_{Sports and activities}

_{Ondřej Kratochvíl}

_3.B

_{Zpracování maturitního tématu}

Sports and Games

Sports can be defined as any activity that gives enjoyment or recreation. Sports can be played outdoors or indoors. Some of the more popular sports are football (known as soccer in the US), hockey, tennis, squash, swimming, running, golf, skiing, and baseball. Of course there are many other sports. Some sports that are typical of England are rugby, cricket, rowing, and horse-riding. When you add rules to a sport it can be called a game. A lot of people do some kind of sport, even if it's just going for a long walk, in order to stay fit. People who don't exercise at all are less likely to feel and look healthy.

Many sports are played in a sports hall or a stadium. Sports like figure skating, speed skating, and ice hockey are played on an ice-rink. Some sports can be played where ever there is an open space and room for running. Sports like cross country and downhill skiing require at least a few centimeters of snow. Swimming can be practiced in a swimming pool, lake, river or in the sea.

The Olympic Games are probably the most famous and important sports competition. In the past both the summer and winter Olympic games were held every four years and in the same year. Now the summer and winter games are still held every four years but they are spaced two years apart from each other. For example, in the year 1996 the summer games were held and two years later, in 1998 the winter games were held. There are other important sports competitions such as the Football World Cup which is also held every four years. The Wimbledon tennis championship and hockey world championship are important competitions which occur every year.

SPORTS AND GAMES

-          sports are very good for active relaxation and are important for our physical and mental health; last but not least, during sports events one can meet a lot of new people and see how it feels to be a winner or a loser

-          there are lots of types of sports and games. We can practise outdoor or indoor sports, in water or anywhere we want.

-          outdoor sports are as follows: golf, skiing (cross-country, down-hill, slalom, ski-jump), windsurfing, marathon-running, horse riding, climbing

-          indoor sports include: table-tennis, gymnastic, chess

-          ball games (football - in the USA it is called soccer, basketball, volleyball), athletics (sprint, high jump, long jump, javelin throw), tennis, skateboarding and skating may be practised both indoor and outdoor - these sports take place in stadiums as well as in athletic halls or outdoors

-          there are also aquatic sports: water skiing, swimming, diving, water polo, canoeing for example

-          millions of people like to attend matches, watch them on TV or listen to them on the radio

-          the British are great lovers of competitive sports, so many sports have their origins in Britain. Cricket, tennis, boxing, two types of rugby were invented in Britain. Golf has its origin in Scotland and rugby football is very popular in the USA. Ice-hockey has its roots in Canada.

-          there are other very important sports events; the Olympic Games are the most famous - they are held every four years, they have their summer and winter parts which change once every two years. The last were this year in Sydney. We won two gold medals - throwing the javelin (J. Železný) and canoeing (Š. Hilgertová). The next Olympic games will be in 2004 in Athens. The first were held in 776 BC in ancient Greece.

   World Championships in hockey - our representants are world    

   champions.

   European Championships in football - CR is second because our

   representants lost with Germany.

-          each of us can be a sportsman, but not everyone can be a good one. A good sportsman must be healthy (but there are also sports events for the handicapped). He should to everything to excel in his sport, listen to the coach, train very hard and should have a fair character.

  

 At school we have our physical training lessons two times a week. But because we don't have a large gym we have to go to the gym at State Grammar School. We play basketball and we do gymnastic. Our lessons start at 7.00 o'clock and last one hour. Girls exercise together with boys.

-          I like to play volleyball and basketball with my friends at school.

-          after school or on the weekends I like riding a bicycle

-          over the summer I do swimming and during winter I do skiing and skating

-          I would like to try rock climbing, bungee-jump and diving, because they are very interest sports

-          I don't like boxing because I think it is stupid and weightlifting because it is boring

-          I don't prefer watching sport on TV but I like to watch skating

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