The Kho-Kho event at a national school sports meet: girls’ teams in Junior and Senior fields play 18-minute matches of chasing and dodging, and the side with more points wins, with no judging panel.
Kho-Kho is a tag game between two teams, one chasing and one defending, played on a rectangular court with a central lane and posts at each end. Chasers sit in a row along the lane, each facing the opposite way to the one beside them, while the defenders try to avoid being touched. A chaser may only run in the direction they face, and can change direction or hand over the chase by tapping a seated team-mate and calling “Kho”. Every defender touched is a point for the chasing side, so the game rewards quick hand-overs, sharp turns and patient dodging.
In the national school sports and games template it is a girls-only item with two fields, Junior (under 17) and Senior (under 19). Each field is entered as a team, so a school sends one side per age field. The template’s source handbook states the match length as 18 minutes, played as two innings of 9 minutes, and that figure is carried into the item. Because the item is decided on points, the score label is Points, and there is no criteria sheet or judging panel: the organiser records the result of each match.
A match day is a run of fixtures. Teams are placed in a league or drawn into knockout rounds, each side takes its turn to chase and to defend, and the higher total at the end wins. A level score cannot always stand in a knockout, so the organiser should say in advance how a tie is settled, for example by an extra turn, and who keeps the official scoresheet. Squad size, substitutions and the exact turn structure are left to the event notice because the platform does not model them.
For the organiser the work is courts, officials and timing. Mark enough courts for the fixtures, allot start times with real rest between a team’s matches, name a referee, scorer and timekeeper for every match, and enter each result as soon as the final whistle goes so the table and the next round can be built. Check team lists and age eligibility before the first fixture, since a Junior side cannot field an over-age player.
Where Kho-Kho comes from
Kho-Kho is a traditional game from India, long played in the western state of Maharashtra and widely taught in Indian schools; it is one of the oldest organised tag-style team games in the country.
Where Kho-Kho is run
In eTalenter this item is carried by the national school sports and games template for Indian school-board affiliates, in the Competitive Sports category, for girls only. Kho-Kho is a traditional Indian team game played in schools, clubs and state and national championships across India, and it is also played in Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and other countries with South Asian communities. A school meet usually runs it as a short league or knockout because an 18-minute match fits a single session.
- India (national school sports meet for board-affiliated schools)
- South Asia, where the game is a traditional school and club sport
Key facts
- Team entry: one side per age field, with squad size and substitutions left to the event notice
- Girls only, in two fields: Junior (U-17) and Senior (U-19)
- Decided by points: the side with the higher total wins, not a judged mark
- Match length in the source handbook: 18 minutes, played as two innings of 9 minutes
- Sports item, not Arts: results are entered directly when a match ends, with no judging panel
- Not to be confused with Kabaddi, the other Indian contact team game on this template, which is boys-only
On eTalenter, Kho-Kho is filed under Competitive Sports and typically scored with Points/Score. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Kho-Kho is most often entered as an Team competition, commonly run for Female, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 18 minutes where a limit is set.
The scoring method the templates attach to this item, and what that scale means. The category this competition is filed under when a template is installed. Others in this category: Football, Futsal, Cricket, Basketball, Volleyball, Beach Volleyball, Badminton, Table Tennis, Squash, Hockey, Handball eTalenter matches an item to its criteria on the words in its name, and creates exactly these when the template is installed. No criteria match this name, so none are created automatically — judges score it on the event’s own criteria instead.How it is scored
Where it sits
Judging criteria installed for it
What judges look at in Kho-Kho
What a Kho-Kho panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Touches: a defender is out only when a chaser makes a clean touch, so the referee’s call on whether contact was made decides most points
- Direction of running: a chaser may only run the way they face and cannot turn back, and an illegal turn or reversal costs the chasing side the point
- The Kho call: the hand-over must be a clear tap on the seated team-mate with the call, and a late or unclear hand-over is ruled a foul
- Lane and post rules: a chaser who crosses the central lane wrongly or leaves the court gives the point away, so line judges and referee must agree
- Defensive conduct: defenders must stay inside the court and may not stall or refuse to move, and cautions go on the scoresheet
- Time keeping: the two 9-minute innings run to the official clock, and the timekeeper’s record settles any dispute at the end of a turn
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Kho-Kho under Scoring Setup, or start from how judging, scoring and tabulation work on eTalenter.
How to prepare for Kho-Kho
How entrants and their teachers usually get Kho-Kho right on the day:
- Confirm match length, turn structure and the tie-break method in writing before the draw so both sides prepare for the same game
- Drill the Kho hand-over in pairs until it is automatic, because a slow or unclear tap lets the defender escape and can be called a foul
- Practise sharp turns at the posts and quick changes of direction, since the chaser’s main weapon is the sudden switch at the end of the lane
- Train defenders to read the chaser’s foot and shoulder, and to sit and rise in a way that keeps them out of reach without stalling
- Build a squad that can rotate, since a team may play more than once in a day and tired chasers become easy to dodge
- Agree who starts each turn and who is seated in each position in advance, so players are not deciding on the court
- Bring age proof and the team sheet to registration, and pack spare kit and water so a torn shirt or a strain does not delay the start
Events that run this (1)
Ready-made templates that already include this competition. Installing one sets it up for you.
Frequently asked questions
Is Kho-Kho judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter’s templates it’s most often run as an Team entry, commonly for Female, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
Is Kho-Kho judged or scored by marks?
No. It is a sport, so the match ends in a win, draw or loss on points and the result is entered directly. There is no judging panel or criteria sheet.
How long is a Kho-Kho match at this meet?
The source handbook states 18 minutes, played as two innings of 9 minutes. Extra time and tie-break rules are not modelled on the platform, so check the event notice.
Can boys enter Kho-Kho at this meet?
Not in this template. It is configured as a girls-only item in the Junior (under 17) and Senior (under 19) fields.
Is Kho-Kho the same as Kabaddi?
No. Both are Indian team games decided on points, but Kabaddi is a contact game built on raiding and tackling, while Kho-Kho is a chasing and dodging game with no tackling.
Want the full judging picture? Read how judging, scoring and tabulation work on eTalenter, or browse every competitive sports competition item.
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