Sport

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Sport (disambiguation).

Sport in childhood. Association football, shown above, is a team sport which also provides opportunities to nurturesocial interaction skills.
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree of skill, especially at higher levels. Hundreds of sports exist, including those for a single participant, through to those with hundreds of simultaneous participants, either in teams or competing as individuals. Some non-physical activities, such as board games andcard games are sometimes referred to as sports, but a sport is generally recognised as being based in physical athleticism. Sports are usually governed by a set of rules or customs. Physical events such as scoring goals or crossing a line first often define the result of a sport. However, the degree of skill and performance in some sports such as diving, dressage and figure skating is judged according to well-defined criteria. This is in contrast with other judged activities such as beauty pageants and body building, where skill does not have to be shown and the criteria are not as well defined. Records are kept and updated for most sports at the highest levels, while failures and accomplishments are widely announced in sport news. Sports are most often played just for fun or for the simple fact that people need exercise to stay in good physical condition. However, professional sport is a major source of entertainment. While practices may vary, participants in many sports are expected to display good sportsmanship, and observe standards of conduct such as being respectful of opponents and officials, and congratulating the winner after having lost.[citation needed]

Contents
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1 Etymology and meaning 2 History 3 Sportsmanship 4 Professional sports 5 Politics 6 Physical art 7 Technology 8 Terminology 9 Grassroots sport 10 Spectator sport 11 Gender and sports opportunities 12 See also 13 References 14 Further reading

[edit]Etymology

and meaning

Look up sport in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

"Sport" comes from the Old French desport meaning "leisure". American English uses the term "sports" to refer to this general type of recreational activity, whereas other regional dialects use the singular "sport". The French word for sport is based on the Persian word bord, meaning "winning" or "win". The Chinese term for sport, tiyu (; ) connotes physical training. The modern Greek term for sport is (athlitismos), directly cognate with the English terms "athlete" and "athleticism".

The oldest definition of sport in English (1300) is of anything humans find amusing or entertaining.[1] Other meanings include gambling and events staged for the purpose of gambling; hunting; and games and

diversions, including ones that require exercise.[2] Roget's defines the noun sport as an "activity engaged in for relaxation and amusement" with synonyms including diversion and recreation.[3]

[edit]History
Main article: History of sport

Roman bronze reduction ofMyron's Discobolos, 2nd century AD

There are artifacts and structures that suggest that the Chinese engaged in sporting activities as early as 2000 BC.[4] Gymnastics appears to have been a popular sport in China's ancient past. Monuments to the Pharaohs indicate that a number of sports, including swimming and fishing, were well-developed and regulated several thousands of years ago in ancient Egypt.[5] Other Egyptian sports included javelin throwing, high jump, and wrestling. Ancient Persian sports such as the traditionalIranian martial art of Zourkhaneh had a close connection to the warfare skills.[6] Among other sports that originate in ancient Persia are polo and jousting. A wide range of sports were already established by the time of Ancient Greece and the military culture and the development of sports in Greece influenced one another considerably. Sports became such a prominent part of their culture that the Greeks created the Olympic Games, which in ancient times were held every four years in a small village in the Peloponnesus called Olympia.[7] Sports have been increasingly organized and regulated from the time of the ancient Olympics up to the present century. Industrialization has brought increased leisure time to the citizens of developed and developing countries, leading to more time for citizens to attend and follow spectator sports, greater participation in athletic activities, and increased accessibility. These trends continued with the advent of mass media and global communication. Professionalism became prevalent, further adding to the increase in sport's popularity, as sports fans began following the exploits of professional athletes through radio, television, and the internetall while enjoying the exercise and competition associated with amateur participation in sports. In the New Millennium, new sports have been going further from the physical aspect to the mental or psychological aspect of competing. Electronic sports organizations are becoming more and more popular.

Motorized sports have appeared since the advent of the modern age.

[edit]Sportsmanship
Main article: Sportsmanship See also: Gamesmanship and Winning isn't everything; it's the only thing Sportsmanship is an attitude that strives for fair play, courtesy toward teammates and opponents, ethical behaviour and integrity, and grace in victory or defeat.[8][9][10] Sportsmanship expresses an aspiration or ethos that the activity will be enjoyed for its own sake. The wellknown sentiment by sports journalist Grantland Rice, that it's not that you won or lost but how you played the game", and the modern Olympic creed expressed by its founder Pierre de Coubertin: "The most important thing... is not winning but taking part" are typical expressions of this sentiment. Violence in sports involves crossing the line between fair competition and intentional aggressive violence. Athletes, coaches, fans, and parents sometimes unleash violent behaviour on people or property, in misguided shows of loyalty, dominance, anger, or celebration. Rioting or hooliganism are common and ongoing problems at national and international sporting colove with.

[edit]Professional

sports

Modern sports have complex rulesand are highly organized.

Main article: Professional sport

The aspect of sports, together with the increase of mass media and leisure time, has led to "professionalism" in sports. This has resulted in some conflict, where the paycheck are more important than recreational aspects, or where the sports are changed simply to make them more profitable and popular, thereby losing certain valued traditions. Indeed, since sport by definition is a leisure activity, "professional sport" does not and cannot exist. However the term is commonplace and accepted to mean a game or other activity, regarded by the general population as sport, which is performed by persons for reward with the intent to entertainspectators. The entertainment aspect also means that sportsmen and women are often elevated to celebrity status in media

and popular culture. For this reason, many journalists have suggested that sports should not be reported by the general media but only by specialist magazines.

[edit]Politics This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations toreliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2010)
Main article: Politics and sports Sports and politics can influence each other greatly. When apartheid was the official policy in South Africa, many sports people, particularly in rugby union, adopted the conscientious approach that they should not appear in competitive sports there. Some feel this was an effective contribution to the eventual demolition of the policy of apartheid, others feel that it may have prolonged and reinforced its worst effects.[11] The 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin was an illustration, perhaps best recognised in retrospect, where an ideology was developing which used the event to strengthen its spread through propaganda. In the history of Ireland, Gaelic sports were connected with cultural nationalism. Until the mid 20th century a person could have been banned from playing Gaelic football, hurling, or other sports administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) if she/he played or supported football, or other games seen to be of British origin. Until recently the GAA continued to ban the playing of football and rugby union at Gaelic venues. This ban is still enforced, but was modified to allow football and rugby to be played in Croke Park while Lansdowne Road was redeveloped into Aviva Stadium. Until recently, under Rule 21, the GAA also banned members of the British security forces and members of the RUC from playing Gaelic games, but the advent of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 led to the eventual removal of the ban. Nationalism is often evident in the pursuit of sports, or in its reporting: people compete in national teams, or commentators and audiences can adopt a partisan view. On occasion, such tensions can lead to violent

confrontation among players or spectators within and beyond the sporting venue, as in the Football War. These trends are seen by many as contrary to the fundamental ethos of sports being carried on for its own sake and for the enjoyment of its participants. A very famous case when sports and politics colided was the 1972 Olympics in Munich. Masked men entered the hotel of the Israeli olympic team and killed many of their men. This was known as theMunich massacre.

[edit]Physical

art

Gymnastics
Sports have many affinities with art. For example, figure skating, drum corps, skateboarding, artistic gymnastics, dancesport, and T'ai chi can be considered artistic spectacles. Similarly, there are other activities that have elements of sport and art in their execution, such as bodybuilding, free running, martial arts, professional wrestling, performance art, yoga, dressage, and culinary arts. Perhaps the best example is bull-fighting, which in Spain is reported in the arts pages of newspapers. All sports involve physical and mental activities that are pursued for more than simply utilitarian reasons. For instance, running, when done as a sport, occurs for reasons beyond simply moving from one place to another. Value is gained from this activity when it is conducted simply for its own sake. This is similar to the concept ofaesthetic value, which is seeing something over and above the strictly functional value coming from an object's normal use. For instance, an aesthetically pleasing car is one which doesn't just get from A to B, but which impresses with its grace, poise, and charisma. In the same way, a sporting performance such as jumping

doesn't just impress as being an effective way to avoid obstacles. It impresses because of the ability, skill, and style that is demonstrated in its performance. Art and sports were clearly linked at the time of Ancient Greece, when gymnastics and calisthenics invoked admiration and aesthetic appreciation for the physical build, prowess and arete displayed by participants. The modern term art as skill, is related to this ancient Greek term arete. The closeness of art and sport in these times was revealed by the nature of the Olympic Games, which were celebrations of both sporting and artistic achievements, poetry, sculpture and architectures.

[edit]Technology This section is in a list format that may be better presented using prose. You can help by converting this section to prose, if appropriate. Editing help is available. (July 2010)
Technology has an important role in sports, whether applied to an athlete's health, the athlete's technique, or equipment's characteristics. As sports have grown more competitive, the need for better and fancier equipment has arisen. Such as Golf clubs, bicycles, American footballs and helmets, tennis rackets, baseball and cricket bats, hockey skates. Ranging from nutrition to the treatment of injuries, as the knowledge of the human body has deepened over time, an athlete's potential has been increased. Athletes are now able to play to an older age, recover more quickly from injuries, and train more effectively than previous generations of athletes. Advancing technology created new opportunities for research into sports. It is now possible to analyze aspects of sports that were previously out of the reach of comprehension. Being able to use motion capture to capture an athlete's movement, or advanced computer simulations to model physical scenarios has greatly increased an athlete's ability to understand what they are doing and how they can improve themselves.

[edit]Terminology

Show Jumping, an equestrian sport

In British English, sporting activities are commonly denoted by the mass noun "sport". In American English, "sports" is more used. In all English dialects, "sports" is the term used for more than one specific sport. For example, "football and swimming are my favourite sports", would sound natural to all English speakers, whereas "I enjoy sport" would sound less natural than "I enjoy sports" to North Americans.

The term "sport" is sometimes extended to encompass all competitive activities, regardless of the level of physical activity. Both games of skill and motor sportexhibit many of the characteristics of physical sports, such as skill, sportsmanship, and at the highest levels, even professional sponsorship associated with physical sports. Air sports, billiards, bridge, chess, motorcycle racing, and powerboating are all recognized as sports by the International Olympic Committee with their world governing bodies represented in the Association of the IOC Recognised International Sports Federations.[12] Highly recognized definition of "sport" on EU level is established by the Council of Europe: "all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim at expressing or improving physical fitness and mental well-being, forming social relationships or obtaining results in competition at all levels.[13]

[edit]Grassroots

sport

Grassroots sport is a popular phrase which is used in most of the articles about sport and sport for all.
[14]

Czech Sports Association defines Grassroots sport as synergy of population active in "sport", sport

organisations on the most basic level, essential infrastructure and suitable environment, where the main driving force is joy of "sport" itself. ("Sport" defined by Council of Europe)[13]

[edit]Spectator

sport

Main article: Spectator sport

As well as being a form of recreation for the participants, much sport is played in front of an audience. Most professional sport is played in a theatre of some kind; be it a stadium, arena, golf course,race track, or the open road, with provision for the (often paying) public.

Australian Rules football

Large television or radio audiences are also commonly attracted, with rival broadcasters bidding large amounts of money for the rights to show certain fixtures. The football World Cup attracts a global television audience of hundreds of millions; the 2006 final alone attracted an estimated worldwide audience of well over 700 million. The Cricket World Cup is another sporting event which attracts a global audience. The 2007 Cricket World Cup attracted about 2.3 Billion viewers all over the world. In the United States, the championship game of the NFL, the Super Bowl, has become one of the most watched television broadcasts of the year. Super Bowl Sunday is a de facto national holiday in America; the viewership being so great that in 2007 advertising space was reported as being sold at $2.6m for a 30 second slot. The benefits of playing youth sports may include: Better grades Less risk of drug or alcohol use Chance at sports scholarships Health Benefits

The biggest risk for youth sports is the increased risk of death or serious injury, including concussions and gym class injuries.[15]

The examples and perspective in this section deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (August 2011) [edit]Gender

and sports opportunities

The rise of organized sports opportunities for girls has increased dramatically since the passage of Title IX in 1972. The number of female participants continues to rise as variables such as opportunity for involvement, valuing of sports as part of total development and overall fitness for girls and women has increased. Despite the tremendous gains in sports participation made by girls and women during the last 30 years, there is still a persistent gap in the enrollment figures between males and females. The participation of girls is currently only 39% of the total participation in interscholastic athletics. There has been a slow but steady climb toward gender balance in the percent of female participants, from 32% of the males participation in 197374 to 63% in 199495. Hessel (2000)[Full citation needed].

List of sportspeople
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There are a variety of articles listing people of a particular sport.

Alpine skiers American football players Archers Athletes Badminton players List of High School Baseball Managers and players MSHSL Baseball Managers and Players (High School Baseball)

Baseball players (Major League Baseball) Basketball players Basketball players (National Basketball Association) Basketball players (Women's National Basketball Association)

Biathletes Boxers Chess players Cricketers Croquet players Curlers Cyclists Darts players Divers Drifters Equestrians Fencers Field Hockey players Figure skaters 1 Football players Gaelic Footballers Freestyle skiers Freestyle Motocross riders Golfers Gymnasts Ice Hockey players (National Hockey League, current) Ice Hockey players (National Hockey League, retired) Jockeys Kickboxers (male) Kickboxers (female) Judoka Handball player Kitesurfers

Lacrosse players Lugers Modern pentathletes Motocross riders Nordic combined skiers Orienteers Paragliders Polo players Race car drivers Roller skaters Rowing players Rugby league players Rugby union players Sailors Skeleton sliders Shinty players Shooters Short track speed skaters Ski Jumpers Skydivers Skysurfers Synchronized swimmers Snowcross racers Snowboarders Speed skaters Sporting knights and dames Sports announcers Squash players

Surfers Swimmers Table Tennis Players Taekwondo practitioners Television reporters Triathletes Tennis players (female) Tennis players (male) Volleyball players Water polo players Weightlifters Windsurfers Wingsuit flyers Wrestlers

Notes:

- a list of names included in an article of about the occupation.

[edit]See

also

List of sports List of people by occupation Sportsmanship

The Importance of Sports in the Life of a Student

by Ollie Cooperwood Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point Wrestling Coach Assistant Wrestling Coach West Carteret High School The importance of sports in the life of a young student is invaluable and goes much further than the basic answer that "it keeps kids off the streets." It does in fact keep kids off the streets, but it also instills lessons that are essential in the life of a student athlete. Sports play a pivotal role in the makeup of a young athlete, especially in the middle school to high school years where student athletes are much more mature and mentally developed. Where else can a young, impressionable youth learn values like discipline, responsibility, self confidence, sacrifice, and accountability? Television, which may be the most influential tool in the lives of young adults, does not show enough of these qualities, nor is it on the Internet, or radio. Rather it is up to the parents, teachers, sports teams, clubs, and after school programs to help mold, develop, and instill these qualities into the lives of student athletes. I believe in order for this to happen, school sports programs must have a few components in place. The first thing they need is a good core of coaches that understand the great responsibility that is placed upon their shoulders to help shape and prepare these student athletes not only in sports, but in their everyday lives. Yes, I did say coaches, because it is a responsibility that lies on the shoulders of more than one person and it is going to take more than one person to help lead these student athletes to success. The second component also involves the coaches: It is the ability to capture the admiration and the trust of the athletes. This is crucial because if you can capture a person's admiration and trust you can motivate them to perform at a higher level not only in sports, but also in their own lives. If you can get the athletes to believe in you and your philosophies you can begin to see significant changes in grades and behavior. It all starts with coaches that have a plan and methodology behind the principles they are teaching. As I said earlier, there is a great responsibility on the coaches to help young student athletes make a smooth transition into society.

The third and I believe the most crucial of all is the support that comes from the community, and administration. This is very important because student athletes need to know they are appreciated and there is no greater way than for the community, booster club, and commissioners/treasurers to show that appreciation than to get involved in youth athletics. In order to accomplish this it's going to take investment and the most valuable investments are money and time. The more invested, the better

the results. I can attest that there is no greater investment than the future of our young student athletes. When these things are in place, I believe student athletes will benefit and the results will be evident not only on the field, but long after they step off of it.

FUNCTION OF SPORT IN LIFE. The word sport is a contracted form of "disport" which means to amuse, to divert one's self. It includes play, amusement, entertainments or recreation. It is a word

which signifies the outdoor recreations, the athletic work as contrasted with the serious intellectual occupation. Sports have existed in the past ages and have played an important role in the history of mankind. Whenever a nation, regardless of its resources and extension, realized the importance of sports and put that realization into practice she attained a notable stage in the history of the world. The ancient Greeks deeply felt the indispensability of sports, they stuck to it and it is out of these marvelous Olympian games that Sparta got such renown and reputation. The original Celtic inhabitants of Great Britain were an athletic race and the early Teutonic monuments abound in records of athletic prowess. Neither Ireland nor Scotland lagged behind England in these bodily amusements and work. In America early in the year 1870 people thought of organizing an association for amateur athletes and they succeeded, as we can judge by their present condition, in carrying out their plan and creating interest for sports in the American citizens. Such organizations soon were established in Canada, in Austria, and in the British Colonies. In American and England people were so convinced of the noble function of sports in life that they started to revive the old Olympian

Games. They persevered in carrying out their plan and the result of their work is now deeply appreciated by the whole mass of Orientals. The Romans admired the success of the Greek athletic life, and under Fulvis Nobiler in 186 B.C. professional Greek sportsmen established a series of sports in Rome. The gladiators are nothing but an old revival of the Olympian Games and it is sufficient to say that the influence which these sports exerted upon the Roman citizens cannot be estimated. If we consider sports from a general point of view and consider their relation to the life of the ancient people we must inevitably come to the conclusion that sports if well conducted, have always raised the standard of the nation to a very high degree. Nations which have played an important role in the Ancient History have all felt the necessity of sports and have introduced these athletic contests in their own domains. Our next is to examine the results of sports or better, their function. The fact that athletics, a branch of sports, is of great advantage to life is evident to the experienced student of modern European Colleges. The argument which established its necessity is opposed by ignorant people yet it has grown nowadays into an irrefutable fact.

Athletics are necessary if not indispensable for the future success of the nation as well as of the individual. "A sound mind in a sound body" was the motto of the Greeks and the model of the strong, healthy and vigorous Spartans. Their carrying out of the plan was a cause for the long existence of Greece and for its luxuriant literary culture. This model in just the same way should be put into action if we wish to have any success in this world. Athletics refresh the body, tranquilize and enlighten the mind, and develop moral character. As a concrete example let us take a student in his college activities. The student who does exercise is always fresh and vigorous, he seldom gets sick and tired. His jovial character, his good disposition and his interest in life are his chief characteristics. Moreover in exercising, the student gets animated, his blood is purified and consequently his mind becomes more apt to receive the ideas and thoughts found in his lessons. The health which he acquires will help him to work harder and he becomes more successful. A weak person seldom can endure the hardship of school-life, the trouble of memorizing and persevering in his daily lessons. Lastly when a student is busy with athletics during recess time his ideas do not deviate any more to the path of

impurity, to think of such trivial things and the health and strength which he acquires will help him in overcoming such temptations. Generally a healthy person is endowed with a will stronger than that of a weak person. We see therefore that athletics ameliorate the condition of a person during all his college course. Sports, in general, have had an important and estimable function in life and will inevitably in future be regarded as the indispensable factor for intellectual and moral growth.

from http://ddc.aub.edu.lb/projects/jafet/gazette /1914-15

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