Piemontese Handball
A very popular traditional sport in the south of Piedmont, pallapugno or balon has a strong following in small country towns. In the Langhe hills many people play a variation of this sport, pantalera, in which the ball is not thrown into play but bounced off a small slanted “roof” two metres above the ground. As a result, physical force plays a minor role, so older players, more skilled at anticipating the bounce of the ball have the advantage over the young and relatively inexperienced. Traditionally, pantalera was played in the restricted space of the courtyards of houses in the towns or farmhouses in the country; the ball was, in fact, bounced off the barn roof, called the “pantalera” in Piedmontese.
