Buzkashi: World’s toughest sport or source of hope?

[NewsCaster]

Ahmad Masood / Reuters, fileThe Afghan national sport of buzkashi is played by men on horseback competing to throw a beheaded calf, goat, or sheep into a scoring circle. By Jamieson Lesko, NBC NewsKABUL, Afghanistan – In sports, there’s tough, and then there’s Afghan tough. In a country where war has been a way of life for decades, it only makes sense that Afghanistan’s national sport is a fierce one.

Unless you remember the movie "Rambo 3," chances are you’ve never heard of the sport “buzkashi” – but to the little boys and grown men of Afghanistan, it’s the stuff that dreams are made of. Born during the days of Genghis Khan, it’s a no-holds-barred sport where there are few rules and an abundance of violence.

Just like polo, the game is played entirely on horseback. But that’s where the similarity ends.

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