Sports in Britain

The British are a sports-loving nation. Crickets, soccer, rugby, tennis, .quash, table tennis, badminton, canoeing and snooker were all invented in Britain. The first rules for such sports as boxing, golf, hockey, yachting and horse-racing also originated from Britain. The most popular sports that people take part in, rather than watching, are 'Milling, snooker and darts.

Cricket is very much the English game. A match can take five days -and still end in a draw. A form of cricket was being played 250 years

Football began as a contest between neighboring villages - with no limit to the number on each side, no fixed pitch and almost no rules. The Football Association drew up the rules of the modern game in 1863 and in 1888 12 clubs joined together to form the first Football League. England won the World Cup in 1966. Rugby and football became two separate ports when the rules laid down by the Football Association said that only the goalkeeper could handle the ball. Two kinds of rugby are played in Britain. Rugby Union is played by amateurs in teams of 15 in the south England and in Wales (where it is the national sport). Rugby League is played by professionals in teams of 13 in the north of England.

Golf was probably invented in Holland, but has been played in Scotland for at least 400 years. At first, it was played with balls made of wood, then of leather stuffed with feathers.

The first rules for tennis were drawn up by the All-England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club when it held its first tournament in the London imbrue of Wimbledon in 1877. Wimbledon is still the world’s most famous tennis event.

Answer the questions:

1. How can you prove that sports play an important part in Britain?

2. What is the history of football?

3. Is cricket popular in Britain?

4. What two kinds of rugby are played in Britain?

5. Where was golf invented?

6. What were the first rules of tennis drawn by?

Sports in America

Americans pay much attention to physical fitness. Many sports and sporting activities are popular in the USA. People participate in swimming, skating, squash and badminton, tennis, marathons, track-and-field, howling, archery, skiing, skating etc. But the five major American sports me hockey, volleyball, baseball, football and basketball. Basketball and volleyball have been invented in America.

There is a large choice of sports in America. This can be explained by ill' size and variety of the country. Another reason of the popularity of ports is the people's love of competition of any kind. One more reason is that Americans use sports activities for teaching social values, such as teamwork and sportsmanship. All this explains why Americans have traditionally done well in many kinds of sports.

Every high school offers its students many sports, such as wrestling, rowing, tennis and golf. There are no separate «universities» for sports in the USA. Students of any higher educational establishment are trained in different kinds of sports. Many colleges and universities are famous for their sports clubs. There are sports facilities at every school.

Some unusual kinds of sports originated in America. They are wind-J surfing, skate-boarding and triathlon. Triathlon includes swimming,] bicycle racing and long-distance-running. Now these sports are becoming more and more popular in Europe.

Indeed, sports is a part of life of an average American

Answer the questions:

1. What kinds of sports are popular in the USA? 2. What are the reasons of popularity of sports in the USA? 3. What part do sports play in educating young people? 4. What kinds of sports originated in America?