General Aspects Of Sports Throughout Ancient Games Of Ancient Greece, Boxing, Wrestling And Pankration Essay

Do you know what sport was established in the 15th and 16th century? Many people may not realize that the great sport of wrestling was established so long ago. However, wrestling is much different now than it was when it first came about. Since the sport of wrestling began, major changes and advancements have come about which have changed the sport tremendously and made it what it is today.

According to the Olympics Game timeline, the first ever Olympic Games was held in 776 BCE, in Olympia which is in Athens, Greece. They were held there at olympia for 13 years. We don't know how the games began according to Robert Woff, some stories say the Zeus started the game. According to this story, it started out with Zeus and his father, Kronos were wrestling in olympia, who knew it would turn into what it has become. Wrestling wasn’t the only sport in the ancient greek olympics, there were many more that were involved. Some of the original events according to “Ancient sports” are boxing, equestrian events (chariot racing & riding), pankration, pentathlon (discus, javelin, jump, running, wrestling).

Another similarity, we share with ancient Greece is the love of sports rivalry especially the Olympic Games. In 776 B.C., the first Olympic Games begin as an achievement in art, ethical conduct and interaction of the mind in ancient Greece. Today athletes from all over the world take part in the Olympic Games. In spite of the many new events such as bicycling, skating, gymnastics, swimming, soccer and basketball, many of the earlier (ancient Greece) events such as footraces, jumping, discus and javelin throwing, boxing, and wrestling are still a part of the today games.

Sports of old were merely competitive activities rooted in heroism and romanticism. Sports activities today, however, have no such innocence or simplicity. Currently in America, the activities that make up our sports culture is not only the competitive events themselves but the processes and issues that underlie and surround them. Entwined in our sports culture is the giant business of mass broadcasting. Indeed, sports and the media go hand in hand like peanut butter and jelly, like Mickey and Minnie, Darth Vader and Luke. They are intertwined and depend on each other to continue to grow. Sports media includes television, radio, magazines, newspapers, books, films, and, now, most importantly, social media devices provided by the

First, Price states that sports being a form of religion is not conclusive to modern American culture. From the Greeks to the Native Americans, sports have always had great observance and significance on the religious level. Price cites Charles Lippy in conveying that the media is an imperative element of considering sports to be a form of popular religion. The

The first accounts of the Ancient Olympic games trace back to the year 776 BC. Held at Olympia, the games were thought to have been dedicated to the ‘Olympian gods’, Hera, Athena, Apollo and most prodimately, Zeus, the god of the sky and the ruler of the Olympian gods. Ancient myths associated with the beginning games stated that Zeus, the father of humanity, have fought and defeated Cronus in a battle for the throne of the gods. Others predicted demigod Herakles staged the games in Zeus’s honour, as he had assisted him in conquering Elis. Olympia, the site in which the games were held, was located in the Western part of the Peloponnese. The sacred area held numerous temples and sporting facilities, as the site was used for both the Ancient Olympic games

The Greeks set up athletic events in honor of Zeus for which the Olympics was made.

1..An American Apotheosis, written by Joseph L. Price, discusses the religious element of sports. His thesis, “For tens of millions of devoted fans throughout the country, sports constitute a popular form of religion by shaping their world and sustaining their ways of engaging it.” (Price, p. 196) Takes on the difficult challenge of defining sport as religion. This is done through Price’s exploration of how sports shape and engage the world for the millions of devoted fans in America, how sports enable participants to explore levels of selfhood, how sports establish a means for bonding with the devotee community, how sports model ways to deal with fate while playing by the rules and how sports provide the prospect of experiencing abundant life.

In the book “Winning Is the Only Thing”, Randy Roberts and James Olsen unravel the true origins of sports and the post war effects on American sports. The book reveals the social, economic, racial, and worldly affairs that shaped sports in the U.S. Roberts and Olsen also explain how sports went from fun and games to winning being the only importance. The book begins with the cold war and its effects on the Olympic Games, demonstrating how the games were politicized. It then transitions with racial integration becoming a thing of the past, to the modernization of sports through mass media and technology. “Winning is the Only Thing” offers a variety of the historical stories, giving the readers factual insight on the controversial and scandalous sides behind the transformation of American sports. The book was informative and quickly covered the historical and evolutionary aspects of sports, keeping the book short, sweet and easy to read.

Where slaves fought to the death against other slaves and sometimes even animals, for people’s entertainment. Now while today must people find the killing of others barbaric and the people that enjoy watching that psychotic, we have other methods of entertainment and even specialized places like the Coliseum to watch them. There are stadiums built for people to watch sports like basketball, football, soccer and wrestling. Just like ancient Rome’s children played ball games with each other so do modern America’s children. In parks and in the streets all over there are children running around playing, there are even organized sport leagues for

Sports are very vital. They offer a lifestyle, an occupation, and even a dream. Sports require physical activity and skill in which a team or an individual compete against others for entertainment. As David G. McComb comments in "Sports in World History", "there is a high degree of training, investment, and coaching, along with spectators, rules, publicity, and institutional control that come along with these activities." While participating in sports, it is required to be able to undertake a difficult situation and perform the best out of it. Sports are definitely more than just a game.

Medieval sports of the middle ages were a source of public entertainment designed to increase the overall fitness and military experiences of men and woman. These games, called béhourds, were fought by rival knights and soldiers either on horses or the ground. This was in accordance with the feudal practice that required Lords to bring forth soldiers to protect the king in exchange for ownership of land. Knights that participated in these sports used weapons such as swords, lances, daggers, and battle axes, and thus men were often killed or brutally wounded (“Medieval Sports”). These sporting contests also made it possible for men to move up in the ranks of the Pyramid of Power. Those who performed heroically in battle or were triumphant in competition would become wealthy and considered a part of the nobility, whereas, the peasant class received as little as a purse for their excellence. Similar to the fame experienced by modern-day professional football players, medieval jousters were subject to the same treatment. However, different games were enjoyed by either class of men, therefore stardom was concentrated more toward the nobility. Despite this, many of the sports enjoyed during this time are still around today, some of which have been included in the world famous Olympic Games.

Male or female, sports were often introduced to many at a young age. Some vigorously exercised from their childhood just to be physically prepared to endure the sport’s requirements. Winning at these games brought great honor to some families and some were disciplined to dedicate their whole lives learning the game. Many civilizations involved sports within their community as a form of entertainment and competition. Even

The first area that Poliakoff studies is ‘General aspects of the ancient combat sports’ is the definition of a combat sport, which he splits into two explanations. Firstly, the idea of sport or athletics, Poliakoff believes, is an “activity in which a person physically competes against another in contest with

The period of 1865 to 1950 was critical to the formation of “Modern” sport that is recognized today. In an article by Allen Guttmann titled From Ritual to Record: the nature of modern sport, Guttmann outlines seven characteristics that played a central role in the development of sports. These concepts were created as a sociological history of sports and took into place both American and European competitions. Guttmann’s notions of secularism, rationalization, bureaucracy and quantification, among others, all advanced the culture of sports; yet the most important of the stated characteristics is equality.