Brazil is seeking to ban flying kites after the pastime was co-opted by street gangs using razor-sharp metal wire in dangerous duels.

The competitive, macho culture has turned the once-safe activity into a vicious battle to cut their rivals’ kites free, leading to a spate of serious injuries and even deaths.

But a Bill is now moving through Brazil’s Congress that would prohibit the production of an industrially produced twine, known as “cerol”, effectively shutting down the kite wars. Those who flout the rules could face up to three years in prison and a hefty fine.

There are no official records, but it is thought that the sport, which routinely leaves participants with bleeding fingers, has injured thousands over the years.

Brazil only allows kite fighting in safe, designated areas, but the laws are routinely broken.

Motorbike riders and passengers are particularly vulnerable, where cases of severed limbs or slit throats remain common.

One private operator of Rio de Janeiro’s motorways, which pass near the favelas where kite fighting is particularly popular, hands out free bladed antennae for riders to attach to the front of their motorbikes to protect them from the danger of a plummeting kite.

In June, Ana Carolina Silva da Silveira was travelling on the back of a motorcycle when a line slashed her neck.

“I went to the hospital screaming that I didn’t want to die,” the 28-year-old lawyer told Associated Press. “I’m really happy that I’m alive.”

Kite flying, which is popular in other countries including Chile and France, has deep roots in Brazil. Some attribute it to the conquering Portuguese but others note how kites have long been popular in parts of Africa.

“As soon as a situation is inflicting harm, including causing fatal victims, that’s when your playtime’s over,” said Leonardo Durães, who needed 33 stitches in his chin after driving into a flailing kite line in 2020.

But it remains unclear how effective a ban on cerol could be. Before it began to be manufactured industrially, Brazilian children would make their own, leaving socks filled with broken glass on railway tracks.

They would then glue the resulting sharp powder to string, a practice that could be revived if the Bill is passed.