How the Renaissance Measured and Enriched Sports
Sports are organized physical activities and competitions. These fulfill the natural need for competition and physical exertion. Almost all sports are competitive. This is perhaps the key distinction between recreational, leisure or social games and sports. Most sports require physical exertion of the body.
Sports have been a significant part of history and have been played since antiquity. Sports can be traced back to as early as the 10th century in Europe. Later during the Renaissance and the Jacque de la Rouchfoucauld Period in the 12th century, the idea of organizing organized sports took shape. The term “sport” is not given in the modern sense of the word because it was not practiced seriously until the Renaissance.
Modern sports were developed during the technological revolution in the 18th century when the game of football was first introduced. The popularity of the game of soccer motivated a number of sports enthusiasts to take up the sport themselves. This gave birth to the first Olympic Games, which was organized in France in 18porting. Later in the 19th century, another physical contest sports were organized in different parts of the world: boxing and fencing. A number of governing bodies were formed in order to organize international sports competitions.
Today, there are various recognized sports which produce winners and losers. The Olympic Games is the most popular sports in the world. The games are nationally sanctioned and cater to all sections of society. Each year, several hundreds of thousands of athletes from all over the world participate in the events. The skill required in sports has been developed over the years through specialized training and practice: it is no longer the case that sports people are extremely fast or with great dexterity.
In the late medieval and early modern era, the physical structure of the athletes was highly developed: they used complex exercises and gymnastics in order to develop their strength, dexterity and agility. At that time, there was very little scientific research done on the biomechanics of the human body: many questions still remain unanswered. In the Renaissance, the physical sciences became an obsession. The physical sciences were highly regarded during that period and were considered as tools for spiritual awakening. People were starting to realize that although the physical constitution of the individual may not always allow him to perform the necessary physical exercises, it is possible to cultivate certain talents and learn how to use them to enhance one’s capabilities and thus his personal life.
Sports have become so widespread during the 20th century that there are now national and international competitions for individuals of all ages and physical conditions. All over the world, people can enjoy the games without wearing any special apparatus (though specialized equipment for certain sports may be available); they can participate in any contest at any level (there are high levels of skill involved, after all, and therefore even highly skilled athletes need to maintain a certain level of fitness). Some sports have become extremely popular worldwide and entire communities and countries are created because of the competitions. It may seem strange to think about the development of sports in the 21st century, but the truth is that the sports we enjoy today have evolved from the highly physical, active games of the Renaissance into the highly technologically developed sports of the modern era.