FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MAN AND THE SPORT THROUGHOUT HISTORY
THROUGHOUT HISTORY, NEW GAMES, SPORTS, AND AREAS OF COMPETITION HAVE FILLED OUR LIVES TO THE POINT WHERE YOU NOW HAVE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF VARIOUS CLUBS, LEAGUES, AND LEVELS OF SPORTS THAT INCLUDE PEOPLE OF ALL AGES, NATIONALITIES, AND DEGREES OF ABILITIES—FROM AMATEUR TO PROFESSIONAL.
American football as we know it can be traced back to early versions of rugby football. Walter Camp, a Yale University athlete and coach, is considered the “Father of American Football.” Camp introduced many changes and set rules for the line of scrimmage, and for down and distance, as well as additional rules for passing and blocking that led to the game we have today. Golf can be traced to Scotland during the 15th century. It was the golf course at Leith (near Edinburgh) that first published rules around 1682. Nearly a century later, in 1754, the St. Andrews Society of Golfers was formed. The Society began annual com- petitions based on the rules established at Leith. Stroke play was introduced in 1759 and the first (now standard) 18-hole course was constructed in 1764. Throughout history, new games, sports, and areas of competi- tion have filled our lives to the point where you now have hundreds of thousands of various clubs, leagues, and levels of sports that include people of all ages, nationalities, and degrees of abilities— from amateur to professional. SPORT AND OUR CANINE COMPANIONS Did you know that “lure coursing” is probably the oldest of all sports done with a dog, and its popularity can be traced to both the ancient Greeks and Romans? In fact, by the Middle Ages, owner- ship of sighthounds in most countries was prohibited by law for all but the aristocracy. England’s King Canute passed a law that said Greyhounds could not be owned by any person inferior to a gentleman in rank. By the reign of Elizabeth I, coursing was so popular that Elizabeth directed her Earl Marshal to develop the first rules for coursing. The resulting book, The Laws of the Leash , laid out how gazehounds should be handled on the course and how to judge which dog won the match. Dog shows as we know them would not arrive until the middle 1800s, even though breeders and owners probably had a variety of ways in which they compared their stock. It wasn’t until 1859 that the first English dog show was held in Newcastle, Northumberland, England. The best-known show in England is Crufts, which has been held annually since 1886—nine years after the inaugural Westminster Kennel Club dog show. The first formal dog show in the United States was held in 1877, sponsored by the Westminster Kennel Club in New York City, and is still today probably the most well-known show in the world of dog shows. Thinking about all sports, Westminster is the second- longest continuous sporting event in our country, second only to the Kentucky Derby. Also, just like the Derby, when COVID
ROME: GLADIATORS, CHARIOTS, AND THE CIRCUS MAXIMUS
It is known that the Romans were great fans of sports of all types. In the 6th century BCE, the “Circus Maximus” was a char- iot racetrack built in Rome. It was used for all types of Roman games and gladiator fights. It is believed to have hosted its last chariot races in the 6th century. As with many ancient buildings and towns, mother nature ultimately covered the Circus Maximus over numerous centuries. The site was partially excavated in the 20th century and then remodeled. Today, it continues as an impor- tant public space, hosting music concerts and rallies. During the 1st Century AD, following a fire in 64 AD, the Circus had an estimated capacity of 150,000-250,000 spectators. Just think about the largest stadiums in the world today and think about that in comparison. Most of the documented history of sport, going back at least 3,000 years, shows us that early sports often involved the preparation for war or training as a hunter. It was, however, the Ancient Greeks (with the first Olympic Games in 776 BC, and later, the Romans) who introduced formal sports competitions to the world. SPORT IN THE MODERN WORLD Throughout the many centuries that followed those early games, a variety of sports and competitions grew throughout the world. Cricket, for example, originated in South-East England some- time in the late 16th century, and by the 18th century it had become the National Sport of England. Alexander Cartwright of New York is credited with creating the baseball field in 1845 as we know it today. Mr. Cartwright and the members of his New York Knickerbocker Base Ball Club devised the first rules and regulations that became the accepted standard for the modern game of baseball. Believe it or not, the first formal rules for basketball were devised in 1892. Initially, the players dribbled a soccer ball up and down a court of unspecified dimensions, and baskets were first introduced a year later in 1893. The origins of rugby can be traced back over 2,000 years to a Roman game called “harpastum” (from the Greek word for “seize”). But unlike soccer, in which the ball is propelled by the foot, in rugby it is also carried in the hands.
58 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, FEBRUARY 2022
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