World Cup Bocce

 BEAR IN MIND THAT THE MEASURE OF A MAN IS THE WORTH OF THE THINGS HE CARES ABOUT.

Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius 120 A.D. to 180 A.D.

The Greatest Game Ever Played  Boc-cie (or Bocci, or Bocce or Boccia) is a precision sport belonging to the boules sports family, closely related to the bowls and petanque with a common ancestry from ancient games played in the Roman Empire.  As early as 5000 B.C. the Egyptians played a form of bocce with polished rocks. Graphic representations of figures tossing a ball or polished stone have been recorded as early as 5200 B.C. The early Romans were among the first to play a game resembling what we know as bocce today. In early times they used coconuts brought back from Africa and later used hard olive wood to carve out bocce balls. Beginning with Emperor Augustus, bocce became the sport of statesman and rulers. From the early Greek physician Ipocrates to the great Italian Renaissance man Galileo, the early participants of bocce have noted that the game’s athleticism and spirit of competition rejuvenates the body. The Romans learned the game from the Greeks, then introduced it throughout the empire. The Roman influence in bocce is preserved in the game’s name ; bocce derives from the Vulgate Latin bottia, meaning boss.

Developed into its present form Italy where it is called Bocce, the plural of the Italian word boccia which means “bowl”.  In modern times, the first bocce clubs were organized in Italy. Notably the first Italian League was formed in 1947 by fifteen teams in and around the town of Rivoli (Torino). 1947 also marks the beginning of the yearly Bocce World Championships.

The standard playing surface for Bocce Ball is 76 – 90 feet and 10 – 12 feet wide.  Players are then separated into teams.  The game begins when a player throws the “Pallino” to the opposite end of the playing area.  The Pallino is the smallest ball in the set.  The object of the game is thrown the Boccia closest to the Pallino without touching.  Each team takes turns trying to get closest, until all balls are thrown.  A point is awarded for the closest to the Pallino.  Balls of equal distance cancel each other out.  The object is to achieve a total of 12 points before the opposing team.  The size of the Bocce ball has a diameter of 4 1/5” or 107mm, a weight of 2 lbs. 2 oz., and is usually made of phenolic resin. 

Thanks to many Italian immigrants at the turn of the century, bocce has come to flourish in the United States. During its beginnings in the U.S. there were as many versions of the game as there were towns the immigrants had left. Bringing some order to the game is the Collegium Cosmicum ad Buxeas, the preeminent bocce organization headquartered in Rome, Italy.

It should be added that the oral traditions of bocce are just as much an important part of the game. Throw out a pallino and become part of the long heritage of the game from great thinkers such as Galileo and da Vinci, to rulers Augustus and Queen Elizabeth, to the noble Sir Francis Drake and even America’s own George Washington. Enjoy the world’s oldest sport, a sport known to revive the body and mind, and next to soccer, the most popular game in the world.

 It's the only sport you can smoke a cigar, have a drink in your hand, and roll the ball.

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