aim is to work in collaboration with the team, seeking to surpass the opponent, using unconventional equipment or materials.
Artzikirol in Physical Education is a sport played by two teams, through collaboration-opposition, using a soft ball as the mobile, which must be introduced into the goal.
At a competitive level, in artzikirol, two mixed teams of six players face each other, but it is mainly developed at school and recreational levels.
The playing field coincides with the dimensions of a futsal field, 40 by 20 meters, and at each end, there is a scoring zone with a goal, as well as an area that delimits the zone from which the ball can be thrown.
Each team is responsible for defending its scoring zone, with the objective of scoring more goals than the opponent.
In artzikirol in physical education, the two teams face each other on the field, distributed in space, being able to pass the ball between teammates, seeking that the opponent does not cut possession, to advance towards the opposing field to introduce the ball into the scoring zone.
The most relevant condition is that each player can play with both the foot and the hand, but cannot dribble while having control.
Having the ball in hand, in artzikirol, any opposing player can touch you, when that happens, the referee whistles a foul and the possession of the ball will pass to the team that made the touch.
To avoid this, the player with the ball will try to bring the ball to the foot before the opposing player touches them (1).
What is the history of artzikirol? How did it arise?
Artzikirol in Physical Education arose thanks to José Ramón Rey, in the year 2007. A sports enthusiast and concerned about promoting sports practice among young people, he invented a new game based on futsal, handball, and rugby.
By combining part of the rules of the three previous sports, this one was born, seeking to increase the practice of physical activity among children and adolescents in a dynamic and fun way.
Since the year of the creation of artzikirol, its practice has been spreading in educational centers mainly in Álava and Bizkaia (due to its origin) as well as in activities organized by some municipalities within the offer of their sports programs.
How is an artzikirol match played in physical education?
Through its origin and expansion, artzikirol has been reaching different parts of Spain and with it, physical education teachers as a possible content to address, both in primary and secondary education.
The characteristics of artzikirol in physical education make it work on coordination and skill of hands and feet, being able to precede and facilitate the learning of conventional sports from which it originates with more complex skills of the upper and lower limbs.
Artzikirol in Physical Education characteristics that favor its treatment:
- The players on the court, as we have said, are 6 per team.
- The ball used is similar to a soccer ball, but made of foam rubber, softer to avoid damage when in contact with the hands.
- Goals can be scored by throwing with the foot or hand, or also by tapping the ball.
- Previously, it has been explained what the touch consists of, well, the player who causes the touch will be responsible for taking the free kick from the same place where it occurred.
- The ball can never be held between the feet.
- During competitions, the aim is to work on fair play and follow values related to respect and acceptance of situations.
- To take free kicks, throw-ins, or corners, the player has a maximum of 6 seconds. The opponent can be on top of the player taking the kick, as long as they do not touch the line.
- The goalkeeper can act as a field player at any time. However, a penalty is called if they are touched anywhere on the playing field with the ball.
How to move in an artzikirol match in physical education
To move and advance towards the opposing field in artzikirol in physical education, it is necessary to control the ball and move with it, either with the hand, before being touched, or with the foot. So that when reaching the opposing goal, it is shot at the goal and enters it to score 1 goal=1 point.
Due to these characteristics of artzikirol, the game must be fast and precise, taking advantage of spaces, to pass to teammates seeking effective advancement without being touched and thus, without losing possession.
Characteristics and values of artzikirol
Most alternative sports do not focus specifically on the result of the competition unlike most conventional sports (2).
It has been previously mentioned that artzikirol in physical education, due to its short life, is not played competitively outside the school environment or does so very rarely, so the objective is to provide resources at an educational level, so that students outside of this have tools and resources to practice sports that allow them to meet healthy levels of physical activity.
Therefore, its characteristics focus on other aspects more related to the development of the game, participation, enjoyment, and values, summarizing all this in the term sport for all.
Seeking that everyone participates, touches the ball, uses both limbs, relates regardless of gender, etc.
Practical proposal of artzikirol in Physical Education
Depending on the methodology we want to use to implement it as content in Physical Education, we will have to use one model or another.
If we start from the sports education model, we must consider some basic aspects, such as starting by working in a directed way to later work autonomously, ending the progression with a real competition.
Some of the activities that could be developed within a unit of artzikirol in physical education for secondary would be the following:
- 10 passes: it starts by forming two teams of 5 people and when the ball falls to the ground, possession changes teams. It can initially be proposed with the hand as it is easier for them and later move on to practice it with the foot.
- Fast: a line of 5-6 players and a provisional goalkeeper is established. Each player must shoot at the goal, only with the hand. If they score a goal, the goalkeeper loses a life (each one has 3), and remains in goal, if they do not score, the shooter becomes the goalkeeper and the next player shoots at them.
- Variants:
- shoot only with the foot
- shoot with the hand or foot depending on reception
- increase or decrease the number of lives
- limit the shooting distance
- Variants:
- Attack and defense situations: first only with the hand or only with the foot and then combining both, starting with simple situations like a 2×2, progressing to a real 6×6 situation, combining the goalkeeper player.
- Tower ball: players are divided into two teams, at the end of each field there is a hoop. Each team seeks to pass the ball with the objective that the player inside the hoop or on top at the end of the field receives it. If they achieve it without the opposing team stealing, they will score a point.
- Hot potato: Two opposing teams, the objective of each team is to place the ball behind the opposing team’s end line. Each time it is achieved, a point is scored.
- Tag: to practice the touch, two teams, with a ball, the team that does not have possession has to go tag the player with the ball.
- Steal tails: all players have a handkerchief attached to their pants. It is similar to the previous one, instead of touching the opponent with the ball, the handkerchief is stolen.
The unit or sessions could end with the realization of a match following the basic rules, using roles of: shooter, passer, defense, goalkeeper, and referee, making the players rotate to experience firsthand all the roles.
Conclusion
In short, artzikirol in physical education is a good possibility to work on collaboration-opposition sports in the subject of Physical Education.
Using alternative materials and game characteristics or dynamics different from those followed in other conventional sports, maintaining many characteristics of many of them, facilitating or introducing skills little worked on until the moment of implementation, favoring their learning (3).
Bibliographic references
- Blanco, F. and Amarica, M. ARTZIKIROL a new playful proposal for multi-activity. Retrieved from: https://www.yumpu.com/es/document/read/62604505/artzikirol-artzikirol-una-nueva-propuesta-ludica-para-la-multiactividad
- De la Fuente Ostos, E. L. (2020). Cooperative learning in the CLIL Physical Education classroom: A didactic unit about “alternative games” in first grade of Mandatory Secondary Education. Retrieved online.
- Piquer Cebrián, M. (2020). Alternative sports in PE. Retrieved online from MundoEntrenamiento.com
