The world is changing: something is shamelessly outdated, something new is replacing the outdated. It’s the same with sports. Although it seems that this does not concern him, because most of sports are older than the sideboard in grandma's apartment. But nevertheless, in the margins of history there are several undeservedly, and perhaps deservedly forgotten sports. Some of them were transformed, while others ceased to be considered a sport at all. But first things first.

1. Shooting pigeons

This discipline was somewhat reminiscent of hunting. It is not clear whether it is good or bad that this sport was canceled, since cities are literally suffocating in hordes of feathered carcasses. Pigeons also spread various diseases. On the one hand, there was a plus in this fun, but on the other, it was somehow not civilized, or something.

The sport, by the way, was an Olympic sport, but it got to the Olympics only once: in 1900. Then the athletes shot 300 pigeons. The most accurate was the Belgian Leon de Landen, who scored 21 points. These were the only Olympic Games of modern times during which living creatures died. After this, the discipline returned to the program for some time, but they were already shooting at clay pigeons.

2. Rackets

An invention of British sports fans. The essence of the game is simple: two or four participants take turns throwing the ball at the wall so that when it bounces it hits the opponent's half. When one player makes a mistake, the right to serve is transferred to another and so on. In a word, when you and a friend threw a ball at the wall out of boredom in the yard, you were not just passing the time, but playing a once Olympic sport.

The British achieved the inclusion of rackets in the program of the 1908 Olympics in London, where they competed for two sets of awards - in singles and doubles. Only seven Britons applied to participate. After the London Games, racketeering was not heard of at the Olympics. And no one lost anything from this.

3. Jeu-de-pom

The roots of de poma (from the French jeu - “game”, paume - “palm”) go back to the Middle Ages. The ancient game became the ancestor of tennis, squash, racquetball (a game reminiscent of squash) and handball. The first mentions of the jeu de pomme appeared in the 13th century - even then it was played in France, Italy and England.

The rules are extremely simple: you need to throw a small ball over a stretched net or rope with your hand. Then they began to use a bat - a wide stick - as a playing implement, and later they switched to prototypes of rackets, although initially they used their palms, but this is very painful. Special indoor halls called “tripo” (from the French tripot) became the place for playing jeu-de-pom. In Paris alone there were more than 200 such premises, which immediately attracted the attention of the capital's bourgeoisie - the game was affordable mainly for members of the royal court and high-ranking nobles.

They played zhe-de-pom for money: the bet was an ecu coin (equal to 60 sous) - an artisan could quite easily exist for several weeks on this amount. The ecu was divided into four parts of 15 sous, each of which was worth one point. This is where, by the way, the scoring system in modern tennis came from, only “45” was replaced by “40” for the convenience of commenting - shouting out a short number turns out to be much more energetic.

The game was included in the program of the 1908 Olympics in London, but ironically, only the British and Americans took part in the first and last Olympic jeu de pom tournament, and not its creators, the French.
By the way, this sport was well known in Russia. The Department of Sports of St. Petersburg State University still has a platform for this fun. It has been standing since the eighteenth century.

4. Pistol duel

In fact, there was nothing scary about this discipline. Only at first glance it seems that such a sport is somehow connected with aristocrats, etiquette, gloves to the face and gunshot wounds. In reality, everything was not quite like that, since the opponents of the Olympians were... mannequins, as was the case at the games in 1906. The rivals took turns shooting at the scarecrow from a distance of 20 and 30 meters. This sport appeared again in the 1912 games, but then disappeared forever.

5. Art

"Nonsense!" - you say. “Really, it’s nonsense,” we agree. It’s hard to even call it a sport. On the other hand, all those who despise physical exercise and says that the jocks are degenerates and have received some confirmation of their words.

It all started in Stockholm. In 1912, art competitions were included in the Olympic Games program. This was part of the idea of ​​Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the IOC. Later, at the 1912 Games, De Coubertin, who was physically undeveloped, won the gold medal in literature.

In 1948, 25 countries sent artists to London to compete in the fields of architecture, painting, sculpture, literature and music. This was the last time art competitions were held at the Olympics. But once again this sport killed professionalism. Most of the artists were professionals, which was contrary to the then IOC statute, and the competition was removed from the program of the Olympic Games. And then it finally dawned on everyone that at a sports festival there is no place for ranting about paintings and vases.

6. Swimming with obstacles

A very unusual, but undoubtedly fun 200m swimming competition. The competitors first swam to the pillar and quickly climbed onto it. And then they had to go back down, swim a little more, climb over two boats, cover the distance under two more, and then, finally, the finish line appeared on the horizon.

The competition was held only once, during the 1900 Olympic Games. Then the winner was Frederick Lane from Australia. Now you imagine all this wisdom, and it even becomes a pity that this sport has long ceased to be an Olympic sport. In terms of entertainment, it would probably surpass many activities.

7. Naumachia

Let's descend into unforgivable antiquity. At that time, sports such as chariot riding, running and wrestling already existed. But the most spectacular, of course, were the gladiatorial fights, the most impressive of which was the naumachia - a Roman sailors' tournament, the name roughly translates as "sea battle", a kind of progenitor of sailing. Only in sailing no one kills anyone.

The Romans filled the arena with water, launched boats into it and recreated famous naval battles. These were often bloody spectacles involving prisoners of war or people sentenced to death. Unlike most similar sporting events, naumachia was characterized by an extremely high mortality rate among participants.

8. Venazio

It is difficult to say for whom these competitions were worse - for the slaves or for the animals with whom they were forced to fight. In fact, the Romans were so interested in the confrontation between people and animals that at the grand opening of the Colosseum, more than 9,000 wild animals were released against the people, some of which were killed. People often suffered the same fate: for example, sometimes participants were not given any weapons at all, and their opponents were lions or bears, and people had to somehow defeat the hungry beast or die. Often these competitions included some kind of drama: the fighters were presented as heroes of a theatrical plot. The Roman authorities thus achieved two goals at once: they executed criminals and provided entertainment for the masses.

The development and change of sport throughout human history can tell a lot both about social changes in society in general and about the essence of sport in particular. A number of theories try to explain the origins of physical culture in general and sports in particular:

• “game theories”, which originated with F. Schiller and which were later developed by Bucher, Groos and Letourneau, consider the entire human culture, including physical, as the development of gaming activities. IN modern philosophy The most famous proponent of game theories is Johan Huizinga. Adjacent to game theories is the “theory of excess energy” by G. Spencer, which can also be considered as their variety; according to this theory, primitive man, who needed to release excess energy, improved movements (games and dances) that made it possible to do this most successfully
• The “theory of magic” (Reinach, later Dim, Kerbe, Gillette) connects the emergence of physical culture with the need to learn and improve dances and dances that imitate work and hunting. magical rituals
• “theory of war” (Burke) considers physical education and sports as a means of developing physical fitness and skills necessary for combat
• materialist theory, or “theory of labor” (proposed by G.V. Plekhanov and developed by N.I. Ponomarev) considers types of labor activity as the sources of almost all modern types of physical education and sports

Many examples of cave art discovered to date contain depictions of ritual ceremonial scenes. Although the actions depicted in these images cannot be attributed solely to modern concept about sports, we can still conclude that even then there were activities and rituals reminiscent of sports activities. These images, located in France, Africa and Australia, were taken 30,000 years ago. In Mongolia, dating back to the seventh millennium BC, was discovered. e. rock carving of fighters surrounded by a crowd. Cave paintings discovered in Japan depict sumo-style fights, apparently associated with agricultural religious rituals.

There are objects and buildings that indicate that activities that fit the modern definition of sports existed in China as early as 4,000 BC. Apparently gymnastics was a popular sport in ancient China. In the 1st millennium BC. e. “Zhu Ke” was popular among the common people - team game into the ball, within which up to 70 types of hits and up to 10 types of rule violations were distinguished. The Sumerian civilization left archaeologists a number of artifacts indicating the popularity of wrestling in Ancient Mesopotamia, including stone bas-reliefs from approximately five thousand years ago and a bronze figurine from Khafaji depicting wrestlers and dating from approximately 2600 BC. e. Paintings of wrestlers in the ancient Egyptian tombs of Beni Hassan date back to the same period, showing that already 4.5 thousand years ago most modern holds were used in wrestling. Images from this era may indicate that Libyans and Nubians took part in wrestling competitions, as well as the presence of referees. Older images can also be interpreted as evidence of races, which may even have been used to select rulers. IN Ancient Persia There was a horse-drawn game called chautam, reminiscent of polo. This game, like chess, shooting, javelin throwing, wrestling and running, was taught to boys in special educational homes at the court.

The Mesoamerican ball game developed in Central America, including among the Olmec people - already in the 14th century. BC uh.. Existed different kinds games in which you were allowed to kick the ball in different parts bodies or a stick, found playing fields with rings fixed at different ends at a great height indicate the possible existence of a semblance of modern basketball. The ball game was used by the peoples of America to resolve controversial issues (including disputes over territory) and was often of a ritual nature, especially during the heyday of the Mayan culture; losing the game could mean death for the losers who were sacrificed.

IN Ancient Greece a wide variety of sports already existed. Various types of wrestling, running, discus throwing and chariot competitions received the greatest development. Judging by this list, military culture and military art were directly related to sports in Ancient Greece (and not only there). There, every four years since 776 BC. e. The Olympic Games were held in a small village in the Peloponnese called Olympia. In addition to the Olympic Games, which were the oldest sports festival common to all of Hellas, those founded in the 6th century were of an interstate nature. BC e. Pythian, Nemean and Isthmian games. Later, already during the period of Roman rule over Greece, the Actium Games established by Octavian and the Capitoline Games established by Domitian were added to large-scale sporting events, but during the Roman period in general, sports ceased to be of a mass nature.

Sports in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance

After Christianity replaced paganism in Europe, sports went into decline. Church doctrine considered exercises for developing the body to corrupt the soul and alienate a person from God.

After the transformation of Christianity into the state religion of the Roman Empire, ancient physical culture fell into decay and already in 394, under Emperor Theodosius, the Olympic Games and Olympic chronology were abandoned. Subsequently, sports competitions were held from time to time, only with special permissions and mainly in the eastern part of the empire (for the last time in 520). After large-scale popular unrest in 529, Emperor Justinian closed almost all organizations and institutions of physical culture, including the famous Athenian gymnasium. The development of sports in the Western world stopped for centuries, resuming only during the Renaissance

During the same period, physical culture was dying out at the other end of Eurasia - in China, where, under the influence of Confucianism, interest in human physical development fell. This era became a period of fragmentation of Chinese therapeutic gymnastics into many very different areas. The lessons of the Yellow Turban Rebellion prompted the Jin authorities in China to ban the carrying of weapons, which led to the emergence of new forms of unarmed fighting among the people, as well as the development of stick fencing. In the 6th century, the Shaolin school of martial arts was born, then similar schools emerged in other places in China with the support of Buddhist monks, and even later, already in the middle of the second millennium new era, a similar ban on the carrying of weapons by the common people led to the emergence of martial arts in Japan, different from those that developed on the continent. During the era of Mongol rule (Yuan dynasty), other sports related to military training - horse riding, archery, and various types of wrestling - became widespread in China. The Japanese samurai, who even with weapons began to lose battles to unarmed peasants, in turn developed a system of fighting without weapons, called “ju-jutsu” (in the West - “jiu-jitsu”).

Despite the official negative attitude christian church To physical culture the authorities had to not only encourage the training of knighthood, which was the main military force in Western Europe, but also to turn a blind eye to folk games and competitions - in particular, in the German lands and Ireland, where the tradition of games survived until the second half of the 12th century. The attitude towards popular entertainment among the people was even more tolerant in regions where Orthodoxy dominated. With the weakening of feudal oppression in Western Europe during the high Middle Ages and later during the Renaissance, a similar different countries common folk physical culture, which included running, jumping, throwing weights and wrestling. Already in the 13th century, running tracks appeared and the organized production of skates began, and in the 14th century there are descriptions variety of games with a ball - tennis, fives, bendyball, football (in England and Italy, where the game was called “calcio”), bowling, hurling. In cities where a guild culture existed, competitions were held between guilds in disciplines related to the main profession of the participants - rowing, diving, swimming for salt workers, fencing for gunsmiths, etc. With the beginning of the Renaissance in Western and Central Europe interest in the harmonious development of the human body is returning. Knighthood is replaced by infantry as the basis of regular armies, and among popular competitions, shooting tournaments (both with a bow and crossbow, and with firearms) and fencing occupy a prominent place. In the 16th century, treatises were published in Italy detailed description rules of individual games (including calcio) and training methods. In France, in the same century, jeu de paume, the forerunner of tennis, experienced a boom. A contemporary Englishman who visited France at the end of the century wrote that the number of ball courts there exceeded the number of churches. In the Netherlands, ice skating has become an equally popular pastime.

Sports in modern times

Glorious Revolution in England late XVII century, abolished all centuries-old bans on games and competitions, giving impetus to their flourishing. At this time, in bourgeois England, traditions of the so-called “gentleman’s sport” were taking shape: young people from wealthy families did not so much engage in sports themselves, but rather participated in betting on horse racing and running and boxing competitions, sponsoring the development of these sports and indirectly influencing the formation of sustainable , rules common throughout the country. The gentlemen themselves preferred to play cricket, which did not require much physical effort and did not pose a health hazard. The Industrial Revolution and mass production meant that everything more people began to have free time. This, in turn, became the key to the mass appeal of the sport. More people wanted and were able to make sports a part of their lives, either by playing sports directly or devoting their leisure time to watching sports competitions. The first was published in England in 1722 tutorial figure skating, and in 1742 the world's first sports society was opened figure skating- Edinburgh Skating Club. The English approach to sport spread across continental Europe and the overseas colonies, becoming dominant in the Western world; under the influence of “gentleman's sport”, the competitive element penetrated into national sports, in particular into speed skating in Holland.

An important contribution to the development of physical culture, both of his time and of subsequent centuries, was made by the German physician and philanthropist I. K. F. Gutsmuts. He not only wrote textbooks on gymnastics and swimming, as well as a work that popularized sports games, but also introduced gymnastic equipment that is still in use today, including the modernized gymnastic horse and horizontal bar, as well as pole vaulting. Gymnastics actively developed throughout the 19th century in many European countries, where it was given applied importance in the context of growing national self-awareness and the need for mass participation. military training. Their own gymnastics schools appeared in France, Denmark, the German states, Switzerland, the Czech Republic (at that time part of the Austrian Empire) and Sweden. Swedish teacher Hjalmar Ling, the son of therapist Per Ling, developed a number of gymnastic equipment that is still in use today - a bench with a saddle (a further development of the gymnastic horse), a balance beam, a Swedish wall, and a diving springboard. In Russia, by the beginning of the 20th century, Czech, Swedish and German gymnastics schools, as well as their own system of physical education developed by P. F. Lesgaft, were especially popular.

By the end of the 19th century, the rules of popular sports games. In England, football became a truly popular game, cricket and croquet developed, and polo, badminton, ping-pong, and lacrosse, brought from the colonies, found their fans. Baseball, which developed from the English game, became popular in the USA. folk game with a bat. In France, athletics competitions became especially popular; in the 80s, a speed skating track was built from artificial ice. In different countries, traditions of bicycle and then auto racing were born. The international Young Christian Association (YMCA) played a major role in the popularization of sports and physical education. Under her auspices, the Institute of Sports Coaching developed and sports facilities were built; The activities of the Association led to the invention of volleyball and basketball. In Russia, one of the YMCA figures founded the Mayak Society for Promoting the Spiritual, Moral and Physical Development of Young People, which existed until October revolution. Another popular physical culture and sports organization in Russia was the Bogatyr Body Education Society; by 1914, there were already 360 such organizations in the country. Already from the middle of the 19th century, sport again outgrew the national framework, and the development of the international sports movement began. In 1851, the first international chess tournament was held, and privately organized “world championships” began. different types sports. Often such competitions were held several times a year in different countries and according to different rules, which became the impetus for the organization of international sports unions (the first of which was in 1881 European Union gymnastics) and unification of rules.

also in mid-19th century, attempts to revive the Olympic Games of antiquity begin. The first “Olympic Games” of modern times were held in 1836 in the resort town of Ramlösa (Sweden) - they were organized for residents of neighboring villages by Per Ling’s student Gustav Sharatau. Two years later, an attempt was made to revive the Olympic Games in newly independent Greece, but this time things did not go beyond the first games in a village near the historical Olympia. In 1859, the games were held in Athens on a grand scale, under the patronage of King Otto, and included competitions in a number of sports disciplines in the restored ancient stadium, as well as competitions in art in the specially built “Zappeion” (named after the one who donated money for organization of Evangelis Zappas). These games were not yet international in the full sense of the word - only ethnic Greeks from different countries participated in them. Subsequently, games in this format were held three more times - in 1870, 1875, and 1888-1889.

The true revival of the Olympic Games is due to physical education enthusiast Pierre de Coubertin. In the early 1880s, Coubertin and like-minded people founded the National League for Physical Education in France, and at the end of the same decade, the Committee for the Promotion of Physical Education (together with the Minister of Education Jules Simon) and the Union of French Athletic Societies. In 1889, on the initiative of Coubertin, a congress on physical culture was held as part of the World Exhibition in Paris, and in 1892 he first took the initiative at the Sorbonne with the initiative of multi-sport international competitions - the new Olympic Games. The founding congress of the Olympic Games took place two years later, with the participation of delegates from 39 sports societies in France, Great Britain, the United States, Russia, Sweden, Spain, Italy, Greece, Belgium and the Netherlands (assurances of support were also received from Australia and Japan). The delegates decided that the first modern Olympic Games would be held in Greece in 1896, and the International Olympic Committee was established. The first Olympic Games took place in April 1896. Competitions were held in Greco-Roman wrestling, cycling, gymnastics, athletics, swimming, shooting, tennis, weightlifting and fencing - a total of 43 sets of awards were awarded; the planned rowing competition did not take place due to a lack of participants. A total of 241 athletes from 14 countries took part in the Games (of which more than 200 were from the organizing country), and medals were won by athletes from ten different countries. After this, the modern Olympic Games are held every four years, with the exception of years that fall during the world wars.

The trends of sport as a mass spectacle have developed with the advent of mass media and global communications. The sport became professional, which further increased its popularity. Modern post-industrial society, based on such resources as information and knowledge, using the possibilities of individual contacts of people using Internet technologies, actively cultivates intellectual sports such as poker and online multiplayer games.

The ancient Mesoamerican sport called ulama, or pok-ta-pok, was a dangerous game that could injure players and often mean a death sentence for the losing team. The heart of this game, which was born three and a half thousand years ago, was a small rubber ball, the size of a volleyball. It was this ball that captivated the whole of Europe and became the progenitor of all modern balls, from tennis to soccer.

A few years after the conquest of Mexico, in 1528, Hernán Cortés returned to the court of the Spanish king Carlos V with rich and exotic gifts. Among them was a wonderful drink made from cocoa beans, which later became hot chocolate. However, what surprised the courtiers most of all was a simple object brought by the conquerors from the New World - a springy rubber ball.

The royal court watched in fascination as the ball, defying the laws of gravity, ricocheted from one Aztec player to another. Captured Indians demonstrated their native sport, ulama, to the courtiers. Without using arms or legs, the Indians threw the ball to each other using their hips and knees. The elastic ball, rushing at great speed between the players, was so different from those lifeless leather bags filled with wool, down or even air that developed Europeans used to play early versions of tennis and football.

The royal historian of the time was equally struck by the rubber ball that Christopher Columbus brought back from his second voyage to the shores of the New World. The historian even wrote that he could not understand how, when the ball hit the ground, it acquired sufficient force to fly high into the air.

The world's oldest sport

Looking at the springy ball and how deftly the players controlled it, the Spaniards did not even suspect that they were watching a demonstration of the most ancient sport on earth. The game of ulama appeared three thousand years before the conquistadors landed in Mexico. Its creators were the ancient Olmecs, the aborigines who inhabited the territory of Mexico in the 2nd-1st millennia BC. e. From the Aztec language, the name of this tribe is translated as “rubber people.”

In several places in Central America, archaeologists have found evidence confirming the antiquity of this sport: rubber balls made in the 17th century BC. e., terracotta figurines of players dating back to the 13th century BC. e., ancient fields for playing pok-ta-pok, which were used first by the Olmecs, and then by their successors - the Mayans and Aztecs.

Rules of the game

The playing fields looked like long alleys, fenced on both sides by a steep stone wall. Wider outer zones were located at both “entrances” to the alley. According to historians, the rules of the game depended on the historical period and region, but there were common features. For example, each team consisted of seven players, and points were scored if the opponent failed to return a thrown ball, as in tennis, or if the ball was thrown into the opponents' end zone, as in American football. On some fields, hoops resembling basketball hoops were attached to the walls at a height of three meters. Additional points were earned by players who managed to throw the ball into the hoop.

Players wore leather gloves to protect them from the rough stones that lined the walls and floor. The sports uniform also included leather clothing to protect the genital area, since the ball could weigh from one to four kilograms. The impact of such a rubber sphere, thrown with sufficient force, could easily cripple and even kill a player.

Familiar features?

Elements of this ancient game familiar to many fans of modern sports. The cultural environment in which the games were practiced was also similar. Mostly matches were played during religious festivals. Spectators watching the game from the stands located above the walls often feasted on holiday snacks and local alcoholic drink based on fermented corn - almost an analogue of modern hot dogs with beer. Wealthy members of society took distinguished players under their wing, provided them with housing, food, and created their own teams, inviting opponents to fight them.

More life

The ulama could not do without bets and some kind of bookmakers. According to historians, the ulama was so popular game that the Aztecs bet all their wealth on the victory of their favorite teams, including houses, crops, children and even their own freedom.

In some regions, the stakes were indeed too high and had nothing to do with gambling spectators. Playing fields were often dedicated to the gods, and in holidays It was customary to sacrifice players of the losing team by beheading them on ritual stones.

The Spaniards, who considered the sport too barbaric, banned it at the end of the 16th century. Today, ulama is practiced in a few remote communities in Mexico, such as the province of Sinaloa, but the legacy of this game is all around us.