| Sport | Kabaddi |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction |  National |
| Abbreviation | ANKA |
| Founded | 1977 |
| Affiliation | International Kabaddi Federation |
| President | Tulsi Thapa |
| Secretary | Arbind Kumar Jha |
 | |
The All Nepal Kabaddi Association (ANKA) [1] is the governing body for the sport of kabaddi in Nepal. It is responsible for organizing national tournaments, promoting the sport, and managing the national kabaddi teams. [2]
The ANKA was established to develop and promote kabaddi in Nepal. Over the years, it has played a crucial role in popularizing the sport and organizing various national and international tournaments. [3]
ANKA organizes several national tournaments, including the Nepal Kabaddi League (NKL) [4] , which involves six franchise teams representing Kathmandu, Pokhara, Biratnagar, Janakpur, Dhangadhi, and Butwal. The league is sponsored by Astrionix and is expected to boost the popularity of kabaddi in Nepal.
The Nepal national kabaddi team, managed by ANKA, has participated in various international competitions, including the World Cup, Asian Games, and Asian Kabaddi Championship. The team has achieved notable success, winning medals in several international tournaments. [5]
ANKA has also been working towards promoting women's kabaddi in Nepal. The women's team has won medals in the South Asian Games and made a debut with a bronze medal at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. [6]
As of the latest election held on July 11, 2023 [7] [8] , the leadership of ANKA includes:
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| President | Tulsi Thapa |
| Vice-President | Kumar Aale Ratia Rajbanshi |
| Secretary General | Arbind Kumar Jha |
| Secretary | Tarkaraj Bhatt |
| Treasurer | Krishna Dev Pant |
| Members | Tej Bahadur Bista, Nirajan Shrestha, Janak Chaudhary, Jai Bahadur Bohora, Bindu Thapa Magar, Bhagwati Adhikari, Nirmala Kumari B.C., Sharad Darshandhari, Raj Kumar Chhetri, Umalal Yadav, Dhirendra Rajbangshi |
Kabaddi is a contact team sport played between two teams of seven players, originating in ancient India. The objective of the game is for a single player on offense, referred to as a "raider", to run into the opposing team's half of the court, touch out as many of their players as possible, and return to their own half of the court, all without being tackled by the defenders in 30 seconds. Points are scored for each player tagged by the raider, while the opposing team earns a point for stopping the raider. Players are taken out of the game if they are touched or tackled, but return to the game after each point scored by their team from a tag or tackle.
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