Whats on

"It's not easy to play more than 120 minutes," Polking said at a Saturday press meet, referring to Thailand's semi-final match against Indonesia. "Vietnam are in the same situation, so I believe that makes them equal," he said, adding that with both teams tired, he didn't think there would be any obvious advantage for either. "Vietnam are the clear favorite for the game, not only because they have 40,000 passionate people helping and cheering and supporting them for 90 minutes... they have also the best preparations, they have all the players..." "We are the underdog in this situation, but we are a good underdog. We'll put the fight in... but yeah it will be a very, very tough game for us," he said. Thailand began SEA Games 31 with a 1-2 loss against Malaysia, but later won all their matches to enter the final for the 21st time. Polking said he hoped Thailand's offensive lineup would prove themselves against Vietnam's defense, who have never conceded a goal in this year's … [Read more...] about SEA Games final: Thailand are the underdog, says coach Polking

In a hall on Japan's Sado island, 71-year-old Yoshikazu Fujimoto strikes the imposing drum mounted before him, producing a boom so powerful that it reverberates through the floorboards. Fujimoto is a veteran performer of Japanese taiko drumming, a musical form with roots in religious rituals, traditional theatre and the joyous abandon of seasonal festivals called matsuri. But for all its ancient pedigree, taiko as a stage performance is a fairly modern invention, developed by a jazz musician and popularised in part by one of Japan's most famous troupes: Sado island's Kodo. Fujimoto is the oldest of the 37 musicians that make up the group, which recruits members through a rigorous two-year training programme. It was founded partly to attract people to Sado, off Japan's west coast, and tours internationally, spreading the gospel of taiko. "Taiko itself is like a prayer," said Fujimoto, who came to Sado in 1972 to join the group that evolved into Kodo. This photo … [Read more...] about ‘Straight to your soul’: Japan’s taiko reinvents drum tradition