Title: History of sport
1History of sport
2- History of sport is probably as old as the
existence of people. - Sport has been a useful way for people to
increase their mastery of nature and the
environment. - The history of sport can teach us a great deal
about social changes and about the nature of
sport itself.
3- Sport seems to involve basic human skills being
developed and exercised for their own sake, in
parallel with being exercised for their
usefulness.
4Examples of skills which have become sports
- Gladiators in Rome fought and killed for the
delectation of the audience, rather than to
protect the Empire. - Yachting is the travel across water for enjoyment
or competition rather than for transport or
commerce - Running is done on a course for a fixed length of
time or distance, rather than simply to catch a
bus.
5- Stone-age drawings were discovered in the Libyan
desert depicting among other activities, swimming
and archery. - The art itself is an example of interest in
skills unrelated to the functional tasks of
staying alive, and is itself evidence of there
being leisure time available.
6- It also depicts other non-functional activities
such as ritual etc. - Therefore, although there is scant direct
evidence of sport from these sources, it is
reasonable to extrapolate that there was some
activity at these times resembling sport.
7- Captain Cook, when he first visited the Hawaiian
Islands, in 1778, reported on the native people
surfing. - The native American Indians engaged in games and
sports before the coming of Europeans, such as
lacrosse type ball games, running, and other
athletic activities.
8- The ancient Mayan and Aztec civilizations played
serious ballgames. The courts used at that time
are still used today. - Individual sports, such as wrestling and archery,
have been practiced worldwide since ancient times.
9- Sport has been increasingly organized and
regulated from the time of the Ancient Olympics
up to the present century. - Activities necessary for food and survival became
regulated activities done for pleasure or
competition on an increasing scale, e.g. hunting,
fishing, horticulture.
10Ancient China
- There are artifacts and structures which suggest
that Chinese people engaged in activities which
meet our definition of sport as early as 4000
years BC. - The origin and development of China's sports
activities seem to have been closely related to
the production, work, war and entertainment of
the time.
11Ancient China
- Gymnastics appears to have been a popular sport
in China's past. It certainly remains so today,
as the skill of Chinese acrobats is
internationally recognized. - Any other reason they are excellent in acrobatic
endeavors?
12Ancient Egypt
- Monuments to the Pharaohs indicate that a range
of sports were well developed and regulated
several thousands of years ago, including
swimming and fishing. - This is not surprising perhaps given the
importance of the Nile in the life of Egypt.
13Ancient Egypt
- Other sports included javelin throwing, high jump
and wrestling. - Again, the nature of the sports popular at the
time suggests close correspondence with everyday
non-sporting activities.
14Ancient Greece
- A wide range of sports were already in operation
at the time of the Ancient Greek Empire. - Wrestling, running, boxing, javelin, discus
throwing, and chariot racing were prevalent. - This suggests that the military culture of Greece
was an influence on the development of its
sports.
15Ancient Greece
- The Olympic games were held every four years in
Ancient Greece. - The games were held not simply as a sporting
event, but as a celebration of individual
excellence, cultural and artistic variety, and a
showplace for architectural and sculptural
innovation.
16Modern history of sport
- The Industrial Revolution and mass production
brought increased leisure which allowed increases
in spectator sports, less elitism in sports, and
greater accessibility. - With the advent of mass media and global
communication, professionalism became prevalent
in sports.
17- This furthered sports popularity in general.
- Perhaps in a reaction to the demands of
contemporary life, there have been developments
in sport which are best described as post-modern
extreme ironing being a notable example.
18- There is also a move towards adventure sports as
a form of escaping or transcending the routines
of life, examples being white water rafting,
canyoning, BASE jumping, and more genteelly,
orienteering.
19History of Sport in America
20Topical Outline
- Reason for study of sport history
- Pre-Colonial America
- Colonial America
- Technological and Industrial revolutions
- Post Civil War
- The 20th Century
- Summary
21Why is the History of Sport Important?
- To truly understand the sociology of sport, it is
first important to understand the history of
sport. - How sport was developed
- How sport was affected by the historical,
cultural and social traditions of the time period
22Pre-Colonial America
- Population spread widely across the country
- Physical Activity and games were very important,
and often linked to spiritual beliefs - Common Sports lacrosse, archery, running
- Staying fit was very important
23Colonial America (1600s-1800s)
- Religion (Puritanism)
- Hard work (to stay alive, and for religious
purposes) - Sport was most prevalent in remote areas
- Sport mirrored the challenges of the times and
region - horse racing, shooting, cockfighting
24Industrial Revolution (1800s)
- Factories developed
- Population moved into the city
- New recreation needed
- More time and money available
- Horse racing still popular
25Technological and Industrial Revolutions (late
1700s- 1861)
- Increased technology
- Increased recreation time because production was
faster - People moved to cities
- Travel was faster and easier
- 18th century, boat, horse and walking
- Steam engine (1807) for boats and railroad
- Very important for organized sports
26Technological and Industrial Revolutions (late
1700s- 1861) (cont)
- Population expands west
- Big companies are formed
- Immigrants brought their own sports
- Modern spectator sports rise (boxing, running,
horse racing)
27Post Civil War (1865-1900)
- Civil War slowed sporting activities
- Even more movement towards cities
- More time and money available
- New working structure was seen as femanizing
society (make it soft). - Sports helped to masculinize society
28Post Civil War (1865-1900) (Cont)
- Sport became very class specific
- Upper class tried to exclude lower classes
- Different sports adopted by different classes,
African Americans no longer accepted in sport - Rise of Intercollegiate Athletics
- First event in 1852, many events 1870s
- Society became highly attached to the sport
industry
29Post Civil War (1865-1900) (Cont)
- Corporate involvement in sport
- Lots of money for sport and fitness
30The 20th Century
- Period of dramatic sport growth
- Corporate Sport and health push
- More spent on sports equipment than by all
schools - Improved Equipment
- Social Involvement
- Part of educational system
31Major Factors Affecting Sport
- In your mind, what was the major factor affecting
sport during each of the following periods? - Pre-Colonial America
- Colonial America
- Technological and Industrial revolutions
- Post Civil War
- The 20th Century
32Women's roles in sports
- Women's experiences in the sporting life of the
United States defy neat historical
generalizations. - In part this is because women never constituted a
single group, and their behaviors and attitudes
never conformed to a single general pattern. -
33Women's roles in sports
- The evolution of womens role in sport in the
United States can be divided into three major
periods the colonial era, the transitional
nineteenth century, and the age of modern sports.
34The Colonial Era Women and Traditional Sports
and Games
- About 1600, before Europeans colonized the land
that would become the United States, the earliest
American sportswomen were Native Americans - Sports and other displays of physical prowess
were embedded in the rhythms and relations of
ordinary life.
35The Colonial Era Women and Traditional Sports
and Games
- Religious ceremonies, for example, called on
women, and men, to dance for hours at a time,
while rites of passage from maidenhood to
womanhood included physical displays and tests. - Ball games occurred in the context of women's
daily tasks, and the outcomes could affect one's
place in the family or the village.
36Mid-17th century
- On warm summer days in New England, husbands and
wives fished and sailed on the numerous
waterways. - Towns like Boston, Providence, and Hartford
offered an even broader variety of sports and
recreations, ranging from dances to races to fist
fights.
37Mid-17th century
- By the early eighteenth century, emerging cities
were sites for public, commercial, and physical
displays, including tightrope dancing by women
and men.
38The Nineteenth Century Domesticity
- The pursuit of active sports by women was not to
persist, however. - During the second half of the eighteenth century,
a series of complex changes altered gender roles
and relations. - Enlightenment ideology and the emergent
capitalist economy combined to redefine women's
place, to move them into the home and away from
public activity, and to emphasize biological
differences (from men) as grounds for keeping
them there.
39The Nineteenth Century Domesticity
- During the first half of the nineteenth century,
perceptions and real experiences suggested to
some people that the health of middle- and
upper-class women in urbanizing areas was
declining. - Educators, doctors, and writers of popular
magazine articles responded with analyses and
prescriptions for improving women's health,
including calls for renewed physical exertion via
exercises and games.
40The Nineteenth Century Domesticity
- The logic of the health literature was simple if
women were to fulfill their roles as caretakers
of families, they needed to maintain their
physical and mental health. - People such as Catharine Beecher and Mary Lyons
argued for the physical education of women,
started schools, and laid out regimens of
calisthenics, domestic exercises (e.g.,
sweeping), and traditional activities such as
walking and riding.
41The Nineteenth Century Domesticity
- An even more significant challenge to the nearly
century-old ideology that placed women in the
home and in subservience to men came in the form
of a machine, the bicycle. - Invented in Europe in the early 19th century,
early versions of the bicycle had appeared in
various forms and had become the object of
short-lived fads through the 1860s.
42The Nineteenth Century Domesticity
- Then came the invention of the ordinary (one
large and one small wheel) and, subsequently, the
safety cycle, and the latter especially
appealed to women. - Bicycle riding, and even some racing, became
popular, and the practice afforded women with a
means of physical mobility and freedom that they
had not known for generations.
43Impact of war on sports
- After 1941 more and more women took jobs that had
once belonged to the men who went abroad to
fight. - Even professional baseball opened its doors to
women via the All-American Girls Baseball League
financed by Philip Wrigley of chewing gum and
Chicago Cubs fame. - Now famous in part because of the movie, A League
of Their Own, the All-American Girls Baseball
League began play in 1943 in mid-size cities in
the Great Lakes region.
44African-American women and sports
- In the 1940s as well, an even more significant
movement developed in African American colleges. - Track and field teams were training at places
such as Tuskegee Institute and Tennessee State,
and these colleges would produce the athletes
that would integrate U.S. women's Olympic teams
and revolutionize the contests and the records.
45African-American women and sports
- By the early 1960s African-American athletes such
as Wilma Rudolph ran record-pace after
record-pace, opening doors for other black women
and paving the way for Jackie Joyner-Kersee and
Florence Griffith Joyner, among numerous others.
46Effects of title IX
- Legislation that made colleges (that accepted
federal funds) have to offer the same amount of
sports teams for women as there are for men
(1972). - How many sports leagues for women are out there
now?
47Conclusion
- There has been a dynamic and continuing growth of
women's sports since the late 1960s. - Triathlons, marathons, soccer, aerobics,
weightlifting, rugby, skiing, two professional
basketball leagues (although one folded in late
1998), athletic clubs, and even cheerleading are
among the many sports available to women, none of
which existed a century ago and few of which
existed a generation earlier.
48Conclusion
- What remains unknown is the full impact of the
generation of women who are now maturing and who
grew up with opportunities that their mothers and
grandmothers never dreamed of.