Sport in Ventora

Modern sport in Ventora is varied and includes many activities from other regions and countries. Nonetheless, ancient and historical traditions, including those previously enjoyed predominantly by the nobility, enjoy varying measures of popularity and participation.

Equestrian sports
Overseen by the Equestrian Sport Council (: Consejo del Deporte Ecuestre, CDE), racing,, , and are common equestrian sports in Ventora. The CDE also sets rules for and horse-mounted archery and marksmanship. All of these are events in the tournaments sponsored by the Grand Martial Championship Association (GCMA).

Dressage serves to test the skill of rider and horse through the performance in a particular order of a series of moves. Eventing is a combination event that includes dressage, cross-country jumping, and show jumping. Jousting involves a pair of opponents on horseback wearing jousting armor and wielding lances. The opponents ride toward each other intending to strike the other with the lance. The objective is to break the lance on the opponent's armor or even to unhorse the opponent.

(bola de caballo) is a ball game played by opposing teams of four on horseback. Players use a long-handled mallet to drive or stop a hard ball on the playing field. The objective is to score points by driving the ball into the opposing team's net. Games last about an hour, divided into four periods. Horseball has reasonable popularity as an amateur sport and larger field semi-professional horseball teams that enjoy spectators and some good-natured rivalry between teams. The governing organization is the Ventoran Horseball League (Liga Ventoran Bola de Caballo, LBC).

The Equestrian Sport Trust is a that underwrites some costs of horses, boarding, and care, based on economic need, to offer the less affluent the opportuntity to participate in equestrian sports.

Falconry
The nomadic people of the Kanakan Steppe have used falconry as a means of hunting for over 2,000 years. Although not as common, the Tilargi also have long-standing hunting traditions using birds of prey. As the Montañan Confederation sought to expand its territorial control over the steppe region, the nobility was introduced to falconry in the 900s. It began to grow as a sport among the nobles, spreading across the Kingdom of Ventora by the 1200s. The sport reached its zenith in the mid-1400s, but began to fade due to the efficiencies of hunting using firearms. Throughout this period, the people of the steppe and the Tilargi continued the falconry for the practicality of providing food despite the nobility co-opting their traditions for sport.

Modern falconry in Ventora continues as a tradition in the steppe and Tilargi Mountains. It has also become a livelihood for some falconers in controlling pest birds, such as pigeons and gulls, and small ground pests, primarily rodents, for farmlands and even some urban areas. As a result, falconry has become more accessible to non-nobles. A number of municipalities have public mews available to facilitate keeping raptors for urban dwellers without space of their own. Despite increased availability, nobles and the upper class comprise the majority of sport falconers.

Falconry in Ventora adheres to regulations promulgated by the Royal Falconry Syndicate (Sindicato Real de Cetrería, SRC) which was established by King Pedro II in 1774. Falconry hunting for sustenance follows the traditional practices of the steppe and mountains. Individuals and groups may sport hunt using birds of prey following SRC rules. The SRC also sanctions several competitive falconry events including judged hunts, field meets, beauty contests, and races. The latter two have become quite lucrative and more exclusive to affluent falconers and typically use raptors bred in captivity primarily for show and racing. On the other hand, judged hunts and field meets are popular among the middle and working classes as a means of competing with the wealthy on equal terms and chances of winning. Wild-caught birds are common for judged hunts and field meets.

A judged hunt is relatively controlled and awards points to each bird for its performance in four elements of the hunt: mounting (initial climb rate), position (height when the quarry pigeon is released), pursuit (raptor dive toward quarry bird), and persistence (number of passes at quarry). The prey are usually racing pigeons which are quite adept at avoiding predatory birds. In a field meet, the event uses quarry in its natural habitat and birds are assessed on the speed of their hunt and the prey they select. Beauty pageants vary in their criteria but the primary judging is based on appearance of the bird. Raptor races are set at 400 m to test the bird's vision, reaction time, and speed.

Maritime sports
Small watercraft often serve as a means of recreation in coastal areas. There are amateur and professional racing circuits for both sailboats and motorboats, each with their own governing bodies.

The Maritime Sport Federation (Federación de Deportes Marítimos, FDM) sets rules for racing under sail. It is best known for its two key annual events, however. In mid-May, the annual Southwest Alutran Cup races take place with five different classes of boats with distances and endurance appropriate to the types of sailboats involved. The Abayadi Regatta takes place in late August and is a multi-day event involving sailboats and crew having to plot their routes to various points in a given order and then return to port in a manner not unlike a. Competitors achieve points for completing each segment of the regatta in less time than allotted and lose points for taking longer than expected. By having multiple sequences, each boat's crew must be proficient with navigation since they cannot simply follow another boat. Each circuit is the same length and the winner is the boat crew with the most points who complete the circuit in the least amount of time. The regatta is a test of skill and endurance tracing its roots back to Ventora's early maritime trading history.

Martial tournament sports
The Ventoran Martial Championship Council (Consejo del Campeonato Marcial Ventoran, CCMV) is the governing body for martial tournament sports and its rules closely adhere to those of the Grand Martial Championship Association (GCMA). The main objective of Ventoran martial tournament sports is to prepare competitors for the the GCMA tournaments. The JMV oversees events involving:
 * Axe throwing
 * Fencing
 * Javelin throwing
 * Martial duels
 * Polearm duels
 * Saber duels
 * Sword duels