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Sports
The word ‘Sports’ is related to game and play. In modern times, the very conception about sports has undergone a sea change.
There was a time when we knew, all play and no study make Jack a dull boy. But in today’s world, sports is no longer confined to a dull and non-serious lad’s pastime. It’s a paying phenomena. Sports include various kinds, namely football (also called soccer), cricket, basket ball, hockey, volley ball, base ball, Kabadi etc.
Cricket
Cricket, once developed by easy going English travelers as a pastime, is undoubtedly the most popular sports of the new generation and the old alike in many countries. It has gained popularity by leaps and bounds so much that even several non-playing nations are today moving close to the game.
The significant aspect of changing face of cricket has been that it’s no longer confined only as a rich man’s game, as it used to be. Today, it has seen democratization like anything and even poorer nations, cities and families are getting love smitten by the game of cricket. Some geographical patch on the globe like West Indies, Zimbabwe are known across the globe only for their participation and excelling well in the game of cricket.
In India, cricket earned popularity by an unprecedented pace once Indian team lifted the World Cup in the historic contest on June 25, 1983 at Lords Stadium, London beating the mighty West Indies. Major cricket playing nations are: India, Pakistan, England, West Indies, Australia, New Zealand, Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka.
Lately, countries like Bangladesh has also come forward in a big way.
Cricket is slowly catching up in the desert countries also with United Arab Emirates making a big move ahead in terms of popularizing the game in their part of the globe.
Every four years, prominent cricketing nations compete among themselves for the prestigious World Cup Title. There are a series of other series and tournaments also.
A few popular cricket stars include: Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar, Kapil Dev (India), Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Javed Miandad (Pakistan), Ian Botham, Bob Willis, David Gover (England), Clive Lloyd, Vivian Richards, Gary Sobers (West Indies), Ian Chappel, Greg Chappel (Australia). In Indian context, players like Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, also called Tiger, Ajit Wadekar, Vijay Hazare, S Venkatraghavan, Bishan Singh Bedi, Mohinder Singh Dhoni, Saurav Ganguly etc would be remembered for all time to come. In fact, the popularity of the game and its commercial acceptance in India can be measured from the fact that the apex Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has emerged as the world’s richest cricket body.
Football
No other game or sports can lead two nations to war other than football. The World Cup Football played every four years bring top level teams to the arena of battle of the boots.
Leading football playing nations include: Brazil, Argentina, England, Netherlands, Italy, Germany, France, Poland, Romania etc. Football has primarily remained a domain of a few European and South American countries with teams and players of Brazil, Argentina, France and England having fan following across the globe.
England’s premier league between clubs is one of the most closely followed sporting events of our time.
Pele
Pele is the world’s only uncrowned king in the world of sports.
The black man sporting Jersy No. 10 from Brazil symbolized the game of football for a long time and undoubtedly, he’s the Soccer Sensation of all time. Observers say, more people on the globe know of Pele than any other person who ever lived. Born on October 13, 1940, Pele has not only played football with artistic skill and excellence, but the football experts would not dare to make a guess that without this man stepping in with boots, what the game of football would have lost. His father Dondinho was himself a footballer but financially much unsound. Therefore, it was only natural that when young Dico, Pele’s original name, had shown keen affinity towards football, the mother raised objection. In Pele’s own words, “My mother was not too pleased by my constant attention to football”.
But with sheer determination he did walk along. His first football was a giant grown up man’s sock, rags and crumpled up newspapers. In other words, he wanted just something round to chance upon his legs. He has to his credit as many as 1300 goals from international matches. Ironically, this is more than the double than his closest competitor. And this figure was attained at the average of One Goal Each Match he played ---- a record that will perhaps stay for all time. Brazil team won World Cup thrice consecutively during his time – 1954, 1958 and 1962. On the lighter aspect of his name ‘Pele’ --- Pele himself later said he had no idea where the name came from, who really started it. The word Pele has no meaning in his own mother tongue. However, some studies have proved that the word means FOOT in Portuguese and much comically ‘stupid’ in Turkish.
Hockey
Hockey primarily played between two teams of 11 players each was popular mostly in Indian sub-continent. India and Pakistan have been primary two competing nations. But slowly other countries have also come forward have been doing well.
But strictly speaking in Indian context, the saga of Indian Hockey has been no better than that of Indian sports as a whole. From a team which forced many hockey playing nations to sleepless nights, Indian Hockey is on a constant decline and nosedive journey. It was two decades back Indian Hockey team started returning empty handed from Olympics.
But in circa 2008, it went to all time low as Indian team lost 2-0 to England and failing to qualify even for Olympics.
And thus it’s not surprising that slowly and gradually India’s national sporting scenario transferred to cricket stadium leaving hockey players in the lurch.
For the academic interest, let us recall that India had bagged all important Gold Medals in Olympic Hockey in 1948 (London), 1952 (Helsinki), 1956 (Melbourne), 1964 (Tokyo) and finished second to Pakistan at Rome Olympics in 1960. In 1996 Atlanta Olympics, India finished the last number eighth to be précised.
One school of thought attributes the use of artificial Astroturf since Montreal Olympics in 1976 to the decline of Indian Hockey.
History
Academicians and historians believe that Chinese were the first people to fall in love with sports. This came about at around 4000 BC with events like Gymnastics being very popular among the Chinese population. Egyptians also followed this up with sporting events like swimming and fishing chiefly. A few other sports those have attained popularity in modern times include javelin throwing, other athletic competitions like high jump, and wrestling. Martial Art is another sporting event that has gained acceptability.
Sports attained such popularity and acceptability that Greeks are said to have credited for creating sporting festivals like mega event every four years called Olympia. This is being practiced even now as Olympics wherein nations from across the globe shedding all trappings of caste, color and creed throng to celebrate the occasion and compete among themselves. In the new millennium, something called Cyber sports is also emerging fast.
In our times so much is the acceptability of sports and the commercial utility that Sports marketing has found acceptability. Following this corporate houses involved in manufacturing and business of liquor, cigarettes, telephone sets, garments etc have become a happening thing Following this, the sportspersons have also started endorsing various products.
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