Bandy

Bandy is a Russian sport nicknamed "Russian hockey" and "winter football." It is debated whether the Russians truly created it or if they merely adapted a European sport and turned that in to bandy. Bandy has an international governing body, is played similarly to ice hockey but with bandy sticks and balls that are more similar to those of field hockey. Men and women play and it seems that variants of the sport are linked back to 10th and 11th century monasteries. The name comes from the curved stick used being referred to as a "bandy." Bandy is the second most popular (by number of participants) winter sport in the world with ice hockey being the most.