Sports | SSC CGL Tier 2 - Study Material, Online Tests, Previous Year PDF Download

Sports are an important part of every society, country and individual. Games and sports are an integral part of students life. It encourages growth of team spirit. The famous sports are discussed below.

Olympic Games

Olympic Games are an international sporting event which is organised in the form of summer and winter sports. The Summer Olympic Games were first held in 1896. The Winter Olympic Games were created after the huge success of the Summer Olympics. Baron Pierre de Coubertin founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894. The Olympic Games are held after every four years, with the Summer and Winter Games alternatively occurring every four years but two years apart from each other.
The Olympics games originated in the city of Olympia, an ancient city of Greece. These games were held at Mount Olympia. India officially participated in the Olympics for the first time in the year 1920, in the 6th edition of the games at Antwerp, Belgium.
The Olympic flag is made up of white silk and contains five intertwined rings as the Olympics emblem. The colour of rings represents different continents.

Winter Olympic Games

Winter Olympic games were started in the year A.D. 1924. The first game was held at Chamonix (France). The winter games are numbered in rotation as they are held. The programme at the winter games includes ice hockey, figure skating, speed skating, alpine sking, skating, etc. Like the summer games, the winter games are also awarded gold, silver and bronze medals.

Question for Sports

Try yourself:

What is the purpose of the Olympic Games?

A.
To promote cultural exchange between countries.
B.
To encourage individual growth and development.
C.
To foster a sense of competition and team spirit.
D.
To showcase new sports and athletic achievements.

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Paralympic Games

Back in 1948, Sir Ludwig Guttman, a neurologist who was working with World War II veterans with spinal injuries at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Aylesbury, began using sport as part of the rehabilitation programmes of his patients. He set up a competition with other hospitals to coincide with the London Olympics in that year.
The Paralympics are elite sport events for athletes from six different disability groups. Athletes include those with mobility disabilities, intellectual disabilities, visual impairments, cerebral palsy and amputees.
This event focuses on the athletes’ achievements rather than their disabilities.
Paralympic sports include athletics, cycling, judo, rowing, swimming, and volleyball.
The Paralympic Games are always held in the same year as the Olympic Games. The name comes from the fact that it runs parallel to the Olympic Games, hence the name Paralympics.
The first Paralympic Games were held in Rome, Italy, in 1960 and involved 400 athletes from 23 countries. Originally, only wheelchair athletes were invited to compete.
The Paralympics are held in two seasons: summer and winter.

Commonwealth Games

It is the second largest sports festival in the world after Olympics.
It is held in four years in between the olympic years.
The first Commonwealth Games were held in 1930 at Hamilton, Canada.
India, for the first time, participated in the 2nd Commonwealth Games held in 1934 at London.

Asian Games

The idea of the Asian Games was first conceived by Prof. G.D. Sondhi. The first Asian Games were held at New Delhi on 4th March, 1951.
The motto of the Asian Games “play the game in spirit of the game” was given by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.
Its emblem is a bright full rising sun with interlocking rings.

South Asian Games

The SAG(SAF) games was first held in 1984 at Kathmandu, Nepal. The seven participating countries are India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives. The motto of SAG games is “Peace, Prosperity and Progress”. The games’ year 1986 edition was not staged as it was a year of

Commonwealth and Asian Games.

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Cricket World Cup

It is organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) after every 4 years.
The first World Cup was organized in England in June 1975.
Australia is the champion of ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, which also holds the record of winner for maximum number of times.
The first Cricket Test Match was played in Melbourne between England and Australia in 1877.
The first One-day International Cricket Match was played in the year 1971 between England and Australia in Melbourne.
The first twenty-20 International match was played on 17th February, 2005 between Australia and New Zealand in which the former came out victorious.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was formed in 1927.

FIFA World Cup

It is held after every four years.
Germany was the champion of 20th FIFA World Cup held last in 2014 in Brazil, which was their 4th title.
Brazil has won five times and they are the only team to have played in every tournament.
The 2018 World Cup was hosted by Russia and World Cup 2022 will be hosted by Qatar.

Hockey World Cup

It is organised by the International Hockey Federation. It was started in 1971.
It is held every four years.
India has won the tournament only once in 1975, since its inception in 1971.

Tennis Grand Slams

The four Grand Slam tournaments, also called majors, are the most important annual tennis events. The Grand Slam itinerary consists of the ‘Australian-open’ in mid January, the ‘French open’ in May/June, ‘Wimbledon’ in June/July, and the ‘US open’ in August /September. Each tournament is played over a period of two weeks.