SPORT! Play/Watch etc

[StevieG]

Yep, favourite sport etc has been done before. Do you play a sport? Is there any particular sport you love (because you play/played it, or just because you love to watch )?

Feel free to bash sports (eg. Soccer - it seems to be a love/hate sport).

I'll start:

Football (soccer) - I've played it for 32 years and still going, although I think my body wants me to stop. But I love it too much to listen. I enjoy watching soccer (although the World Cup can be frustrating as it usually shows the bad side of soccer), but I enjoy playing it more.

Squash - played it for 30-odd years. Love to play it, don't get much out of watching it.

Cricket - played it until I was dropped in high school. Always loved watching it.

I've dabbled in tennis, golf, touch football, hockey, Aussie rules football, table tennis, and volley ball off the top of my head. I enjoy the odd basketball game to watch. And rugby union.

Games I don't really understand and therefore don't generally watch are: American football, baseball, equestrian, boxing...

That's a start

Thoughts?

[sgt.null]

never played organized sport. but as a kid played football, baseball, basketball, hockey, soccer.

[Menolly]

I enjoy taking part and watching kata in karate-do. But I do not enjoy kumite, which has stalled my desire for further training.

I'm one of those spectators who love watching the "artistic" sports, i.e., gymnastics, figure ice skating, synchronized swimming, and all sorts of diving. Some of the winter "X" sports intrigue me to watch as well.

[Vraith]

The only one I can watch for any extended period is football...though I usually manage the last 2 rounds of college hoops, and the final of pro, and the Olympics cuz they don't happen all the time...I mean gymnastics every few years is one thing...after that, ho hum.

But I like playing everything...even things I suck at, and things I've never played [at least my history tells me I will like playing them if I ever do play them]. The only exception: downhill skiing...though I used to enjoy drinking whiskey/scotch in front of a fire afterwards...for the last couple decades I just skip the skiing part.

Heh...Menolly, I understand not "enjoying" kumite...but if you don't do it, how do you know if you're learning anything?

[Menolly]

The only one I can watch for any extended period is football...

I enjoy watching the Gators occasionally. I don't watch every game, but I always route for them.

and the Olympics cuz they don't happen all the time...I mean gymnastics every few years is one thing...after that, ho hum.

Gymnastics and figure ice skating I can watch every year. The diving and synchronised swimming, yeah, that's mostly an Olympics thing for me.

Heh...Menolly, I understand not "enjoying" kumite...but if you don't do it, how do you know if you're learning anything?

Well, I trusted the input of my senseis, after they drilled it in to me. When I first started, I protested being told I was ready to test, given my physical shape, stamina, age, etc. Compared to the kids, there was no way I was even ready to test for my first belt. I learned the lesson of never second guessing ones senseis pretty quick.

Yes, they modified some of the test for me, but when I took a silver medal in bo at the Florida Sunshine State games the year I competed, I had to admit they knew what they were doing.

I know the purpose of kata is to perfect the skills needed for kumite. But I really preferred the art of martial arts over the function of it.

Now that I have moved away from my dojo, I sincerely doubt I'll ever return to training. If I decide to do so, I guess I'll start by contacting my dojo and seeing if there is one nearby they recommend.

[StevieG]

There are some sports that I only watch when the Olympics are on. Some of these I found to be much more interesting than I expected. Weightlifting was one. Archery was another. I even enjoyed some of the table tennis too!

I watched almost no Olympic football (soccer) - didn't interest me in the slightest.

[Cybrweez]

Heh, I'm trying to reduce sports watching, its more grief than its worth But American football, hockey and baseball are the big TV sports for me. I love soccer live, I get to some MLS' Red Bulls and Rutgers games.

Playing, Am football (at this age, flag football), volleyball, tennis, golf, some roller hockey (wish that happened more tho).

[StevieG]

I haven't heard of roller hockey...

I did enjoy playing volleyball a while ago - although I am not the tallest person in the world!

What sports were played at schools in the US? We had quite a few, but the main sports at school were soccer, cricket and Aussie rules football. Of course, tennis, basketball, hockey etc were all available, but the big three seemed to be those ones. Athletics was also a big event growing up. If I smell the athletics track even now I get butterfiles!

[Menolly]

What sports were played at schools in the US?

Are you talking varsity teams where spectators come watch the games, or sports "played" in physical education classes?

High school or college/university level?

[StevieG]

Yep, all of that

I suppose I was thinking primary school initially. The first organised sport (inter-school competitions) we were able to play was soccer in about grade 3 (when I was 8 ).

Cricket and Aussie Rules came about in primary school but were more serious in high school (grades 7-12).

Athletics was always big - we had intra-school comps, and then inter-school comps, and the better athletes competed in statewide comps etc. Cross-country running was something that was semi-compulsory in primary school as well.

[Menolly]

Well, for me, kick ball was the big elementary school "sport."

Middle school had basketball and volleyball for both girls and boys, and football for the boys. The middle school I attended for 6th grade had a pool, so there was a swimming team as well. Physical education class had tennis, soccer, volleyball, paddleball, basketball, dance, and gymnastics.

High school had all of the above for both class and varsity teams.

As far as colleges/universities go, the Gators had the following when I was working for the University Athletic Association:

Men:
Baseball
Basketball
Cross Country
Football
Golf
Lacrosse
Swimming and Diving
Tennis
Track and Field

Women:
Basketball
Cross Country
Golf
Gymnastics
Lacrosse
Soccer
Swimming and Diving
Tennis
Track and Field
Volleyball

There are men college/university teams in gymnastics, soccer, and volleyball, but the UAA claimed it was more beneficial to the student athletes to claim Title IX rights.

However, since then they have added non-varsity women rugby and co-ed Quiddich teams.

I believe there is a whole range of intra-mural sports at UF, from hockey to weight lifting to martial arts. But those are generally played in the rec centers and rarely draw spectators.

[Vraith]

Yep, all of that

I suppose I was thinking primary school initially. The first organised sport (inter-school competitions) we were able to play was soccer in about grade 3 (when I was 8 ).

Cricket and Aussie Rules came about in primary school but were more serious in high school (grades 7-12).

Athletics was always big - we had intra-school comps, and then inter-school comps, and the better athletes competed in statewide comps etc. Cross-country running was something that was semi-compulsory in primary school as well.

Inter-school in those grades? That's early.
The U.S. it varies a ton by size and wealth of local districts.
In my home, [small school, and low/middle income] there were no inter-school sports at all till 9th grade, and intra-school was just gym-class pick-up games of soccer, basketball, and volleyball. [nowadays they've expanded, there is soccer in the fall and baseball/softball in the spring for 7th and 8th graders, boys and girls teams].
In High School, Soccer [boys and girls] X-country [co-ed], Basketball [b&g], Swimming [co-ed], wrestling [boys only then, girls allowed now but only 1 ever did it that I've heard of] Track [co-ed] Baseball [girls can play, but only a couple have] Softball [girls only] Volleyball [b&g]. I think that's it...no, Tennis and Golf [b&g]

[StevieG]

Inter-school in those grades? That's early.
The U.S. it varies a ton by size and wealth of local districts.

Yeah, it's similar here (re size and wealth of local districts). I went to a catholic/private school <shudder>, which was middle of the road as far as class goes. One benefit (the only one I can think of) was that it was a 'sporty' school, and had quite competitive PE teachers (which was good for people like me who loved sport, and crap for others who didn't like it). In high school, I pretty much played soccer every lunch time without fail (until girls appeared on the radar, but I was a late bloomer...) - rain, hail or shine. I think it was partly a tonic for having religion shoved down my throat during the day (no offense intended for those who believe, it was just my personal experience).

That's interesting that the inter-school thing didn't happen until later. I remember my one and only cross country victory was when I was about 10 years old at an inter-school comp. I managed to beat the fancied runner from the rival school (strange to think now that they even had fancied runners at that age!). He didn't like it, tried to block me from overtaking him but I tricked the little bastard with a classic feign - pretended to go one way and stepped to the other. Something I still do in soccer now I come to think about it...

[Cybrweez]

Soccer is big here up through high school, in terms of playing. Then is kind of disappears. Most unis have soccer teams, but overall participation doesn't seem as high as earlier ages.

Roller hockey is just hockey on roller blades, better in warmer climates of course.

My middle school (6-8 grade) had inter-school competition. I don't remember anything organized in lower grades at school, but my town (and most US towns) have "rec" leagues, organized by the town, usually enough teams in whatever sport to make it's own league. Then there are "travel" teams, teams w/better* players that travel to different towns for competition.

*If you read Malcom Gladwell's book, you may question whether those players really are better.