A History of Sports
Most sports of today only developed in their current form in the 19th and 20th centuries, though many take their origins from more primitive sports and pastimes of ancient times. Here is a brief article about the history of sports, useful for those students studing sports or history, the alternative is to use an online paper writing service.
Olympic Games host cities What is the first sport ever played?
Although it is impossible to know for sure, it is usually considered that wrestling and boxing were the first sports ever played. Competitions using the simple mode of human transport, running, would also have been among the first sports played.
Competitions involving hitting, kicking, throwing a ball-like object, as well as sports related to hunting and throwing would also be expected to have been played in early times.
Many sports have developed as competitions from means of early transportation, such as horse riding and canoeing, and from military activities such as rifle shooting and archery.
Some of the sports in the past are not played anymore as they became superseded with a better version or changed due to improved technology, while some are lost altogether as sporting and leisure trends come and go.
At the first recorded ancient Olympic Games in 760 BC, there was only one event, a footrace. Later Games included other events such as wrestling, boxing, equestrian, discus, javelin, and jumping. From around the same time, the only sport mentioned in the Bible is said to be wrestling (see Bible sporting quotes).
The most popular sport played around the world today, Association football (soccer), has its origins in China (see Soccer History). There is evidence in China that military forces around the 2nd and 3rd century BC (Han Dynasty) played a game, originally named "Tsu Chu", that involved kicking a leather ball stuffed with fur into a small hole. Like Soccer, no hands were permitted during the play of the game.
A History of Specific Sports
- Soccer (Football)
- Cricket
- Golf
- Field Hockey
- Archery
- Badminton
- Juggling
- Boxing
- Aussie Rules
- Tenpin Bowling
- Canoe and Kayak
- Surfing
Event History
- History Timeline of Major Multi-Sport Events
- FIFA World Cup
- Summer Olympic Games
- Winter Olympics
- Paralympics
- Melbourne Cup
- Copa America
- Ballon d'Or
Related Pages
- A Brief History of Sport - a timeline of significant events in the history of sport.
- Extinct Sports
- Ancient Olympic Games
- Olympic Games History
- Ancient & Discontinued Multi-Sport Games
- Winter Olympic Games History
- History of Fitness Testing
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