⌛🪶 Sports Through Time
Evolution of Games and Athletes
Need for sports: Now and Then
If you ask this question to a sports person today, most likely the answer will be some version of self-interest. Fun, fitness, making my nation proud, fulfilling dreams of my parents etc.
But…
In old days, it was quite opposite. People rarely practiced sports for their own sake. Warfare preparations, religious rituals, or providing entertainment to the kings, were the top reasons and need for sports.
The Oldest Sport
The oldest sport in the world is believed to be wrestling.
It is easy to understand the reason why this sport grew in popularity ahead of others. Wrestling doesn’t require any equipment or playing field, making it accessible and easy to practice in ancient times. Plus, the need for sports as in military and warfare, made wrestling a simpler method to find stronger person and train them with other combat skills.
Evidence of wrestling as a sport date back to the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece, Rome, Sumer and India, where images and descriptions of wrestling matches have been found in tombs and on ancient pottery. The sport has also been depicted in ancient Babylonian, Chinese, and Japanese art.
Wrestling as a sport also has seen a dark phase. In ancient Rome, some slaves were forced to fight each other to the death, also known as "gladiatorial combat”. This was done for many reasons — a method of providing justice or just for entertainment!
Sports in Ancient Times
Evidence has been found for many other sports being played in ancient times. Swimming, archery, throwing stones, weightlifting, long jump, sprinting, kabaddi, kho-kho and many others originated several thousands of years ago.
In the Middle Ages, sports evolved into more organized and regulated events, with the development of various codes of conduct and rules. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many modern sports as we know them today were formalized and standardized.
Every sport we know today has its own history. While it will not be possible to cover all of them, let us see the history of the most popular sports of current times. It will give you a fair idea of history of overall sports as well.
Marathon
Marathon has its history from the famous Battle of Marathon.
In 490 BCE, the Greek army, led by Pheidippides, defeated the invading Persian army in the Battle of Marathon. Although the Greeks had been victorious, an attempt of showing a false victory was made by the Persians. Pheidippides saw a Persian vessel changing its direction and moving towards Athens (Greece).
According to legend, sensing the danger, Pheidippides ran from Marathon to Athens to deliver the news of the victory and collapsed from exhaustion after delivering the message, uttering the famous words, "Nenikékamen" (We have won).
It is said that he ran the entire distance to Athens without stopping, discarding his weapons and even clothes to lose as much weight as possible.
The distance from Marathon to Athens is ~40 km and so is the length of an actual Marathon race (42.195 km). (Check the image from Google maps, above)
Olympic Games
Ancient Olympic Games
Greece was the first place to formally conduct a sporting event, with the first Ancient Olympic Games being conducted in 776 BCE. These games were always held in Olympia, Greece, every four years to honor Zeus, the king of the gods in Greek mythology. (In Greek, Olympiad refers to the period of 4 years).
The games became an important political tool used by different cities to assert their dominance over their rivals. An Olympic Truce was announced before and during the Olympic Games to ensure the host city state Elis, of which Olympia was one of the towns, was not attacked and athletes and spectators could travel safely to the Games and peacefully return to their respective countries.
Prizes: A branch of the Olive tree intertwined to form a circle and called Olive wreath was given to the winners of the game as prize.
Games: For the first 13 events, from 776 BCE to 728 BCE, Stadion was the only game played. Stadion was a straight-line sprint race of just over 192 metres. Gradually, different forms of races of varying lengths, horse race, cart race, wrestling, boxing, discus and long jump games were introduced.
The last Ancient Olympic Game was played in 393 AD. Historians cite the reason for the end was a fire that burned down the temple of the Olympian Zeus.
Modern Olympic Games
Baron Pierre de Coubertin founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894, leading to the first modern Games in Athens in 1896. 14 nations and 241 athletes participated in the games. Unlike the ancient games where all the events were held in Athens, the IOC decided to rotate the games to different cities and the second Olympics was held in Paris.
Prizes: Initially, Silver and Copper medals were awarded to the winners and runners-up. This was later changed to gold, silver and bronze medals for the first three place winners.
Games: 9 sports — athletics, cycling, fencing, gymnastics, shooting, swimming, tennis, weightlifting, and wrestling were part of the first modern Olympics.
Football (or Soccer)
The earliest known game of football is Cuju — a Chinese game played in 3rd–2nd century BC. The gameplay involved two teams with 12–16 players on each side and kicking a ball through an opening into a net without the use of hands. Cuju flourished for several centuries with improvement in both competitiveness and gameplay. But by the 17th century the game had started to decline primarily due to neglect.
Ancient Romans and Greeks also had many versions of ball games. One of them was Episkyros — a game played by the Greeks which was comparable to rugby and football. All over the world different forms of foot & ball games were being played.
In medieval ages, a form of football played in England, called "mob football", would be played in towns or between neighbouring villages, involving an unlimited number of players on opposing teams who would clash with objective to move an item, such as inflated animal's bladder to particular pre-decided point.
Football was also banned several times due to various reasons. Political unrest, wars, recession and hooliganism were the top reasons for the bans. Despite this, the popularity of the sport kept growing all over the world, especially in Europe.
The modern version of soccer as we know it today, originated in England in the 19th century. The first official soccer match was played in 1863, and the first international match was played between Scotland and England in 1872.
The FIFA World Cup, the most prestigious international soccer tournament, was first held in 1930.
Basketball
The game of basketball has very interesting and different history.
Canadian physical education instructor James Naismith was tasked to create an indoor sports game to help athletes keep in shape in cold weather. We are talking of the time December 1891 in Springfield, Massachusetts.
At first, he kept two big baskets on floor, at opposite sides of an indoor court. Playing with a soccer ball, he divided his class of 18 students into two teams of 9 each. The objective of the game was to put the ball in the basket.
Soon, a problem was found. As the baskets were on floor, multiple players would completely surround the basket preventing any successful attempt of throwing the ball in basket. Naismith then came up with the idea of hanging at a height so that no one could cover it. Every time a point was scored, the game was halted so the janitor could bring out a ladder and retrieve the ball. After a while, the bottoms of the fruit baskets were removed.
The first public basketball game was played in Springfield, Massachusetts, on March 11, 1892.
Bat-Ball Games: Baseball & Cricket
The origins of bat and ball games are often debated, and the precise origin or evolution of different games is difficult to determine.
One of the earliest stick-ball game called la soule was played in France, in 14th century. The play involved getting a ball to the opponents’ goal, using hands, feet or sticks. Another game called Rounders was popular in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 1700s. Many historians believe Baseball evolved from this game, in North America.
The first recorded game of baseball played in the United States was on June 19, 1846, in Hoboken, New Jersey, between the New York Nine and the Knickerbockers.
A sport called “Stoolball” is also considered as a common ancestor of both Cricket, Rounders and Baseball. Stoolball had the concepts of fielding, throwing a ball underarm, an over of 8 balls, a vertical wicket, pitch of 16 yards and two teams of 11 players each.
There is evidence of the game Cricket being played as early as the 16th century in England. The first recorded international cricket match was played between the USA and Canada in 1844, and the first official test match was played between England and Australia in 1877.
Tennis
The earliest version of Tennis was played in France, where it was known as jeu de paume (game of the palm) and was played with bare hands. The game involved hitting a ball back and forth over a net using the palm of the hand. (Although racquets were soon introduced).
In the 16th century, the game evolved to include the use of rackets, and the modern version of tennis began to take shape. The first tennis racket was made of wood and had a handle similar to that of a modern racket. The game was played primarily by the aristocracy and was seen as a leisure activity for the wealthy.
The first tennis club was established in Leamington Spa, England in 1872, and the first tennis tournament was held at the All-England Club in Wimbledon, England in 1877. The sport quickly gained popularity and was one of the sports in the 1896 Olympic event (the first modern Olympic game).
So, that was the brief history of some of the major sports. To make this discussion more thorough, let’s discuss two important topics.
Women in Sports
Women have often faced significant barriers and discrimination in sports based on their gender, but their perseverance have kept them involved in sports in various capacities throughout history.
Heraean Games
Heraean Games, was a women’s athletic event that was dedicated to the Goddess Hera. It was held before each of the ancient Olympic games as a separate event at the stadium in Olympia. The games, which consisted of 500-ft races, allowed only unmarried women both as competitor and spectators.
Spartan Women
There was a belief (fortunately) in Sparta, a state in ancient Greece, that a physically fit woman would produce strong children. This belief helped Spartan women enjoy active participation in sports. They began to practice the same athletic exercises that men did, exhibiting the qualities of Spartan soldiers.
Modern Era
Till 19th century, most of the sports involving women were more informal and of a recreational nature. Competitive and organized sports for women started to evolve during this period.
One of the earliest organized sports for women was croquet, which became popular in the mid-19th century. Women's tennis tournaments were also organized around this time, and women's golf became popular in the early 20th century.
However, it wasn't until the 1920s that women's sports began to gain significant recognition and support. In 1922, the Women's World Games were held in Paris, and in 1928, women's track and field events were added to the Olympic Games for the first time.
Slavery and sports
Slavery and sports have a complex history, with instances of the exploitation and surprisingly, even empowerment of enslaved individuals through physical activity and competition.
As discussed earlier, in ancient Roman civilizations, slaves were often forced to participate in physical labor and brutal sporting events, such as gladiatorial contests. In America, slavery had a lasting impact on the development of many sports, particularly those played by African Americans. For example, some historians believe that the game of basketball was influenced by the Harlem Renaissance (an intellectual and cultural revival of African American art forms) and the cultural expression of black people in the early 20th century.
It is also believed that many of the “current” racial discrimination has its roots going back to the slave-owner dynamics practiced 400 years ago.
However, sports were also used as a means of resistance and empowerment for enslaved individuals and later, African Americans. During slavery, physical activity was often one of the few outlets for enslaved people to express their humanity and physical abilities.
Sports also served as a way for African Americans to resist and challenge the racial barriers imposed upon them, as well as to assert their dignity and worth. This can be seen in the formation of early black baseball leagues and the integration of professional sports in the mid-20th century.
Things to ponder
So, that was the brief history of sports.
Sports is not only limited to just humans. Many animals have been found to take part in leisure activities often. But competitive sports? Well… that’s a different game and we have evolved to keep evolving new games every year!