Athletics

Athletics (Greek athlos,“contest”), games or contests, played individually or in teams, involving physical strength, skill, and endurance. In the United States, the term is used synonymously with sports; in Britain, however, it refers specifically to track and field events. In general, athletic contests can be divided into contact and noncontact sports.

Contests involving physical prowess or simulated combat date from prehistoric times and are probably as old as community life; the origin of such organized athletics as the ancient Olympic Games (776?bc) in Greece is shrouded in legend. Although most early peoples engaged in games simulating combat, such as boxing and wrestling, some developed organized noncombative sports. The indigenous peoples of North America, for example, played games resembling modern lacrosse, field hockey, and lawn bowls. They also engaged in foot racing and, after the introduction of the horse into North America, horse racing.

In historical times a great development of organized games took place in ancient Greece and Rome (see Games, Ancient). Among the games were foot racing, wrestling, boxing, horse racing, chariot racing, and the pentathlon.

After the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century ad, organized sports declined in popularity until the 11th century, when the tournament, also known as joust, became a favorite pastime of the nobility. In England, especially, the sport of the common people was archery. The English also engaged in various forms of football and such field sports as throwing the bar or the hammer, but these were considered detrimental distractions from the military sport of archery and were sometimes actually forbidden by law. Not until the middle of the 19th century did the schools and colleges of England and the United States begin a revival of athletics, which continues today, reinforced by medical proof of the benefits of physical exercise. Many games formerly played only by men now are also played by women.

Historically, a rigid distinction has been made, especially in the United States, between amateur athletics and professional sports played for money or valuable prizes. This distinction has become less rigid with time, however, and the issue is a source of controversy, particularly in collegiate and international competitions. The principal amateur team sports in the United States today are college football and basketball. Major league baseball, basketball, and football are the chief professional games. Skiing, swimming, and the various forms of tennis and running rank as the most popular individual amateur sports. On a worldwide basis, soccer ranks as the most popular sport.