To start, a feeder throws a fist-sized ball to a server, who kicks the ball over the net to the opposite end of the court. The point begins. Then members of three-person teams on each side can use their feet, knees, chest, and head to keep the ball in the air as they try to send it to the other side of the net. Points typically end with thunderous bicycle kicks that would make Lionel Messi jealous.
This is sepak takraw.
A sport native to southeast Asia, sepak takraw holds its most historic international tournament, the King’s Cup Sepaktakraw World Championship, this week in Bangkok. The International Sepaktakraw Federation (ISTAF) sanctioned competition launched in 1985 and has been held in Thailand since its debut, which annoys Malaysia, where the sport allegedly dates back the furthest. “Sepak takraw” is a combination of the Malay word for kick and the Thai word for woven ball.
Sepak takraw, fairly described as volleyball for ninjas, isn’t the only game of its kind, however. The world of kicking objects over nets for sport is vast and full of backflips.
Indigenous tribes in the Philippines invented sipa, which involves players acrobatically kicking a soft ball made of straw fragments. In fifth century B.C., China developed jianzi, played with a heavily weighted shuttlecock (Europeans alternately call the sport featherball, plumfoot, Federfußball, or simply shuttlecock). Kicking shuttlecocks also is Vietnam’s national sport, where it’s known as đá cầu.
More recently, soccer players in Prague created futnet (Slovakia calls it nohejbal) in 1922, originally played with a soccer ball and a low-hanging rope. Footvolley, invented on the beaches of Rio de Janeiro, is similar but is played on sand. There’s also jokgu, native to South Korea; footbag net, an American offspring of footbag (commonly known as Hacky Sack); and the imaginative bossaball, which is played on an inflatable court featuring two trampolines and is set to bossa nova music.
But sepak takraw perhaps is the most exciting. It’s played in a tight area about the size of a badminton doubles court, with a holed, fist-sized ball called a rattan, made of woven straw and sometimes covered in rubber.
Thailand dominates all five King’s Cup events (team, regu, double, hoop, and an experimental four-on-four division), partly due to the home-court advantage, but this year’s installment still drew 30 countries from Asia, North America, South America, and Europe.
And while contemporary iterations of the game favor the competitive aspect, at its best, sepak takraw skews closer to dance or martial arts with its graceful cooperative violence.
Though the sport’s popularity may be declining in its native Malaysia, it’s growing globally, aided by the ISTAF’s launch in 2011 of a World Cup and touring SuperSeries. The international availability of jaw-dropping YouTube highlights doesn’t hurt. But the holy grail of modern sport recognition, an Olympic bid, still evades sepak takraw.
“The Winter or Summer Games, I don’t mind,” ISTAF secretary general Abdul Halim Kader told BBC last year. “We would gladly take part in either.”
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Juicy subject matter
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We could start a rumor.
Grieving couple comforting each other
This response to someone grieving a friend might be the best internet comment ever
When someone is hit with the sudden loss of a friend or loved one, words rarely feel like enough. Yet, more than a decade ago, a wise Redditor named GSnow shared thoughts so profound they still bring comfort to grieving hearts today.
Originally posted around 2011, the now-famous reply was rediscovered when Upvoted, an official Reddit publication, featured it again to remind everyone of its enduring truth. It began as a simple plea for help: “My friend just died. I don't know what to do.”
What followed was a piece of writing that many consider one of the internet’s best comments of all time. It remains shared across social media, grief forums, and personal messages to this day because its honesty and metaphor speak to the raw reality of loss and the slow, irregular path toward healing.
Below is GSnow’s full reply, unchanged, in all its gentle, wave-crashing beauty:
Why this advice still matters
Mental health professionals and grief counselors often describe bereavement in stages or phases, but GSnow’s “wave theory” gives an image more relatable for many. Rather than a linear process, grief surges and retreats—sometimes triggered by a song, a place, or a simple morning cup of coffee.
In recent years, this metaphor has found renewed relevance. Communities on Reddit, TikTok, and grief support groups frequently reshare it to help explain the unpredictable nature of mourning.
Many readers say this analogy helps them feel less alone, giving them permission to ride each wave of grief rather than fight it.
Finding comfort in shared wisdom
Since this comment first surfaced, countless people have posted their own stories underneath it, thanking GSnow and passing the words to others facing fresh heartbreak. It’s proof that sometimes, the internet can feel like a global support group—strangers linked by shared loss and hope.
For those searching for more support today, organizations like The Dougy Center, GriefShare, and local bereavement groups offer compassionate resources. If you or someone you know is struggling with intense grief, please reach out to mental health professionals who can help navigate these deep waters.
When grief comes crashing like the ocean, remember these words—and hang on. There is life between the waves.
This article originally appeared four years ago.