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Sports
Jedi must be aware of all the different kinds of sports out there, sports are a big part of many people's lives. Some people like to bet, some like to play, while others like to cheer.
AMERICAN FOOTBALL
American football, known in the United States and Canada [1] simply as football, is a competitive team sport. The object of the game is to advance the football towards the opposing team's end zone and score points. The ball can be advanced by carrying the ball, or by throwing or handing it from one teammate to the other. Points can be scored in a variety of ways, including carrying the ball over the goal line, throwing the ball to another player past the goal line or kicking it through the goal posts. The winner is the team with the most points when the time expires.
ARCHERY
Archery is the practice of using a bow to shoot arrows. Archery has historically been used in hunting and combat, and has become a precision sport.
ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL
Soccer or simply football is a team sport played between two teams consisting of eleven players each. It is a ball game played on a rectangular grass field with a goal at each end. The objective of the game is to score by maneuvering the ball into the opposing goal. Other than the goalkeepers, players may not use their hands or arms to propel the ball in general play. The winner is the team which has scored most goals at the end of the match. Generally, the game involves passing between players, which is a skill coaches try to hone.
BADMINTON
Badminton is a racket (or racquet) sport played by either two opposing players (singles) or two opposing pairs (doubles).
Players at opposite ends of the court aim to hit a shuttlecock, more informally called a shuttle, over the net so that it lands inside the marked boundaries of the court, and aim to prevent their opponents from doing the same.
BASEBALL
Baseball is a team sport in which a player on one team (the pitcher) attempts to throw a hard, fist-sized ball past a player on the other team (the batter), who attempts to hit the baseball with a tapered, smooth, cylindrical stick called a bat.
BASKETBALL
Basketball is a sport in which two teams of five players each try to score points by throwing a ball through a hoop (the basket) under organized rules.
BOXING
Boxing, nicknamed the "sweet science" and also called pugilism or prizefighting, is a sport where two participants of similar weight attack each other with their fists in a series of one to three-minute intervals called "rounds". In both Olympic and professional divisions, the combatants (called boxers or fighters) avoid their opponent's punches whilst trying to land punches of their own. Points are awarded for clean, solid blows to the legal area on the front of the opponent's body above the waistline, with hits to the head and torso being especially valuable. The fighter with the most points after the scheduled number of rounds is declared the winner.
CANOEING
Canoeing is the activity of paddling a canoe or kayak for the purpose of recreation, sport, or transportation. It usually refers exclusively to using a paddle to propel a canoe or kayak with only human muscle power.
CRICKET
Cricket is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players each. It is a bat-and-ball game played on a roughly elliptical grass field, in the centre of which is a hard, flat strip of ground 22 yards (20.12 m) long, called the pitch.
CURLING
Curling is a precision team sport similar to bowls or bocce, played on a rectangular sheet of prepared ice by two teams of four players each, using heavy polished granite stones which they slide down the ice towards a target area called the house. Points are scored for the number of stones that a team has closer to the center of the target than the closest of the other team's stones.
CYCLING
Cycling is a recreation, a sport and a means of transport across land. It involves riding bicycles, unicycles, tricycles and other human powered vehicles (HPVs).
FIGURE SKATING
Figure skating is a sporting event in which individuals, mixed couples, or groups perform spins, jumps, and other moves on ice, often to music.
FORMULA ONE
Formula One, abbreviated to F1 and also known as Grand Prix racing, is the highest class of single-seat open-wheel formula auto racing. It consists of a series of races, known as Grand Prix, held on purpose-built circuits or closed city streets, whose results determine two annual World Championships, one for drivers and one for constructors. The cars race at speeds often in excess of 320 km/h (200 mph).
GAELIC FOOTBALL
Gaelic football (Irish: peil ghaelach) is a form of football played mainly in Ireland where it is the most popular sport. Teams of 15 players kick or punch a round ball towards goals at either end of a grass pitch. There is no offside rule.
GOLF
Golf (gowf in Scots) is a game where individual players or teams hit a ball into a hole using various clubs, and is one of the few ball games that does not use a fixed standard playing area.
HANDBALL
Handball (also known as team handball, field handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport where two teams of seven players each (six players and a goalkeeper) pass and bounce a ball trying to throw it in the goal of the opposing team.
HIGH JUMP
The high jump is an athletics/track and field event in which competitors must jump over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights.
HOCKEY
Hockey is any of a family of sports in which two teams compete by trying to maneuver a ball or hard round disc, called a puck, into the opponent's net or goal, past the goaltender or goalkeeper (often abbreviated goalie), using a hockey stick.
HURLING
Hurling (Irish Language, Iomáint) is an outdoor team sport of Celtic origin, played with sticks and a ball. The game, played primarily in Ireland, is arguably the world's fastest field team sport in terms of gameplay (however the ball travels faster in other field games such as hockey). It resembles the games of shinty that is played primarily in Scotland and bandy that was played formerly in England and Wales. Hurling played by women is also known as camogie. Hurling is one of Ireland's native sports
ICE HOCKEY
Ice hockey, referred to simply as "hockey" in Canada and the United States, is a team sport played on ice. It is one of the world's fastest sports, with players on skates capable of going high speeds on natural or artificial ice surfaces. The most prominent ice hockey nations are Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden and the United States. While there are 64 total members of the International Ice Hockey Federation, those seven nations have traditionally dominated the field for decades.
JAI-ALAI
Jai-Alai (pronounced Hi-Lie in English and hi-ah-lie in Basque) means "Merry Festival" in the Basque language. The term is used to denote a fronton (or open-walled arena) used to play a variety of Pelota called Cesta Punta, and, more broadly, to the game itself. The game is characterized by the fast pace of play, in which a 125g ball (or pelota) covered with parchment skin can travel faster than 180 mph. The ball is placed into play and volleyed by players wearing a wicker basket glove approximately 63 to 70 cm long.
JAVELIN THROW
The javelin throw is an athletics (track and field) throwing event where the object to be thrown is the javelin, a spear-like object made of metal, fiberglass and, in some cases, carbon fiber. Because of its potential danger, it is not always included in track and field meets.
KARATE
Karate or karate-dō is a martial art of Okinawan origin. Karate is a synthesis of indigenous Okinawan fighting methods and southern Chinese martial arts, possibly a version of Shaolinquan. Karate means open hand in Japanese. It is primarily a striking art, featuring punching, kicking, knee/elbow strikes and open hand techniques; however, grappling, joint manipulations, locks, restraints, throws, and vital point striking are inherent in the finer points of the art.
KICKBOXING
Kickboxing is a generic term for a sporting martial art that, while similar to boxing, uses the feet as well as the hands for striking. Kickboxing can be practiced for general fitness, or as a full-contact combat sport.
KORFBALL
Korfball (in Dutch korfbal, which literally means basketball) is a team ball game. It is mostly played in the Netherlands and Belgium. Korfball differs from other team sports in that it is a mixed-gender game: a team consists of four men and four women.
LACROSSE
Lacrosse is a fast-paced team sport played by two teams of ten players (men) or twelve players (women), each of whom use netted sticks (called the Crosse) in order to pass and catch a rubber ball with the aim of scoring goals by projecting the ball into the opponent's goal.
LONG JUMP
The long jump (formerly called "broad jump") is an athletic (track and field) event in which athletes attempt to land as far from their take-off points as possible. Competitors sprint down a runway (at elite level, usually coated with the same rubberized surface as running tracks) and jump as far as they can off a slightly raised wooden board into a pit filled with fine gravel or sand.
NETBALL
Netball is a team sport similar to and derived from basketball. It was originally known as "women's basketball" and developed in the United States, and while basically unknown in its homeland, is the preeminent women's team sport (both as a spectator and participant sport) in Australia and New Zealand and is popular in Jamaica, South Africa, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom, and various Commonwealth countries.
POLE VAULTING
Pole vaulting is an athletics event where competitors use a long flexible pole as an aid to leap over a bar, similar to the high jump but at much greater heights. Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, as well as the Cretans and Celts, but with these exceptions there is no record of its ancient practice as a sport.
POLO
Polo is a team game played on a field with one goal for each team. Each team has three (enclosed arena) or four (full sized grass field) players. Polo features successive periods called chukkers and horse riders score by driving a ball into the opposing team's goal using a long-handled mallet.
RACQUETBALL
Racquetball is a sport played with racquets and a hollow rubber ball on an indoor or outdoor court. The game is normally played by two players, though there are variations with three or even four (which can get very crowded). Two player games are called singles, three player games are typically called iron-man (2 on 1 during entire game) or cut-throat (each player take turns serving to the other 2), and four player games are called doubles.
RUGBY
Rugby sevens is a variant of rugby football in which only seven players per side feature. Both rugby union and rugby league have sevens versions.
SHINTY
Shinty, also known as camanachd or iomain, is a team sport played with sticks and a ball. Now played almost exclusively in the Scottish Highlands, but formerly more widespread, the sport was derived from the same root as the Irish game, hurling and is similar to bandy.
SHOT PUT
The shot put is an athletics (track and field) event involving "putting" (throwing in a pushing motion) a heavy metal ball, also called the shot, as far as possible.
SHOW JUMPING
Show jumping or "jumpers" is a member of a family of English-discipline equestrian events that includes hunters and equitation. Events that include these sports are called hunter/jumper horse shows.
SKATEBOARDING
Skateboarding the act of rolling on or interacting with a skateboard. Someone who skateboards is a skater (or skateboarder), though skater may also refer to someone ice skating or roller skating.
SKIING
Skiing is the activity of gliding over snow using skis (originally wooden planks, now usually made from fiberglass or related composites) strapped to the feet with ski bindings. Originally used primarily for transportation, skiing evolved into a popular recreational and competitive activity during the 20th century.
SNOWBOARDING
Snowboarding is a board sport on snow similar to skiing, but inspired by surfing and skateboarding. Snowboarding is an increasingly common winter sport throughout the world.
SPORT ROWING
sport rowing is a speed sport in narrow boats (called shells or fine boats), where the athlete sits on a sliding seat above the water level and faces backwards (toward the stern), using oars to move the boat. This may be done on a river, lake, sea, or a large body of water.
SPRINTS
Sprints are races in athletics. They are roughly classified as events in which top runners will not have to "pace themselves", but can run as fast as possible for the entire distance. These are often the more glamorous events in Olympic Athletics.
SQUASH
An indoor racket sport formerly called "squash racquets".
SWIMMING
Swimming describes any method by which living creatures move themselves through water apart from walking on the bottom. This article concentrates on human swimming, a popular recreational activity and a competitive sport. There are many health benefits of swimming, but it also entails risks if basic precautions are not taken.
TABLE TENNIS
Table tennis is a sport where two players hit a ball back and forth to each other, with a racket on a table, in a manner similar to tennis. The rules are slightly different, but the concept is essentially the same. Table tennis is an Olympic sport, "ping-pong" is the recreational version of the same sport. Spin, speed and strategy play an important part in competitive table tennis matches. The speed of the ball can vary from slow spinny serves to fast smashes that travel as fast as 110km/h.
TENNIS
Tennis is a sport played between either two players "singles" or two teams of two players ("doubles"). Player(s) use a stringed racquet to strike a hollow rubber ball covered in felt over a net into the opponent's court. In some places tennis is still called lawn tennis to distinguish it from real tennis (also known as royal tennis or court tennis), an older form of the game that is played indoors on a very different kind of a court. Originating in England in the late 19th Century, the game spread first throughout the English-speaking world, particularly among the upper classes.
VOLLEYBALL
Volleyball is one of the most popular sports to play in the world. Two teams, separated by a high net, hit a ball back and forth over the net between the teams. Each team is allowed three hits to get the ball over the net to the other team. A point is scored if the ball hits the ground in the opponents' court, if the opponents commit a fault, or if they fail to return the ball properly.
WATER POLO
Water polo is a team water sport, which can be best described as a combination of swimming, football (soccer), basketball, ice hockey, rugby and wrestling. A team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The goal of the game resembles that of football/soccer—to score as many goals as possible, each goal being worth one point.
WINDSURFING
Windsurfing (also called boardsailing) is a sport involving travel over water on a small 2-4.7 meter board powered by wind acting on a single sail, that is connected to the board via a flexible joint. The sport is a hybrid between sailing and surfing. The sail board might be considered the most minimalistic version of the modern sailboat, with the major exception that steering is accomplished by the rider tilting the mast and sail or, when planing, banking the board, rather than with a rudder. Also, one can simultaneously apply pressure and angle to the windward rail of the board to achieve direction.
WRESTLING
Wrestling is a sport in which a practitioner attempts to defeat an opponent without the use of striking. Wrestling is amongst the oldest sports in history that, over time, has evolved into many different styles and forms. They range from world-wide, commercialised stadium events to less publicized, local amateur competitions.
(Page by Jedi Shadow Breeze and en.wikipedia.org)
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