Sport refers to any kind of competitive physical activity or game that attempts to improve, maintain or improve physical abilities and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in a few situations, entertainment for spectators. Sport can, with uninvolved or organized play, enhance one's physical fitness. Many sports are available with varying levels of competition, from single participants to ones with hundreds of simultaneous participants, being in teams, or as individuals. For certain sports, such as racing, several contestants could participate simultaneously or in a series as a single winner. in other sports, the competition (a match) is between two teams who are trying to be better than the other. Some sports allow the use of a "tie", or "draw" and in this case, there's no single winner. Others provide tie-breaking options to ensure that there is only one winner and one loser. The number of contests could be held in a tournament producing a champion. Many sports leagues make an annual champion with the help of games during a regular sporting season, followed in some instances by playoffs.

The Meaning of Sports

The exact description of what separates a leisure sport from other activities differs from one source to another. The closest thing to an international consensus regarding a definition is given in the form of Sport Accord, which is an association that includes all the world's largest sports federations (including athletics, association football, cycling, tennis, equestrian sports, and more) and, therefore, the most accurate representation of the international sport.

Sport Accord uses the following criteria, determining that a sport should:

  1. There is a certain element of competition
  2. be non-harmful to any living creature
  3. Don't rely on equipment supplied by one supplier (excluding games made by a private company, such as arena football)
  4. do not rely on the "luck" aspect that was specifically created into the game.

Sports History

Artifacts and structures suggest sport existed in China at least in 2000 BC. Gymnastics is believed to have been a popular sport in China's ancient past. Monuments to the Pharaohs indicate that a number of sports, including fishing and swimming, were well-developed and regulated several hundreds of years ago in ancient Egypt. Some other Egyptian sports included javelin throwing as well as high-jumping and wrestling. Ancient Persian sports like the ancient Iranian martial art of Zoorkhaneh were closely associated with fighting skills. Some other sports that originate from early Persia include jousting and polo.

A wide range of games was already being played by the time during the time of Ancient Greece along with the militaristic culture as well as the expansion of the sport in Greece were a major influence on one another. Sports were such an integral part of their culture that the Greeks created the Olympic Games. Olympic Games, which in the past were held every 4 years at a tiny village located in the Peloponnesus named Olympia. Have a look at Javelin Throw.

Sports have been increasingly organized and regulated from the time of the ancient Olympics all the way to the present century. The industrialization has allowed for more the amount of time to relax, allowing people to be able to watch and even participate in sporting activities. This trend was accelerated with the rise of mass media and worldwide communications. Professionalism became the norm, increasing the popularity of sports, as fans followed the exploits of professional athletes, all the while enjoying the exercise and excitement that comes with the sport of amateurs. Since the turn of the 21st century, there has been a lot of debate over whether transgender individuals should be allowed to play in events in which they match their post-transition gender identities.

Sports Technology

Technology plays a crucial role in modern sports. It is a crucial element of certain sports (such as motorsport) but also being utilized in others to improve performance. A few sports also utilize it to facilitate off-field decision making.

Sports science is a widespread academic field that can be applied to a variety of areas which include the performance of athletes, such as the use of video analysis in order to optimize technique, or equipment, like improved swimming shoes for running or competition. Sports engineering became a field in 1998 and has increased attention not only on the design of materials but also the application of technology in a sport that ranges from analytics and massive analytics to wearable of technology. In order to limit the impact of technology on fair play, the governing organizations often have rules set up to limit the effect of technical advantages between players. For instance, in 2010 fully-body, non-textile bathing suits were removed by FINA, as they were improving the performance of swimmers.

The rise in technology has also led to many of the decisions during sports games to be taken or reviewed off-field, and a third official making instant replays of decisions. In some sports, players have the ability to challenge official decisions. In Association football goal-line technology can make decisions about whether a ball has gone over or missed the target line. This technology isn't essential, but was utilized during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil and also in for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada, as well as in the Premier League from 2013-14, and the Bundesliga in 2015-16. If you play in the NFL, a referee can ask for a review from the replay booth, or a head coach can issue an appeal to review the replays of the game. The final decision lies with the referee. A video referee (commonly called a Television Match Official or TMO) can also use replays to aid in decision-making within the game of rugby (both league and union).

Sports and education

Research has shown that sports have the capacity to connect youngsters and adults to role models who are positive and offer opportunities for positive growth, in addition to promoting the development and application of life abilities. In recent times, the use of sport to reduce criminality, and to combat violent extremism and radicalization, has become more popular, particularly as an instrument to boost self-esteem and increase social connections and provide players with a sense of purpose. Have a look at Sprint

There isn't any high-quality research that proves the efficiency of the interventions designed to increase participation in the community sports, such as mass media campaigns, educational sessions, and policy adjustments. Also, there are no high-quality studies to study the impact of these interventions in promoting healthy behavior change within the community.