arising in its process.
Sport is a specific kind of physical and intellectual activity performed for the purpose of competition, as well as targeted preparation for them through warm-up, training. Combined with rest, the desire for gradual improvement physical health, increasing the level of intelligence, obtaining moral satisfaction, striving for excellence, improving personal, group and absolute records, fame, improving one's own physical capabilities and skills. Sport is designed to improve the physical and mental characteristics of a person.
From the time of Ancient Greece and to this day the history of the sport is easily traced. Over time, the sport has become more organized and regulated. More and more new types and subspecies of sports appeared and formed, the rules were clarified, the sport acquired traditions and supporters.
Sports in Russia
As of 2008, in Russia there were 2687 stadiums with stands for 1500 seats or more, 3762 swimming pools, 123.2 thousand planar sports facilities. In 2008, the number of people involved in sports sections and groups amounted to 22.6 million people, including 8.1 million women.
see also
| Portal "Sport" | |
| Sport in Wiktionary | |
| Sport at Wikiquote | |
The following facts about athletes will remind you that everyone has long forgotten.
1. Famous thinkers of Ancient Greece (Demosthenes, Socrates, Hippocrates, Democritus, Aristotle) took part in the Olympic Games at one time. Moreover, Pythagoras became famous as a champion in fisticuffs, and Plato - in martial arts pankration.
2. Back in 1932, an athlete from Poland, Stanislava Valasevich, conquered the hundred-meter race. Then she set a world record. And only in 1980, after her death, an autopsy revealed that Stanislav Valasevich was a man.
This was found out by the genitals, although the chromosome set in this person was both female and male. 
3. An interesting nickname in the Slavic interpretation has a four-time winner of the World Cup in skiing and double Austrian Olympic champion Hermann Mayer - Herminator. 
4. China's Song Mingming is the tallest basketball player in the world. 
His height is 236 centimeters, with a weight of 152 kilograms.
5. On March 20, 1976, Aston Villa played against Leicester City in an unusual match. 
Then Chris Nicholl, a player of the first team, scored two goals against the opponent and his own. The match ended with the score 2:2.
6. Interesting Facts about athletes also relate to unusual, sometimes tragic, phenomena during competitions. 
In 1998, during a football match in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, lightning struck a field. 11 players from the visiting team were killed, 30 fans were burned. But the representatives of the host team remained unharmed.
7. In 1957, baseball player Richie Ashburn hit the ball, which, hitting a cheerleader, broke her face. 
Surprisingly, after the resumption of the game, the same player again hit the same spectator who, after the previous blow, was carried away from the stadium on a stretcher.
8. Alexander Medved, a Soviet athlete, won ten world championships in freestyle wrestling - the most. 
9. Haile Gebreselassie, Ethiopian Olympic 10,000m champion, has a special style of running. 
He presses left hand to the body, more than the right, and unusually bends it. The athlete explains this posture during the competition by the fact that as a child he had to run 10 kilometers to school in the morning and back in the evening, holding textbooks in his left hand.
10. Most fast man recognized by Usain Bolt of Jamaica. 
In 2009, he set world records: he ran the hundred-meter dash in 9.58 seconds, and the two hundred-meter distance in 19.19 seconds.
11. In ancient times, the Greeks played sports and competed on Olympic Games naked. 
Olympic competitions are watched with passion not only by savvy fans, but also by people who are far from sports.
If you are just one of those, you probably have a lot of questions about the mysterious behavior of athletes, their mysterious rituals and many other details of the competition that seem strange or wild to an unprepared person.
We offer to open the veil of sports secrets.
What is this white powder that gymnasts smear their hands with?
This is magnesium powder. It removes the slightest traces of moisture from the hands, which can lead to a fall from the projectile, and facilitates sliding, as a result of which it becomes easier for gymnasts to spin on the bars or the crossbar.
How is the distance measured in a long jump? He flops with his whole body, so from what point is the countdown?
It's simple: the landing point is considered to be the point of contact closest to the push bar. That is why the jumpers try to stretch their arms and legs forward - so as not to accidentally strike a limb on the sand before the final landing, because in any case only the first touch will be counted.
Do synchronized swimmers hear the music they are performing to?
Yes. To do this, special speakers are built into the pool under water. French synchronized swimmer Margot Chretien says: “The sound, of course, is not like in headphones, but everything is heard normally.”
Why do swimmers pat their shoulders before starting?
For many athletes, this patting is a familiar ritual that reduces nervous tension. Some, however, argue that these claps speed up blood circulation, which is not at all superfluous before the start.
Why do some swimmers wear two rubber caps at once?
The second cap presses the elastic band from swimming goggles, because of this they sit tighter and do not risk slipping.
What kind of bruises are visible on the body of Michael Phelps? What, the coach beats him?
And not only for Phelps, but also for other American athletes. Only these are not bruises, but traces of medical cups - the very ones with which our mothers and grandmothers were treated for colds in childhood. Now in sports world- A new fad: Cupping is believed to increase blood circulation and help relax muscles.
What is the temperature of the water in the Olympic pools?
According to the standards of the International Olympic Committee, the water temperature in the Olympic pools must be between 27 and 28 degrees Celsius.
Why are the Olympic fields for field hockey blue?
Field hockey fields are covered with artificial grass. The blue color was first used at the London Olympics in 2012, as the blue cover contrasts best with the yellow ball, which is convenient for spectators, judges and the athletes themselves. At the Beijing Games-2008 and earlier, athletes played on a green field with a white ball.
Why is the score so strange in tennis - 15, 30, 40, game?
Initially, the counting system was associated with the position of the hands on the clock, counting points in quarters - 15 minutes, 30, 45 and, finally, 60. True, later, in France in the 19th century, with the development of tennis, the number 45 was replaced by 40 - presumably to it was easier to announce the score. Several attempts were made to change the number system to a simpler one - from 1 to 4 - but they were not successful.
Why American football never became an Olympic sport?
American football is popular mainly in the USA. Therefore, the IOC decided what to include in Olympic program a sport that is interesting only to residents of one country does not make sense.
What is freestyle swimming?
Exactly what sounds in the title: the athlete is allowed to swim in any style, even like a dog. Restrictions apply only in the combined relay: here, a freestyle athlete is allowed to swim in any way, but not breaststroke, butterfly or backstroke. However, the vast majority of athletes consider this or that kind of crawl to be freestyle.
What do the five Olympic rings symbolize?
They symbolize the unity of the five continents, although none of them is a symbol of any particular continent. The colors of the rings - blue, red, yellow, green, black - were chosen as the most common on the flags of the world's states.
Where did the tradition of lighting the Olympic cauldron for the duration of the Games come from?
This is an ancient Greek tradition - however, many people know about it. Few, however, are aware that the ancient Greek Olympic flame was not just a torch, but an altar on which sacrifices were made to the gods. Fortunately, this part of the tradition has not come down to us.
What sports are included in modern pentathlon?
Modern pentathlon is a sport dating back to 19th century military training. In fact, it recreates the situations that an officer had to face when delivering a report to the commander through the ranks of the enemy. It includes horse racing, shooting, fencing, swimming and running.
Why are all gymnasts so short? 
There are many explanations for this. One of them says that it is not natural data that is to blame, but the training regimen. At the ends of the bones, a person has cartilage pads, the so-called "growth plates". If these pads are constantly overstressed, they wear out and bone growth slows down. Since gymnastics at the level of sports highest achievements- the case is very traumatic for the musculoskeletal system, these very “growth plates” wear out very quickly, and growth practically stops.
Why are two bronze medals awarded in judo competitions?
This is the scheme of competitions in judo. According to it, athletes who lose in the quarterfinals meet each other in knockout fights, and the winner of this “battle of four” receives bronze medal. The same competitions are held between the losers in the semi-finals - in the fight between them, the second bronze medalist is determined. The same system operates, by the way, in boxing and classical wrestling.
Can judo be used for self defense?
Yes. Judo is real martial arts, originated in Japan in the 16th century and modernized in the 19th century by the master Jigoro Kano. olympic view it became a sport only in 1964.
How much does it weigh Golden medal?
At the Rio 2016 Games, gold medals weighed 500 grams. They consisted of 92.5% silver, 6.16% copper and only 1.34% gold, which was used only for coating. Thus, each Rio gold medalist received 6.7 grams of 24 carat gold.
And how much does an Olympic gold medal cost?
Somewhere between $560 and $590. But this is the official price, on the collecting market the price is many times higher. For example, the gold medal won by black athlete Jesse Owens in 1936 at the Berlin Olympics was auctioned off in 2013 for $1.5 million.
Do Olympiad winners receive additional cash prizes?
Depends on which country they represent. Brazilian athletes teach, in terms of, about 30 thousand US dollars for "gold", 15 thousand - for "silver" and a little less than 10 thousand - for "bronze". In Argentina, each medal costs about 20 thousand dollars, in Russia - about 60 thousand. But in Italy, bonuses for an athlete can reach 185 thousand dollars. But, in the US itself, only gold medalists are rewarded, giving each a relatively modest amount of $25,000.
Interesting facts, interesting information about athletes and other people - this is information about health, strength, endurance, agility. In ancient times and in modern times, there were amazing people whose skills are difficult to repeat and they continue to amaze with their achievements and inspire modern athletes for daily training. Unfortunately, in our time, many victories are based on doping, unsportsmanlike behavior. But still there are many athletes who achieve success with the help of daily workouts, perseverance, training not only muscles, but also tempering character.
Force
Interesting facts about sports in ancient times. Sport and intelligence may seem incompatible concepts, but the ancient Greek scientists - Socrates, Hippocrates, Aristotle, Democritus, Demosthenes were famous athletes and participated in the Olympics, in addition to the mind, they had significant strength. Pythagoras was a champion boxer, and the fisticuffs of antiquity were much more cruel than modern ones - the hands were wrapped in bull skin so as not to injure the hands, and such a fist could cause much more harm to the enemy than an unarmed hand. Plato competed in the discipline of pankration - a mixture of boxing and wrestling, such fights could be as cruel as fisticuffs.
The most productive Soviet freestyle wrestler is Alexander Medved, who became world champion 10 times.
The maximum weight of the bar, pressed from the chest in the prone position, was 486 kilograms. The record was set by weightlifter Ryan Kenelli, during the exercise he could not fully straighten his arms, as required by the rules, but the result was still counted, considering that no one would be able to lift a barbell weighing almost half a ton anyway.
Russian Zalozny Denis is very hardy - in one hour he made 1333 lifts with a coup on the crossbar. This athlete owns another record achievement (it was not officially registered) - 210 squats with a barbell weighing 100 kilograms.
Children often make excellent athletes. A five-year-old boy, Ronak, did 1,482 push-ups in 40 minutes. The child achieved this result by doing push-ups every day from the age of 2.5 years.
Ancient athletes could earn much more than modern ones. Roman sportsman Gaius Apuleius Diocles (2nd century AD) hosted competitions in chariot races. If we recalculate his fees for modern money, then his earnings amounted to $ 15 million.
The heaviest sumo wrestler is the world champion in this sport discipline Emanuel Jabrauch. His height exceeds two meters, weight - over 400 kilograms.
Agility
The tallest basketball player in the world is the Chinese Sun Mingming, he can be a record holder not only among athletes, but also among ordinary people - with a height of 2.36 meters, he has a very small weight - 152 kilograms, which allows him to move freely and achieve noticeable sports success.
1976 was amazing Soccer game, in which an Aston Villa player scored four goals - two against Leicester City, two against his own. The game ended in a draw, with a score of 2:2, surprising and perhaps even angering the fans.
In 1957, at a baseball game, athlete Richie Ashburn hit the ball so that he smashed the face of a woman who was sitting on the podium. The match was interrupted, a woman with a broken head on a stretcher was taken to the first-aid post. Having bandaged her head, the cheerleader returned to her seat and the same baseball player again hit the same woman with the ball.
Parachuting has its records - in 1960, the American military Joseph Kittinger jumped from a stratospheric balloon, which rose to a height of more than 31 kilometers, reaching a speed of 1149 kilometers per hour. Before opening the parachute, the athlete flew for more than 13 minutes. During the jump, Kittinger turned off, his life was saved by a parachute, which automatically opened at an altitude of 5.5 kilometers. The jump was made in special equipment, the parachutist looked a bit like an astronaut.
Acrobatics on a bicycle is very dangerous for health. However, cyclists sometimes do tricks so difficult that they are recorded as records. At the age of 24, cyclist Jed Mildon did a triple backflip on his bike at the BMX show. The athlete prepared the trick for three months.
Most a large number of 145 water skiers who simultaneously rode one boat, the athletes rode in this composition for almost two kilometers along the coast of Tasmania, setting a record that was recorded in the Guinness Book of Records.
Highest tennis court located in Dubai, in a five-star hotel at an altitude of about three hundred meters. It is not equipped on the roof, but is attached to the side of the building and seems to be floating in the air. When no one is playing on the court, helicopters can land on it.
Speed
Interesting information about athletes-athletes. Ethiopian Haile Gebreselissie won the 10 km race. While running, he presses his left hand to the body - this is a consequence of the fact that as a child he ran ten kilometers every day on the way to school, clutching his textbooks.
Jamaican athlete Usain Bolt runs the fastest in the world. In 2009, he set two records - in the 100-meter race he covered the distance in 9.58 seconds, and in the 200-meter race he finished in 19.19 seconds.
The longest skateboard jump was made in 2004 by Danny Wayne at the Los Angeles Skateboarding Contest. Having left the high ramp, Danny reached a speed of 88 kilometers per hour, flying 24 meters on the subsequent jump. The following year, the athlete turned his jump into a real show by flying over the Great Wall of China on a skateboard.
Racer and test driver Mauro Kahlo set the record for the longest drift (controlled skid) in a Mercedes car - he skidded to 2308 meters, after which further movement was impossible due to tire damage.
by the most dangerous view base jumping is considered a sport - skydiving at low altitudes, in which the body can rotate uncontrollably, and the parachute may not open in time.
Motorsport is also a sport. Electric cars are very popular these days. The fastest electric car was created by students from the American Brigham Young University (Whittingham, Vermont, USA). More than a hundred people worked on the project for seven years. Max speed exceeds 280 kilometers per hour, and at a slightly lower speed, 250 kilometers per hour, the car can drive for quite a long time. The body of the car is lightweight, made of carbon fiber, the batteries are lithium-phosphate. This is not just an experimental car, it is a real racing car, at least among electric cars.
If you have more interesting facts about athletes, share them in the comments.
