LAFAYETTE, La. — This weekend, the 13th annual International Petanque Festival is taking place at the Girard Park petanque courts.
Petanque is a French game, similar to bocce ball, using iron balls, known as les boules, on hard-packed earth.
La Boule Cadienne de Lafayette, a local club of petanque players, puts on the festival each year as an opportunity for a fun, immersive experience.
"The importance of this game is that this is a little tradition from France. It's not a big tradition, like the French Opera. This is—a lot of families play this at the seashore. Some people play this in their back yard, particularly in the south of France," said Mike LeBlanc, captain of La Boule Cadienne de Lafayette. "The rules you can learn within five minutes. You'll hear some French. You can learn how to converse about the game, but you don't have to, but it's a gentle way to introduce French to people who want to learn how to speak French."
Players came in from across the country for this festival, including Janice Bissonnette, a participant from California, who says this is an opportunity for new competition against unfamiliar faces.
"It is my first time participating in this tournament. I'm really excited," Bissonnette said. "I'm looking forward to the competition, being able to play with players that I've never played with before, and enjoying the terrain."
The festival began Friday with an opening ceremony and some friendly, casual games.
On Saturday, the petanque tournament will take place, ending with awards and an after-party of food and games.
Sunday, the festival will wrap up with some more friendly games and a picnic.
During Saturday's tournament, a filled bracket of 28 players will compete to win a trophy and bragging rights.
"There are some clubs that are focused on competition. This particular tournament doesn't gain points for you to—for people that play petanque to compete nationally or internationally. This is all about having fun," LeBlanc said. "It's fun. Come out and have a good time. That's really what it's all about."
For more information on La Boule Cadienne de Lafayette, visit their website.
