Score: Toktak the elephant effortlessly reaches for the hoop with his trunk For many basketball players, achieving a slam dunk involves a mighty leap but this giant of the court has no such trouble.
Elephant Toktak, nine, only has to reach out her trunk to slam the ball through the net with ease.
Toktak and six-year-old Malie have been trained everyday by their keepers on the island of Koh Samui in Thailand.
Toktak 'dribbles' the ballAs the keeper signals, the giant creature shoots the ball at the basketball hoop.
"It is unbelievable. I had never seen an elephant playing basketball," said an enthralled visitor.
Organisers at the Island Safari centre, which cares for the animals, say the huge beasts have to undergo rigorous training to learn the basics of the popular game.
"It takes two to three months of intensive training to teach them basics, but fortunately their standards are improving with each passing day," said organiser Ning.
We are the champions: Toktak strikes a victory pose
Toktak the elephant performs his slam 'trunk'Training starts by teaching elephants the basics in ball control before they move on to hold it in their trunk and throw it at the target.
During the next step, they are taught to stand on their hind legs and walk with the ball.
The last step they master is the shooting of ball at the hoop.
source: dailymail
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