BADMINTONHistory and development

Game ofbattledore and shuttlecockin 1804

Battledore and Shuttlecock.1854, from theJohn LeechArchive[3]The beginnings of badminton can be traced to the mid-1800s inBritish India, where it was created by British military officers stationed there.[4]Early photographs show Englishmen adding a net to the traditional English game ofbattledore and shuttlecock. The sport is related toball badminton, which originated inTamil Nadu, and is similar toHanetsukiwhich originated in Japan. Being particularly popular in the British garrison town Poona (nowPune), the game also came to be known asPoona.[4][5]Initially, balls of wool referred asball badmintonwere preferred by the upper classes in windy or wet conditions, but ultimately the shuttlecock stuck. This game was taken by retired officers back to England where it developed and rules were set out.Although it appears clear thatBadminton House,Gloucestershire, owned by theDuke of Beaufort, has given its name to the sports, it is unclear when and why the name was adopted. As early as 1860,Isaac Spratt, a London toy dealer, published a booklet,Badminton Battledore a new game, but unfortunately no copy has survived.An 1863 article inThe Cornhill Magazinedescribes badminton as "battledore and shuttlecock played with sides, across a string suspended some five feet from the ground".This early use has cast doubt on the origin through expatriates in India, though it is known that it was popular there in the 1870s and that the first rules were drawn up in Poonah in 1873.Another source cites that it was in 1877 atKarachiin (British) India, where the first attempt was made to form a set of rules. As early as 1875, veterans returning from India started a club inFolkestone. Until 1887, the sport was played in England under the rules that prevailed in British India. The Bath Badminton Club standardized the rules and made the game applicable to English ideas. J.H.E. Hart drew up revised basic regulations in 1887 and, with Bagnel Wild, again in 1890.In 1893, the Badminton Association of England published the first set of rules according to these regulations, similar to today's rules, and officially launched badminton in a house called "Dunbar" at 6 Waverley Grove,Portsmouth, England on 13 September of that year.They also started theAll England Open Badminton Championships, the first badminton competition in the world, in 1899.The International Badminton Federation (IBF) (now known asBadminton World Federation) was established in 1934 with Canada, Denmark, England, France, the Netherlands, Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales as its founding members. India joined as an affiliate in 1936. The BWF now governs international badminton and develops the sport globally.While initiated in England, competitive men's badminton in Europe has traditionally been dominated by Denmark. Asian nations, however, have been the most dominant ones worldwide. China, Indonesia, South Korea, and Malaysia, Denmark and India are among the nations that have consistently produced world-class players in the past few decades, with China being the greatest force in both men's and women's competition in recent years.

VOLLEYBALLHistoryOrigin of volleyball

William G. MorganOn February 9, 1895, inHolyoke, Massachusetts(USA),William G. Morgan, aYMCAphysical education director, created a new game calledMintonetteas a pastime to be played (preferably) indoors and by any number of players. The game took some of its characteristics fromtennisandhandball. Another indoor sport,basketball, was catching on in the area, having been invented just ten miles (sixteen kilometers) away in the city ofSpringfield, Massachusetts, only four years before. Mintonette was designed to be an indoor sport, less rough than basketball, for older members of the YMCA, while still requiring a bit of athletic effort.The first rules, written down by William G Morgan, called for a net 6ft 6in (1.98m) high, a 25ft 50ft (7.6m 15.2m) court, and any number of players. A match was composed of nine innings with three serves for each team in each inning, and no limit to the number of ball contacts for each team before sending the ball to the opponents' court. In case of a serving error, a second try was allowed. Hitting the ball into the net was considered a foul (with loss of the point or a side-out)except in the case of the first-try serve.After an observer, Alfred Halstead, noticed the volleying nature of the game at its first exhibition match in 1896, played at the International YMCA Training School (now calledSpringfield College), the game quickly became known asvolleyball(it was originally spelled as two words: "volley ball"). Volleyball rules were slightly modified by the International YMCA Training School and the game spread around the country to various YMCAs. Refinements and later developments

Japanese American women playing volleyball,Manzanarinternment camp, California, ca. 1943.The first official ball used in volleyball is disputed; some sources say that Spalding created the first official ball in 1896, while others claim it was created in 1900. The rules evolved over time: in the Philippines by 1916, the skill and power of the set and spike had been introduced, and four years later a "three hits" rule and a rule against hitting from the back row were established. In 1917, the game was changed from 21 to 15 points. In 1919, about 16,000 volleyballs were distributed by theAmerican Expeditionary Forcesto their troops andallies, which sparked the growth of volleyball in new countries. The first country outside the United States to adopt volleyball was Canada in 1900. An international federation, theFdration Internationale de Volleyball(FIVB), was founded in 1947, and the first World Championships were held in 1949 for men and 1952 for women.The sport is now popular inBrazil, in Europe (where especially Italy, theNetherlands, and countries fromEastern Europehave been major forces since the late 1980s), in Russia, and in other countries including China and the rest of Asia, as well as in the United States.

A nudist/naturist volleyball game at the Sunny Trails Club during the 1958 Canadian Sunbathing Association (CSA) convention in British Columbia, Canada.Beach volleyball, a variation of the game played on sand and with only two players per team, became a FIVB-endorsed variation in 1987 and was added to the Olympic program at the1996 Summer Olympics.Volleyball is also a sport at theParalympicsmanaged by theWorld Organization Volleyball for Disabled.Nudistswere early adopters of the game with regular organized play in clubs as early as the late 1920s.By the 1960s, a volleyball court had become standard in almost allnudist/naturistclubs.

Volleyball in the OlympicsThe history of Olympic volleyball traces back to the1924 Summer OlympicsinParis, where volleyball was played as part of an American sportsdemonstration event. After the foundation of FIVB and some continental confederations, it began to be considered for official inclusion. In 1957, a special tournament was held at the 53rdIOCsession inSofia, Bulgariato support such request. The competition was a success, and the sport was officially included in the program for the1964 Summer Olympics. The Olympic volleyball tournament was originally a simple competition: all teams played against each other team and then were ranked by wins, set average, and point average. One disadvantage of thisround-robinsystem is that medal winners could be determined before the end of the games, making the audience lose interest in the outcome of the remaining matches. To cope with this situation, the competition was split into two phases with the addition of a "final round" elimination tournament consisting of quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals matches in1972. The number of teams involved in the Olympic tournament has grown steadily since 1964. Since 1996, both men's and women's events count twelve participant nations.Each of the five continental volleyball confederations has at least one affiliated national federation involved in the Olympic Games.The U.S.S.R. won men's gold in both 1964 and 1968. After taking bronze in 1964 and silver in 1968, Japan finally won the gold for men's volleyball in 1972. Women's gold went to Japan in 1964 and again in 1976. That year, the introduction of a new offensive skill, the backrow attack, allowed Poland to win the men's competition over the Soviets in a very tight five-set match. Since the strongest teams in men's volleyball at the time belonged to the Eastern Bloc, the American-ledboycottof the1980 Summer Olympicsdid not have as great an effect on these events as it had on the women's. The U.S.S.R. collected their third Olympic Gold Medal in men's volleyball with a 31 victory over Bulgaria (the Soviet women won that year as well, their third gold as well). With the U.S.S.R. boycotting the1984 Olympic Gamesin Los Angeles, the U.S. was able to sweep Brazil in the finals to win the men's gold medal. Italy won its first medal (bronze in the men's competition) in 1984, foreshadowing a rise in prominence for their volleyball teams. The 1984 women's tournament was also won by a rising force,China. At the1988 Games,Karch KiralyandSteve Timmonsled the U.S. men's team to a second straight gold medal, and the Soviets won the fourth gold in the women's tournament. In 1992, underrated Brazil upset favourites C.I.S., Netherlands, and Italy in the men's competition for the country's first volleyball Olympic gold medal. Runner-up Netherlands, men's silver medalist in 1992, came back under team leaders Ron Zwerver and Olof van der Meulen in the 1996 Games for a five-set win over Italy. A men's bronze medalist in 1996,Serbia and Montenegro(playing in 1996 and 2000 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia) beat Russia in the gold medal match in 2000, winning their first gold medal ever. In all three games the strongCubanfemale team lead byRegla TorresandMireya Luiswon the Gold medal. In 2004, Brazil won its second men's volleyball gold medal beating Italy in the finals, while China beatRussiafor its second women's title. In the2008 Games, the USA beat Brazil in the men's volleyball final. Brazil was runner-up again at the2012 Summer Olympics, this time losing to Russia after losing two match points in the third set.[14]In both gamesBrazil's women teambeat the United States for the gold medal.

GOLF

The MacDonald boys playing golf, 18th century.While the modern game of golf originated in 15th-century Scotland, the game's ancient origins are unclear and much debated. Some historianstrace the sport back to the Roman game ofpaganica, in which participants used a bent stick to hit a stuffed leather ball. One theory asserts that paganica spread throughout Europe as the Romans conquered most of the continent, during the first century BC, and eventually evolved into the modern game. Others citechuiwan("chui" means striking and "wan" means small ball) as the progenitor, a Chinese game played between the eighth and 14th centuries.A Ming Dynasty scroll dating back to 1368 entitled "The Autumn Banquet" shows a member of the Chinese Imperial court swinging what appears to be a golf club at a small ball with the aim of sinking it into a hole. The game is thought to have been introduced into Europe during the Middle Ages. Another early game that resembled modern golf was known ascambucain England and chambot in France.[6]The Persian gamechaugnis another possible ancient origin. In addition,kolven(a game involving a ball and curved bats) was played annually in Loenen, Netherlands, beginning in 1297, to commemorate the capture of the assassin ofFloris V, a year earlier.

Four gentlemen golfers on the tee of a golf course, 1930'sThe modern gameoriginated in Scotland, where the first written record of golf isJames II's banning of the game in 1457, as an unwelcome distraction to learning archery.James IVlifted the ban in 1502 when he became a golfer himself, with golf clubs first recorded in 1503-1504: "For golf clubbes and balles to the King that he playit with".To many golfers, theOld CourseatSt Andrews, a links course dating to before 1574, is considered to be a site of pilgrimage.In 1764, the standard 18 hole golf course was created at St Andrews when members modified the course from 22 to 18 holes.Golf is documented as being played onMusselburgh Links, East Lothian, Scotland as early as 2 March 1672, which is certified as the oldest golf course in the world by Guinness World Records.The oldest survivingrules of golfwere compiled in March 1744 for the Company of Gentlemen Golfers, later renamedThe Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, which was played atLeith, Scotland.The world's oldest golf tournament in existence, and golf's first major, isThe Open Championship, which was first played on 17 October 1860 at Prestwick Golf Club, in Ayrshire, Scotland, withScottish golfers winning the earliest majors.[14]Two Scotsmen fromDunfermline, John Reid and Robert Lockhart, first demonstrated golf in the US by setting up a hole in an orchard in 1888, with Reid setting up America's first golf club the same year, St. Andrews Golf Club inYonkers, New York.

BASKETBALLCreation

The first basketball court:Springfield CollegeIn early December 1891,CanadianDr.James Naismith,[4]a physical education professor and instructor at the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School(YMCA) (today,Springfield College) inSpringfield,Massachusettswas trying to keep his gym class active on a rainy day. He sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied and at proper levels of fitness during the longNew Englandwinters. After rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-ingymnasiums, he wrote the basicrulesand nailed apeachbasket onto a 10-foot (3.05m) elevated track. In contrast with modern basketball nets, this peach basket retained its bottom, and balls had to be retrieved manually after each "basket" or point scored; this proved inefficient, however, so the bottom of the basket was removed,allowing the balls to be poked out with a longdoweleach time.Basketball was originally played with asoccer ball. The first balls made specifically for basketball were brown, and it was only in the late 1950s thatTony Hinkle, searching for a ball that would be more visible to players and spectators alike, introduced the orange ball that is now in common use. Dribbling was not part of the original game except for the "bounce pass" to teammates. Passing the ball was the primary means of ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the asymmetric shape of early balls. Dribbling only became a major part of the game around the 1950s, as manufacturing improved the ball shape.The peach baskets were used until 1906 when they were finally replaced by metal hoops with backboards. A further change was soon made, so the ball merely passed through. Whenever a person got the ball in the basket, his team would gain a point. Whichever team got the most points won the game.[7]The baskets were originally nailed to the mezzanine balcony of the playing court, but this proved impractical when spectators in the balcony began to interfere with shots. The backboard was introduced to prevent this interference; it had the additional effect of allowing rebound shots. Naismith's handwritten diaries, discovered by his granddaughter in early 2006, indicate that he was nervous about the new game he had invented, which incorporated rules from a children's game called "Duck on a Rock", as many had failed before it. Naismith called the new game "Basket Ball".The first official game was played in theYMCA gymnasium in Albany, New York, on January 20, 1892, with nine players. The game ended at 10; the shot was made from 25 feet (7.6m), on a court just half the size of a present-dayStreetballorNational Basketball Association(NBA) court. By 18971898 teams of five became standard.

SOCCER

Mesoamerican ballgamewas played since 1,400 B.C

Children playingcujuinSong dynastyChinaAccording toFIFAthe competitive gamecuju(, literally "kick ball") is the earliest form of football for which there is scientific evidence.Cuju players could use any of the body apart from hands and the intent was kicking a ball through an opening into a net, it was remarkably similar to modern football though similarities torugbyoccurred.During the Han Dynasty (206 BC220 AD), cuju games were standardized and rules were established.[11]Phaininda andEpiskyroswere Greek ball games.An image of an Episkyros player taken from an ancient stone carving held by theAcropolis Museumappears on theUEFA European ChampionshipCup.Athenaeus, writing in 228 AD, stated theRomanball gameHarpastum.Phaininda,episkyrosandharpastumwere played involving hands and violence, they all appear to have resembledrugby football,wrestlingandvolleyballmore than what is recognizable as modern football.As with pre-codified "Mob Football", the antecedent of allmodern football codes, these three games involved more handling the ball than kicking.Non-competitive games includedkemariin Japan,chuk-gukin Korea andwoggabaliriin Australia.Association football in itself does not have a classical history.Notwithstanding any similarities to other ball games played around the world FIFA have recognised that no historical connection exists with any game played in antiquity outside Europe.The modern rules of association football are based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the widelyvarying forms of footballplayed in thepublic schoolsof England. The history of football in England dates back toat least the eighth century AD. TheCambridge Rules, first drawn up at Cambridge University in 1848, were particularly influential in the development of subsequent codes, including association football. The Cambridge Rules were written atTrinity College, Cambridge, at a meeting attended by representatives fromEton,Harrow,Rugby,WinchesterandShrewsburyschools. They were not universally adopted. During the 1850s, many clubs unconnected to schools or universities were formed throughout the English-speaking world, to play various forms of football. Some came up with their own distinct codes of rules, most notably theSheffield Football Club, formed by former public school pupils in 1857,which led to formation of aSheffield FAin 1867. In 1862,John Charles ThringofUppingham Schoolalso devised an influential set of rules. These ongoing efforts contributed to the formation ofThe Football Association(The FA) in 1863, which first met on the morning of 26 October 1863 at theFreemasons' TaverninGreat Queen Street, London.The only school to be represented on this occasion wasCharterhouse. The Freemason's Tavern was the setting for five more meetings between October and December, which eventually produced the first comprehensive set of rules. At the final meeting, the first FA treasurer, the representative fromBlackheath, withdrew his club from the FA over the removal of two draft rules at the previous meeting: the first allowed for running with the ball in hand; the second for obstructing such a run by hacking (kicking an opponent in the shins), tripping and holding. OtherEnglish rugby clubs followed this leadand did not join the FA and instead in 1871 formed theRugby Football Union. The eleven remaining clubs, under the charge ofEbenezer Cobb Morley, went on to ratify the original thirteen laws of the game.These rules included handling of the ball by "marks" and the lack of a crossbar, rules which made it remarkably similar toVictorian rules footballbeing developed at that time in Australia. The Sheffield FA played by its own rules until the 1870s with the FA absorbing some of its rules until there was little difference between the games. The world's oldest football competition is theFA Cup, which was founded byC. W. Alcockand has been contested by English teams since 1872. Thefirst official international football matchalso took place in 1872, between Scotland and England inGlasgow, again at the instigation of C. W. Alcock. England is also home to the world's firstfootball league, which was founded inBirminghamin 1888 byAston VilladirectorWilliam McGregor.[30]The original format contained 12 clubs from theMidlandsandNorthern England.The laws of the game are determined by theInternational Football Association Board(IFAB).The Board was formed in 1886after a meeting inManchesterof The Football Association, theScottish Football Association, theFootball Association of Wales, and theIrish Football Association.FIFA, the international football body, was formed in Paris in 1904 and declared that they would adhere to Laws of the Game of the Football Association. The growing popularity of the international game led to the admittance of FIFA representatives to theInternational Football Association Boardin 1913. The board consists of four representatives from FIFA and one representative from each of the four British associations.Today, football is played at a professional level all over the world. Millions of people regularly go to football stadiums to follow their favourite teams,[35]while billions more watch the game on television or on the internet.A very large number of people also play football at an amateur level. According to a survey conducted by FIFA published in 2001, over 240 million people from more than 200 countries regularly play football.Football has the highest global television audience in sport. In many parts of the world football evokes great passions and plays an important role in the life of individualfans, local communities, and even nations. R. Kapuscinski says that Europeans who are polite, modest, or humble fall easily into rage when playing or watching football games.TheCte d'Ivoire national football teamhelped secure a truce to the nation'scivil warin 2006and it helped further reduce tensions between government and rebel forces in 2007 by playing a match in the rebel capital ofBouak, an occasion that brought both armies together peacefully for the first time. By contrast, football is widely considered to have been the final proximate cause for theFootball Warin June 1969 betweenEl SalvadorandHonduras.The sport also exacerbated tensions at the beginning of theYugoslav Warsof the 1990s, when a match betweenDinamo ZagrebandRed Star Belgradedegenerated into rioting in May 1990.