In our time, parents who prophesy their children's sports career, tend to initially choose the Olympic sports. They have such an indisputable plus as public funding, which gives a lot of benefits to both young athletes and their potential career.
A bit of history: ancient Olympic sports
As you know, the Olympic Games are held since antiquity - then they were dedicated to the gods of Olympus. The competition did not include so many disciplines: running, various martial arts, petatlon (pentathlon), horse racing, as well as competitions of trumpeters and heralds. Some of the first Olympic sports are still included in the official program - for example, running.
Olympic and non-Olympic sports
For any sport, to become an Olympic sport means to enter a new stage, more prestigious and promising. However, in order for a sport to be able to be ranked as Olympic, it must be popular on all continents, have international associations and an officially approved competition structure. However, there are some sports that are recognized by the Olympic Committee, but they are not included in the program of the Olympic Games.
For example, non-Olympic sports include many professional species that are popular only in individual countries.
For example:
- many varieties of sailing;
- extreme sports;
- many types of martial arts;
- American football;
- ballroom dancing;
- cricket;
- golf;
- rugby.
Neo-Olympic sport does not mean unpopular yet! Many of the above attract mass viewers and even have their own funding.
Summer Olympic sports
The official program of the Summer Olympic Games includes 41 disciplines (28 sports):
- badminton;
- basketball;
- boxing;
- fight;
- freestyle wrestling;
- Greco-Roman wrestling;
- cycling BMX;
- cycle race;
- Mountain bike;
- road cycling;
- water polo;
- swimming;
- diving;
- synchronized swimming;
- volleyball;
- Beach volleyball;
- handball;
- gymnastics;
- gymnastics;
- jumping on the trampoline;
- rowing;
- canoeing and kayaking;
- rowing slalom;
- judo;
- Horseback Riding;
- dressage;
- competition;
- triathlon;
- Athletics;
- table tennis;
- sailing;
- modern pentathlon;
- shooting;
- archery;
- tennis;
- triathlon;
- taekwondo;
- Weightlifting;
- fencing;
- football;
- field hockey.
Now the elimination of the struggle from the Olympic Games program is being actively discussed, so there is a possibility that in the near future this sport will drop out of the list.
Winter Olympic sports
The official program of the Winter Olympic Games includes 15 disciplines (7 sports):
- biathlon;
- curling;
- skating;
- figure skating;
- short track;
- skiing;
- Nordic combined;
- ski race;
- jumping from a springboard;
- snowboard;
- freestyle;
- bobsled;
- skeleton;
- luge sports;
- hockey.
Many of the winter Olympic sports are popular with modern youth as ordinary entertainment - for example, skiing, snowboarding or skating .
New Olympic sports
At the upcoming Olympic Games in Sochi in 2014, three new disciplines will be presented at once:
- slopestyle in snowboarding;
- slopestyle in freestyle;
- parallel slalom in snowboarding.
Slopstyle is an acrobatic trick when descending from a height. To include this rather extreme sport in the Olympic Games, it was decided in connection with its incredible popularity around the world. However, in the promotion of it, the US Ski and Snowboarding Association has mostly succeeded. Experts believe that it is the American athletes who will take the first places.