Running: An Integral Part of American Culture
The running phenomenon has blended into society in many different aspects of our lives. This does not only include track and field, but also cross country, road-racing, and jogging for health and leisure. Many Americans make running an essential part of their day. Running is not only good for your heart and lungs, but it is very beneficial for relieving stress, keeping your metabolism high, and keeping you trim and muscular. Another expanding characteristic of running is using it as a social experience. It is a part of people’s routine to meet with friends and to catch up with one another.
Track is a sport that is shadowed by the likes of football and basketball, but is
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It can be a medium in which one may see many friends or acquaintances on the running trails.
There is also the competitive aspect of running. It is arguably one of the oldest sports alive, and a good race is always entertaining for most spectators. Competitive running exists on all levels. Young children can compete in age-group competitions up to the national level. High School State Championships are held throughout the country, with states like Texas and California attracting as many as 30,000 fans. A good high school prospect can earn a college scholarship (as I have) through running. The college scene has three different seasons (cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track).
Competing at the collegiate level in every sport is a big adjustment for athletes. Coming from a background in high school, some athletes may have also participated in club teams. Some states have more stringent rules than others, but many athletes may even compete in world-wide competitions. This allows for an easier transition into college competition. It is a great experience for an athlete to be able to compete in the collegiate level, but it also entails many responsibilities as well. Athletes are rewarded with scholarships, which in turn is the salary that they are given for their extensive hours of training, traveling and competing.
If a runner is at a top level, he/she can take
Collegiate sports have turned into a billion dollar industry and are probably just as popular, if not more popular than professional sports. College athletes put their bodies on the line to play a sport they love, many with hopes and dreams to one day make it to the professional leagues. Athletic facilities are the major money makers for all universities. Colleges bring in billions of dollars in revenue annually, yet athletes do not get paid. Some fans believe athletes should not get paid due to their sports level being “amateurish.”; however, this is far from the truth. There is much more to being a college athlete than just practicing and playing games. These student-athletes must practice, weight lift, go to meetings, travel, go to tutoring and study groups, all the while maintaining sufficient grades. This is very tedious work and is very time consuming. College athletes have a high standard to live up to (Frederick Web; Huma Web; Patterson Web ).
College scholarships, the attraction of every devoted sports player out there. Earning scholarships brings players together not only to step up their game, but to be enthusiastic about exceeding their academic goals. Colleges put down an amount of money to attract top athletes from high schools all over their state. Athletic meaning all sports, like golf, fencing, and water polo. Tons of schools and families support the aid colleges grant in their athletic scholarship programs, while others are against it, saying that it has too few people who are accepted and that it takes away money that everyone else has to pay for their classes. They don’t realize that players will be encouraged to do great academically, so that they may do great
While Bannister and Prefontaine set the standards for the short and medium distance runners, a new group of long distance runners was beginning to emerge, along with a new running culture. In the early and mid-1970’s, long distance American runners Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers, joined forces with short and medium distance runners (Bannister and Prefontaine) to kick-start the running boom of running in America. It’s said that over 25 million people were active runners during this time.
Many people believe that the college athletes are just like the professionals because they train and work just as hard as hard as the pros. First of all college students are working and training so hard because they want to make it to the major-leagues some day. “Students are not professional athletes who are paid salaries and incentives for a career in sports. They are students receiving access to a college education through their participation in sports, for which they earn scholarships to pay tuition, fees, room and
Every year in the United States, thousands of collegiate student-athletes participate in a variety of different sports, and currently they do not receive paychecks for their performances. College athletics have attained an extensive popularity increase among Americans over the past few decades. This has resulted into increased revenues for the National Collegiate Athletic Association [NCAA] and the participating colleges, which has fuelled the debate of whether or not college athletes should collect an income. College athletes should not be paid to play because it will negatively affect their college experience. Rather, they should be compensated for their dedication to the sport. Many student athletes accept scholarships to play at a
For anyone who is not in a sport-or is-and would like to join another, track is the perfect sport for all to get involved in. Extra-curricular activities are acceptive to anyone who is willing to join, although track in fact is the best. Here is why: there are several events for everybody to attempt. All of the training is spectacular exercise, which is great for one’s health. In addition, the competition is always fun to be a part of. After all, what could joining a club hurt?
The debate over college athletes being paid is primarily argued in NCAA Division I athletics, because that is the highest level of college athletics. However, that just strengthens the argument as to why college athletes should not be paid. At the Division I level, athletic departments are allowed to award student-athletes full-ride athletic scholarships. That pays for tuition, room and board, additional school fees, and—because of the pressure to pay athletes—certain cash allowances for food. The financial advantage earned by athletic ability alone is tremendous. With student loan debt rising to historic levels, every student would love to have that much financial assistance. The vast majority of college athletes will not play a professional sport. The scholarships that they earn give them an advantage by allowing them to receive an education without having thousands of dollars worth of debt to pay off. It is often said that education is the key to success, but the necessary education normally comes with years of
Unlike the average student, college athletes are getting a majority of their college paid for with scholarships. Most people have to apply and write an essay. However, as a college athlete, the coach takes interest in you, you practice with them a little, then you sign to
College athletes are known more because of their sports rather than what they are actually majoring in. College athletes put in immense effort and time towards the sport. They make the sport their main priority and manage their lives primarily around the team and sport they are playing. Many college athletes, especially basketball and football players are recruited to become a part of college level team. The athletes decide what college to go to by evaluating the prestige of the sports programs rather than the college itself. For many college athletes is a platform to play the sport they are passionate about. In addition to their passion for the sport, college athletes also put in effort and time towards their respective sports.
College is the most elite of all education, bringing together the most intelligent people to become the next generation of citizens. Out of all the people who go to College; athletes have worked the most to get there, countless vigorating hours of practice and dedication to a sport. Along with getting a scholarship to go to college, they should receive a check for playing for the college of choice. Though you may say that they get money in the scholarship what other money do they get to rent or buy other essentials.
I would consider myself to have been a very committed athlete in high school because I worked my behind off training for every season. Leaving my blood, sweat and tears on the track, not walking off of it until I felt I had accomplished what I set out to do. We don’t just run, we work. We work on speed, endurance, strength and technique. We work on teaching ourselves how running is mostly about mindset rather than a physical thing. We do this exercise where you run a 400 meters telling yourself you’re a brick, sounds kind of dumb, I know. But after you run another 400 meter telling yourself you are feather, telling yourself you’re like Mayweather “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” Without even realizing it, even after running the first 400 and being dead tired, we realize our times for the second lap were faster than the first! You have to tell your body what to do and be mentally in control so when you’re on your final 200 meters you can push yourself to limits you didn’t know you had. You will find very few track athletes who actually enjoy running themselves to death on a daily basis, but we do it because when you cross the finish and look up and see you name on the score board in a top place, you will want to relive the moment over and over again because it is absolutely priceless. Then when I received the letter telling me I had been offered a scholarship to run and jump at a D1 school, all the hard work I had been putting into this sport over the past four years felt completely worth
Today I would like to inform you about the benefits of running, along with the different formats of running races, both in high school, and out of high school.
I live in a small house by myself. I have a small lounge, a small television, a small table… In my lounge room I have a treadmill. I love it. I run on it every morning. While I run, I look out the window. I admire the house across the road, it has a small veranda, the turtle ornament in the garden near the burgundy mailbox is slightly chipped, and the grass always seems to need mowing. I listen to my feet as they slam so consistently on the track, never missing a beat. It’s a marvellous invention, it really is. It catches my steps as I am running towards nowhere. I can run for hours on end, and never have to leave the space of my lounge room.
Instinct is what is ingrained in our systems, how our ancestors survived, and why humans compete today. Running, a sport of strength and fitness, can be described as what makes humans, well, human. For this reason the history of running throughout civilization brings our true nature into light. The “introduction of running…as a means of survival” gave us “exceptional endurance”(History of Running,”n.d.).Humans are known to test their limits which is entirely true throughout the history of racing. Running not only for survival or necessity but for the enjoyment, health benefits, and competition are immanent in todays society. The history of human instinct, racing, as well as competitiveness accumulate to produce an extensive-and by all means-interesting story.
Running is easy, enjoyable and is very social. Many people see running as a good place to meet new people and enjoyable to do, it is also one of the easiest ways to exercise. Running can be very fun, it is easy because you need no experience to run. Training for races is also fun it can be done by men and women, girls and boys at any age. You can meet new people who can be very social able, you can meet new people by either running by yourself or with a friend or spouse. People of all sizes and races and ages can run it is a great way to meet new people and a great way to exercise.