France is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on

other continents.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, France

colonized much of North America; during

the 19th and early 20th centuries, France built

the third largest empire of the time,

including large portions of North, West and

Central Africa, Southeast Asia, and

many Pacific islands.

The name "France" comes from Latin Francia, which literally means "land of the Franks" or

"Frankland". There are various theories as to the origin of the name of the Franks. One is that it is derived from the Proto-Germanic word frankon

which translates as javelin or lance as the throwing axe of the Franks was known as a

francisca

The French Republic is a unitary semi-presidential republic with strong democratic traditions. The

executive branch itself has two leaders: the President of the Republic, currently Nicolas Sarkozy, and the Government, led by the president-appointed Prime

Minister, currently François Fillon.

Popular sports include football, both codes of rugby football and in certain regions basketball and

handball. France has hosted events such as the 1938 and 1998 FIFA World Cups, and

hosted the 2007 Rugby Union World Cup.

The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race that covers more than 3,500

kilometers throughout France and a bordering country. The race usually lasts 23 days and attracts cyclists from around

the world.

Marcial arts

Among many others France’s sport, the one that stand out is marcial arts. Nowadays, karate, judo and savate are practiced. The most important french sportsman is David Douillet who launched a videogame about this sport.