Bandy

Bandy is a winter sport, where a ball is hit with a stick, and is descended from shinty and in turn field hockey. Bandy is played outdoors on a sheet of ice, and has rules that are similar to soccer. It is now played in a few nations, including Sweden, Russia, Finland, Norway, Belarus, The Netherlands, Estonia, Hungary, Canada, United States and Kazakhstan.

World Championships for men are held every year, and in 2004 was won by Finland. All the previous championships were won by the Soviet Union, Russia or Sweden. In February 2004, Finland hosted the first World Championship for women, which was won by Sweden.

The size of a bandy field is in the range 4,050 - 7,150 square metres (45-65 by 90-100 metres). The size of the ball is 60-65 mm and is red to orange in colour.