Basketball
Basketball is a sport in which two teams of five players each try to score points by throwing a ball through a hoop (the basket) under organized rules. Since its invention in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1891, it has developed to become a truly international sport. Organized league play originated in the YMCA and early leagues were formed in colleges. Basketball eventually became a professional sport. Even though it was originally an American sport, it quickly spread internationally and outstanding players and teams are found today all over the world. Basketball is primarily an indoor sport, played on a basketball court. Points are scored for passing the ball through the basket from above; the team with more points at the end of the game wins. The ball can be advanced on the court by bouncing it (dribbling) or passing it between teammates, but no walking with the ball. Disruptive physical contact (fouls) is not permitted and there are restrictions on how the ball can be handled (violations). Through time, basketball has developed to involve common techniques of shooting, passing and dribbling, as well as players' positions, and offensive and defensive structures. While competitive basketball is carefully regulated, numerous variations of basketball have developed for casual play. Basketball is also a popular spectator sport.

Airsoft
The game is highly popular in several Asian regions, such as Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau, and South Korea, and, to a certain extent, the Philippines, where firearms are difficult or impossible to obtain due to local laws. For this reason, the vast majority of airsoft guns, accessories, and aftermarket upgrade parts are made in these countries. This activity is legal on mainland China despite rumors. There is currently a growing interest in the West, especially in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, France, Spain, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Italy, Belgium (where the Dutch players also go, since in the Netherlands it is illegal), and Denmark, bolstered by an active and expanding Internet scene. A game in which players participate in the simulation of military or law enforcement combat with replica military firearms and military-style tactics.

Volleyball
Volleyball is an Olympic sport in which two teams, separated by a high net, hit a ball back and forth over the net between the teams. Each team is allowed three hits to get the ball over the net to the other team. A point is scored if the ball hits the ground in the opponents' court, if the opponents commit a fault, or if they fail to return the ball properly. Volleyball can be a very active sport that can provide an excellent level of aerobic exercise. It also helps players in their hand-eye coordination and the ability to override the instinctive desire to dodge a fast-moving object such as a ball. On February 9, 1895, in Holyoke, Massachusetts, William G. Morgan, a YMCA physical education director, created a new game called Mintonette as a pastime to be played preferably indoors and by any number of players. The game took some of its characteristics from tennis and handball. Another indoor sport, basketball, was catching on in the area, having been invented just ten miles away in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts only four years before. Mintonette (as volleyball was then known) was designed to be an indoor sport less rough than basketball for older members of the YMCA, while still requiring a bit of athletic effort.

Boxing
Boxing, nicknamed the "sport of kings" and also called pugilism or prizefighting (when refering to professional boxing), is a sport where two participants of similar weight attack each other with their fists in a series of one to three-minute intervals called "rounds". In both Olympic and professional divisions, the combatants (called boxers or fighters) avoid their opponent's punches whilst trying to land punches of their own. Points are awarded for clean, solid blows to the legal area on the front of the opponent's body above the waistline, with hits to the head and torso being especially valuable. The fighter with the most points after the scheduled number of rounds is declared the winner. Victory may also be achieved if the opponent is knocked down and unable to get up before the referee counts to ten (a Knockout, or KO) or if the opponent is deemed too injured to continue (a Technical Knockout, or TKO). For record keeping a TKO is a knockout or KO. You will see on boxers' records the mention only of "KO". The phrase "technical knockout" usually only appears in contemporaneous news articles. A Greek ruler named Thesus, who ruled around 900 B.C., was entertained by men who would be seated in front of each other and beat another with their fists until one of them was killed. In time, the fighters fought on their feet and wore gloves (not padded) and wrappings on their arms below the elbows, but were otherwise naked when competing. First accepted as an Olympic sport (the ancient Greeks called it Pygme/ Pygmachia) in 688 BC, participants in the ancient games trained on punching bags (called a korykos). Keeping their fingers free, fighters then wore leather straps (called himantes) on their hands, wrists, and sometimes lower arms, to protect them from injury.

Golf
Golf (gowf in Scots) is a game where individual players or teams hit a ball into a hole using various clubs, and is one of the few ball games that does not use a fixed standard playing area. It is defined in the Rules of Golf as "playing a ball with a club from the teeing ground into the hole by a stroke or successive strokes in accordance with the Rules." Golf originated in Scotland and has been played for at least five centuries in the British Isles. The oldest course in the world is The Old Links at Musselburgh. Golf, in essentially the form we know it today, has been played on Scotland's Musselburgh Links since 1672, and earlier versions of the game have been played in the British Isles and the low-countries of Northern Europe for several centuries before that. Although often viewed as an elite pastime, golf is an increasingly popular sport that can be played for one's entire life. Golf is played on a tract of land designated as the course. The course consists of a series of holes. A hole means both the hole in the ground into which the ball is played (also called the cup), as well as the total distance from the tee (a pre-determined area from where a ball is first hit) to the green (the area surrounding the actual hole in the ground). Most golf courses consist of 9 or 18 holes. (The "nineteenth hole" is the colloquial term for the bar/grill at a club house).

Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving the performance of sequences of movements requiring physical strength, flexibility, and kinesthetic awareness, such as handsprings and handstands. It developed from fitness exercises used by ancient Greek soldiers, including skills for mounting and dismounting a horse, and circus performance skills. It is often considered a dangerous sport, as the difficult acrobatic maneuvers often performed on equipment high above the ground puts the athlete at risk of serious injury. The discipline of rhythmic gymnastics is competed only by women (although there is a new version of this discipline for men being pioneered in Japan, see Men's rhythmic gymnastics), and involves the performance of five separate routines with the use of five apparatus - ball, ribbon, hoop, clubs, rope - on a floor area, with a much greater emphasis on the aesthetic rather than the acrobatic. Rhythmic routines are scored out of a possible 20 points.

Billiards
Billiards is a family of games played on a table, with a stick, known as a cue stick, which is used to strike balls, moving them around the table. All billiard games are generally regarded to have evolved into indoor games from outdoor stick and ball games. The word "billiard" may have evolved from the French word billart, meaning "mace", an implement, similar to a golf club, which was the forerunner to the modern cue. The word "pool" generally refers to pocket billiard games such as 8-ball, 9-ball, straight pool and one-pocket. The word "pool" comes from "poolrooms," where people gambled off track on horse races. They were called poolrooms as money was "pooled" to determine the odds. Because such rooms commonly provided billiard tables, pool became synonymous with billiards by association. The terms "pool" and "pocket billiards" are now interchangeable. The number, type, diameter, color, and pattern of Billiard balls differ depending upon the specific billiards game being played. In eight ball, straight pool, and related games, 16 balls are employed: fifteen colored "object balls" and one white "cue ball". Object balls 1-7 are solid-colored, and are respectively colored yellow, blue, red, purple, orange, green, and dark red or brown. Balls 9-15 are white, each with a single wide colored stripe that matches the corresponding solid ball; the 9-ball has a yellow stripe, the 10-ball a blue stripe, and so on.

Football
Football is the name given to a number of different, but related, team sports. The most popular of these worldwide is Association football, which is known as soccer in some countries. The English language word football is also applied to Rugby football (Rugby union and Rugby league), American football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football and Canadian football. While it is widely believed that the word football, or "foot ball", originated in reference to the action of a foot kicking a ball, there is a rival explanation, which has it that football originally referred to a variety of games in medieval Europe, which were played on foot. These games were usually played by peasants, as opposed to the horse-riding sports often played by aristocrats. While there is no conclusive evidence for this explanation, the word football has always implied a variety of games played on foot, not just those that involved kicking a ball. In some cases, the word football has been applied to games which have specifically outlawed kicking the ball. All football games involve scoring points with a spherical or ellipsoidal ball (itself called a football), by moving the ball into, onto, or over a goal area or line defended by the opposing team. Many of the modern games have their origins in England, but many peoples around the world have played games which involved kicking and/or carrying a ball since ancient times. All football games involve scoring points with a spherical or ellipsoidal ball (itself called a football), by moving the ball into, onto, or over a goal area or line defended by the opposing team. Many of the modern games have their origins in England, but many peoples around the world have played games which involved kicking and/or carrying a ball since ancient times. In all football games, the winning team is the one that has the most points or goals when a specified length of time has elapsed.

Canoe
A canoe is a relatively small boat, typically human-powered, but also commonly sailed. Canoes are pointed at both ends and usually open on top. For the activity of using a canoe in sport or for recreation, see canoeing. In its human-powered form, the canoe is propelled by the use of paddles, with the number of paddlers depending on the size of canoe. Paddlers face in the direction of travel, either seated on supports in the hull, or kneeling directly upon the hull. In this way paddling a canoe can be contrasted with rowing, where the rowers face away from the direction of travel. Paddles may be single-bladed or double-bladed. Sailing canoes are propelled by means of a variety of sailing rigs. Common classes of modern sailing canoes include the 5m² and the International 10m² Sailing canoes. The latter is otherwise known as the International Canoe, and is one of the fastest and oldest competitively sailed boat classes in the western world.

Fishing
Fishing is the activity of hunting for fish. By extension, the term fishing is also applied to hunting for other aquatic animals such as various types of shellfish as well as squid, octopus, turtles, frogs and some edible marine invertebrates. The term fishing is usually not applied to the hunting of aquatic mammals such as whales. Fishing is an ancient and worldwide practice with many techniques and traditions, and it has been transformed by modern technological developments. An organized fishing effort, typically centred around a particular commercially valuable species, is known as a fishery. Fishing is a very ancient practice that dates back at least to the Mesolithic period which began about 10,000 years ago. We know from archaeological features such as shell middens[1], discarded fish bones and cave paintings that sea foods were important and consumed in significant quantities. During this time, most people lived a hunter-gather lifestyle and were, of necessity, constantly on the move. However, where there are a few early examples of permanent settlements (though not necessarily permanently occupied) such as those at Lepenski Vir, they are almost always associated with fishing as a major source of food.

Tennis
Tennis is a sport played between either two players ("singles") or two teams of two players ("doubles"). Player(s) use a stringed racquet to strike a hollow rubber ball covered in felt over a net into the opponent's court. In some places tennis is still called lawn tennis to distinguish it from real tennis (also known as royal tennis or court tennis), an older form of the game that is played indoors on a very different kind of a court. Originating in England in the late 19th Century, the game spread first throughout the English-speaking world, particularly among the upper classes. Tennis is now an Olympic sport that is played at all levels of society and by all ages in many countries around the world. Its rules have remained remarkably unchanged since the 1920s. Along with its millions of players, millions of people follow tennis as a spectator sport, especially the four Grand Slam tournaments. Tennis is played on a rectangular flat surface, usually of grass, clay, or concrete (hard court). The court is 78 feet (23.77 m) long, and its width is 27 feet (8.23 m) for singles matches and 36 feet (10.97 m) for doubles matches. Additional clear space around the court is required in order for players to reach overrun balls. A net is stretched across the full width of the court, parallel with the baselines, dividing it into two equal ends. The net is 3 feet 6 inches (1.07 m) high at the posts, and 3 feet (914 mm) high in the center.

Wrestling
Wrestling is a sport in which a practitoner attempts to defeat an opponent without the use of striking. Wrestling is amongst the oldest sports in history that, over time, has evolved into many different styles and forms. They range from world-wide, commercialised stadium events to less publicized, local amateur competitions. Generally, two persons compete against each other for each contest. According to International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles (FILA), the four main forms of amateur competitive wrestling practiced internationally today are Greco-Roman wrestling, Freestyle wrestling, Judo wrestling and Sambo wrestling. There are almost as many wrestling styles as there are national traditions. Styles include Pehlwani in India, Sumo in Japan, Inner and Outer Mongolian Wrestling, and Yagli güres which is a type of "oiled" wrestling in Turkey. Wrestling is often categorized as one of the martial arts; its virile image and usefulness as military training helped generate such multi-cultural evolutions. Some evidence suggests that wrestling may be the oldest sport known to man. A large amount of early artwork, for example, depicts matches between two opponents. One of the most famous wresting matches appears in the book of Genesis where Jacob wrestles an angel (sometimes thought of as God himself) and is renamed Israel for his struggle, which translates to "Wrestles with God".

Cycling
Cycling is a recreation, a sport and a means of transport across land. It involves riding bicycles, unicycles, tricycles and other human powered vehicles (HPVs). As a sport it is governed internationally by the Union Cycliste Internationale in Switzerland (for upright bicycles) and by the International Human Powered Vehicle Association (for other HPVs). Cycling for transport and touring is promoted on a European level by the European Cyclists' Federation, and regular conferences are held under the auspices of Velo City, whereas global conferences are coordinated by Velo Mondial. The two most popular types of bicycle in North America are mountain bicycles and road bicycles. Both range in price from US$50-3000 or more depending mostly on weight and quality. In the case of road bicycles, the lightest bikes weigh around 6 kg (13 lb) and are the most expensive. For most, a good starting road bike would be in the range of 9-10 kg (20-22 lb) (stripped down with no accessories) and would cost just under US$1,000 in the United States; most likely it will have been manufactured in East Asia, although its actual brand name may be European or American. Basic serviceable second-hand bicycles can be bought for US$50-150 or more from classified advertisements and through online auctions. Being sized for a bike and taking it for a test ride are both recommended before making a purchase. Most road bikes include clipless pedals in which special shoes attach to special pedals, which allows for the transfer of power to the bike throughout the entire pedaling motion. The drivetrain components of the bike should also be considered. A middle grade derailleur is most likely sufficient for a beginner. Also, unless a lot of serious climbing will be done, a double-crank (two chainrings) front gear system will suffice in place of a triple-crank (three chainrings) system.

Martial Arts
A martial art is a system of codified practices and traditions of training for combat. Today, people study martial arts for various reasons including sport, fitness, self-defense, self-cultivation (meditation), mental discipline and character development, and self-confidence. Wordlwide there are a great diversity of martial arts; which, broadly speaking, share a common goal: to physically defeat a person or defend oneself. In many martial arts, training goes beyond fighting to include personal, mental, and spiritual development. A common characteristic of martial arts is the systemization of fighting techniques. One common traditonal method of training, particularly in the East Asian martial arts, is the form or kata (also called poomse, ch'ůan t'ao, kuen, tao lu, hyung, or tuls), which is a set routine of techniques performed alone, or sometimes with a partner.Some martial arts, particularly the traditional Chinese arts, also go beyond this to teach side disciplines such as bone-setting, qigong, acupuncture, acupressure (tui na), and other aspects of traditional Chinese medicine. At an advanced level martial artists can take advantage of a detailed knowledge of how the opponent's body works to drastically increase their techniques' effectiveness. The martial arts, though commonly associated with East Asian cultures and people, are by no means unique to this region. Savate, for example, was developed from Chausson and English boxing as a form of kickboxing in France. Capoeira's athletic movements were developed in Brazil by slaves based on skills brought with them from Africa. English boxing was developed from bare-knuckle boxing.

Badminton
Badminton is a racket (or racquet) sport played by either two opposing players (singles) or two opposing pairs (doubles). Players at opposite ends of the court aim to hit a shuttlecock, more informally called a shuttle, over the net so that it lands inside the marked boundaries of the court, and aim to prevent their opponents from doing the same. Unlike a tennis ball, the shuttlecock flies with a lot of drag, and will not bounce significantly. The shuttlecock is always volleyed, and a rally ends as soon as it touches the ground. Badminton racquets have long shafts, to make it easier to impart a great deal of momentum to overcome the drag. The racquets are also much lighter than tennis racquets, because the shuttlecock is light. Badminton is one of the fastest sports in the world with shuttles reaching speeds of up to 332 km/h (206 mph), faster than the speed of the Eurostar train. Fu Haifeng of China set the official record July 3, 2005. Although the size of a badminton court is smaller than that of a tennis court, the distance run by a player in a match is usually much greater than that in tennis. This is due, in part, to the fact that the entire court must be covered by the player as the shuttlecock is not allowed to bounce before being returned. Also, the rallies of each point tend to be much longer than tennis. This is true even though winning a 'shutout' match in badminton requires only winning 30 points (15-0, 15-0, in a Men's Single match) whereas in tennis it would require 72 points (6-0, 6-0, 6-0). The game of badminton may look easy to play, but it can be physically more tiring than tennis as the time between shots can be much shorter. When you play a shot in tennis you use the whole of your arm in one sweeping action, whereas in badminton you use a wide range of motions, from delicate flicks of wrist and pressing of fingers to full-body smashes and clears. Speed, reaction, and endurance are all important to being a successful badminton player. From a fitness perspective a close comparison can be made to squash which also has the same explosive starts. As in tennis, there are typically five events: men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles (each pair is composed of one man and one woman).

Mountain Bike
A mountain bike, mountain bicycle or ATB (All Terrain Bicycle) is a bicycle designed for mountain biking, either on dirt trails or other unpaved environments. In contrast, road bicycles aren't rugged enough for such terrain. Mountain bikes have fat, knobby tires for extra traction. In recent years front suspension has become the norm and full front and rear suspension is becoming increasingly common. Some mountain bikes are also fitted with bar ends on the handlebars, but with a recent trend in riser handlebars (as opposed to a flat straight handlebar) fewer riders use bar end extensions. The bikes normally have 26 in (660 mm) wheels although since 2002, some models have been available with 29 in (737 mm) wheels. The larger wheels supposedly roll better over obstacles but this comes at the expense of less manoeuvrability and significant uptake is stymied by the limited selection of tyres and forks on offer.

Bodyboarding
A bodyboard is an instrument of wave riding consisting of a small roughly rectangular piece of foam, shaped to a hydrodynamic form. The bodyboard is ridden predominantly lying down, (or 'prone'). It can also be ridden in a half-standing stance (known as 'dropknee') or can even be ridden standing up. The vast majority of bodyboarders usually wear swimfins on both feet to aid in paddling out and taking off. The bodyboard differs from a surfboard in that it is much shorter. Typically it range in length from 40 to 42 inches for men, and from 38 to 40 inches for women, with a squared off nose and angular rails. They are designed to be flexible, and bodyboarders as a whole are more experimental with various materials than their stand-up cousins. The board is made up of a 'core', made from dow/polyethylene, arcel and more recently polypropylene. These are types of plastic, and each gives a bodyboard a different amount of flex and control for the rider. Glued, or more currently, heat-bonded, to this core is a thick plastic bottom (known as the 'slick') which gives the board strength and speed. The top of the board (the deck) is made from softer plastic to give grip and cushioning to the rider. Unlike a surfboard, there is no fin or skegs allowing the rider to rotate the board. But, like the surfboard, a bodyboard can be made with a stringer (or two) to further increase its stiffness. If one so desires, a skeg can be purchased and installed in about 1 minute. A skeg can minimize the looseness that is required for many tricks. This has led to a large decrease in the presence of skegs. It is bad to call a bodyboard a boogie board unless the bodyboard is actually a Boogie brand bodyboard. 'Sponge' or 'Esky lid' are derogatory terms used to describe bodyboards. Although bodyboarding is mistakenly seen as surfing's easier cousin, watermen, knowledgeable in both disciplines, hold that beyond the beginner level they are equal in the time and dedication it takes to become proficient. The sport differs somewhat in attitude. Bodyboarding is far more trick oriented than surfing, and there are hundreds of variations of maneuvers possible. Bodyboarders regularly go for 'lip moves' which involve riding up to the lip of the wave with as much speed as possible, and then taking to the air and performing very gymnastic maneuvers high above the surface, before slamming back down.

Roller skating
Roller skating is travelling on smooth terrain with roller skates. It is often done for recreation and as a sport, and, more often than ice skating, it can be done as a form of transportation. Skates generally come in two basic varieties: inline skates, and traditional quad skates, though some have experimented with a single-wheeled "quintessence skate" or other variations on the basic skate design. In addition to speed, fitness, artistic, or recreational skating, some skaters prefer aggressive skating. Aggressive skating includes a variety of tricks, grinds, jumps, and other advanced skating maneuvers. It is sometimes referred to as "street skating". While aggressive skating refers to tricks performed on almost any obstacle, street skating specifically refers to tricks performed on non-allocated obstacles (i.e. not skateparks). There are 2 types of Aggressive skates, Hard boots and Soft boots. Hard boots are very rigid and often heavy compared to speed skates and recreational skates. Soft boots offer more flex then Hard boots but are normally just as heavy as Hard boots The wheels are small (about 56mm), and the overall speed is relatively slow (compared to speed and recreational skates) to allow for more control during tricks. Inline skating is roller skating done on inline skates. An inline skate is often called a rollerblade which is actually the brand name of an inline skate, related accessory, and protective gear company. Inline skates usually have 4 or 5 wheels, arranged in a single line. Most commonly, if they have a stop, it is a heel stop rather than a toe stop. Inline skating is often done on the same surfaces as skateboarding: on the road, sidewalk, various street furnishings like fences and steps, and on special tracks and areas, including skate parks and half-pipes. Inline skaters are also frequently seen in rinks alongside quad skaters. Some inline skaters compete in artistic skating events, though quads are still more typical for that use. Inline skates for artistic use tend to be designed more as an analog of the ice skate or artistic quad skate design, with a toe stop and rockered wheels. The growth of inline skating in the United States was explosive in the early 1990s, but since 1996 sales have dropped as the market became saturated and the sport's trendy status began to fade. Among children, inline skates were supplanted in popularity by new designs of kick scooters; meanwhile for adolescents there was a resurgence in the popularity of skateboarding. Today inline skaters can be found sharing public and private skateparks with skateboarders in cities around the world.

Equestrianism
Equestrianism relates to the riding of horses. This broad description includes both riding horses for practical purposes such as in police work or for controlling herd animals on a ranch, as well as recreational and sporting aspects such as horse riding sports, dressage, show jumping, eventing, vaulting and polo. Other horse riding sports include horse-racing, hunting, fox hunting, rodeo, barrel racing, pole bending, flag racing, western and hunter pleasure, western and hunt-seat equitation, trail class, showmanship, horsemanship, reining, roping (heading and heeling), park, English pleasure, country English pleasure, saddleseat equitation, endurance racing, jousting and cavalry. Often, horses are used for casual or rigorous recreational riding (also called trail riding or hacking). Recreational riders often hunt, pack, and camp using horses, mules, and donkeys. There is public access to horse trails in almost every part of the world; and many parks, ranches, and barns offer guided and independent trail riding. In former times equestrianism was closely associated with the military: medieval knights were equestrians, as were their military successors, the cavalry. However, the horse and horseback riding have had an important part in all times and places, from the times of the Roman empire, to medieval knights, to genghis khan and his armies, to the streets of london, to the the farms and frontiers of the United States, to the luxury barns and fast-paced horse show world of today.

Fencing
In the broadest possible sense, fencing is the art and science of armed combat involving cutting, stabbing or bludgeoning weapons directly manipulated by hand, rather than shot or thrown (in other words, swords, knives, pikes, bayonets, batons, clubs, and so on). In contemporary common usage, fencing tends to refer specifically to European schools of swordsmanship and to the modern Olympic sport that has evolved out of them. The earliest surviving record of Western techniques of fencing is the manuscript known as MS I.33, which was created in southern Germany c. 1300 and today resides at the Royal Armouries in Leeds. Throughout the Middle Ages, masters continued to teach systems for using the sword (together with other weapons and grappling) to noble and non-noble alike. The wearing of the sword with civilian dress (a custom that had begun in the late fifteenth century on the Iberian Peninsula) gradually gave rise to a new system of civilian swordsmanship based more on the thrust than on the cut, with the aim being to keep the adversary at a distance with the point, and slay him there. This gave rise to sixteenth- and seventeenth-century systems of using the rapier and the seventeenth and eighteenth century smallsword. Though swords ceased to be an article of everyday dress after the French Revolution, they continued to be used in warfare and to resolve disputes of honour in formal duels through the nineteenth century and into the twentieth. Though agonistic competition in fencing is as old as the art itself, the modern sport of fencing originated in the first Olympic games in 1896. The first few years of fencing as a sport were chaotic, with important rule disagreements among schools of fencing from different countries, notably the representatives of the French and Italian schools. This state of affairs ended in 1913, with the foundation of the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime (FIE) in Paris. The stated purpose of the FIE is to codify and regulate the practice of the sport of fencing, particularly for the purpose of international competition. The foundation of the FIE is a convenient breaking point between the classical and the modern traditions of fencing.

Archery
Archery is the practice of using a bow to shoot arrows. Archery has historically been used in hunting and combat, and has become a precision sport. One term for an archer is a toxopholite, which derives from Ancient Greek. Classical civilizations, notably the Macedonians/Greeks, Iranian Parthianns, Indians and Chinese, fielded large numbers of archers in their armies. Arrows proved exceptionally destructive against massed formations, and the use of archers often proved decisive. Archers sometimes rode on horseback, combining range with speed. Apollo, Odysseus, and other mythological characters are often depicted with a bow. The phrase "A parting shot" comes from 'The Parthian shot' as a rider turned in the saddle to shoot as he rode away from the enemy. During the Middle Ages, archery in warfare was not as prevalent and dominant in Western Europe as popular myth dictates. Archers were quite often the lowest paid soldiers in an army or conscripted from the peasantry. This was due to the cheap nature of the bow and arrow as compared to the expense needed to equip a professional man-at-arms with good armour and a sword. The bow was seldom used to decide battles and viewed as a "lower class weapon" or a toy by the nobility. This disdain was countered by the Vikings, whose widespread use of archery gave them success in their numerous raiding expeditions all over the Western European seaboard (and even well into the Mediterranean) in the 9th and 10th centuries.

Bowling
Bowling is a game in which players attempt to score points by rolling a ball along a flat surface to knock down objects called pins. There are many forms of bowling, with the earliest dating back to ancient Egypt. The best known form of bowling is probably the American game of Ten-pin bowling. This form, in both amateur and professional versions, is played around the world, making it one of the largest participation sports worldwide. Historians have discovered forms of bowling as early as 3200 BC in Egypt, though some argue that it originated later in Germany in 300 A.D. The first written reference to bowling was in reference to King Edward III of England banning his troops from playing the game in the 14th century. European settlers brought forms of the game to the United States in the colonial era. The first standardized rules were established in New York City, on September 9, 1895. In that year, the American Bowling Congress (ABC) was formed. The female equivalent, the Women's International Bowling Congress (WIBC) was founded later, in 1917. Later, the Young American Bowling Alliance (YABA) became the sanctioning body for junior bowling. The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) was founded in 1958 by Eddie Elias. While the first season only featured three events, the tour blossomed, especially after joining the ABC's Saturday afternoon time slot in 1961. Through the years, professional bowling on ABC typically outdrew college basketball, even in its final days on the network in the late 1990s. The PBA continues to showcase the best bowlers in the world, with telecasts currently on ESPN.

Rollerblade
Rollerblade is a registered trademark for a brand of inline skates. While the company does not want the meaning of their trademark to be diluted, the term "rollerblade" is frequently used in casual conversations to refer to any inline skate, regardless of brand. This misuse has also appeared on "official" items such as signs, buildings, and sidewalks. Tecnica has since acquired Rollerblade, and they are now using the brand for their own range of inline skates, including Tecnica Twisters, now known as Rollerblade Twisters. After the introduction of the Twisters to the US market, there has been an explosion of freestyle skating in North America. Cones are now set up in Central Park every day, with a consistent skater base which is increasing daily.

Table tennis
Table tennis, also known as Ping-Pong (a trademarked name), is one of the most popular sports in the world in terms of player numbers, as well as being one of the newest of the major sports. Table tennis is a sport where two players hit a ball back and forth to each other, with a racket on a table, in a manner similar to tennis. The rules are slightly different, but the concept is essentially the same. Table tennis is an Olympic sport, "ping-pong" is the recreational version of the same sport. Spin, speed and strategy play an important part in competitive table tennis matches. The speed of the ball can vary from slow spinny serves to fast smashes that travel as fast as 110km/h. The playing surface is a 9 ft × 5 ft × 30 in high (2.7 m × 1.5 m × .762m) hard rectangular table with the surface usually colored green, dark blue, or black. A 6 inch (15.2 cm) tall net divides the table in half (much like a tennis court) and is strung to extend 6 inches (15.2 cm) beyond the table on each side. The paddles, also known as bats or rackets, are usually about 10 inch long, with a hitting surface that is approximately 6 in × 6 in (15.8 cm × 15.8 cm), although the rules specify no limitations in size or shape. The paddle is covered with pimpled rubber on one or both sides. Modern table tennis paddles are usually covered with rubber, and may have the pimples pointing outwards or inwards, and a thin layer of sponge between the plywood and the rubber. Spin plays a large part in the modern game of table tennis, and the composition of the rubber and the combination of sponge and rubber is designed to maximize the amount of spin and speed a player can impart to the ball. Other technological improvements include the use of carbon or other synthetic layers as part of the blade to increase the sweet spot or the stiffness of the blade. The ball used in table tennis is a 40 mm diameter ball, made of celluloid, completely hollow and lightweight. A three star rating on a ball usually implies a top quality ball, in bounce and roundness.

Paintball
whose participants use markers to shoot paintballs (roughly marble-sized, .68 caliber, gelatin capsules filled with colored polyethylene glycol "paint") at other players. Compared to other sports, paintball has only become popular in the last few decades. The game emerged in the 1980s and quickly became popular. The game has drawn a wide array of players worldwide and is found in most major countries in the world. The game can be played indoors or outdoors in a varying range of styles. There are no specific rules for playing paintball, leaving the game objectives, strategies, and plays to the imagination of the player and the regulations of the field. The sport uses many different types of equipment, unique from any other sport and has developed its own slang to describe special moves and situations. Contrary to some beliefs, paintball is one of the safest recognized sports, with players sustaining only 0.2 injuries per 1,000 exposures (compare with football at 3.8), and is played by people of all skill levels. At the most basic level, a paintball game consists of a group of players who attempt to achieve a particular objective without being eliminated. Players attempt to eliminate each other from the game by hitting and marking each other with paintballs shot from paintball markers. Like poker, paintball has many variations, and each location or group of players may have their own "house rules". Variations may include the number of players on a team, the number of teams, differing objectives, length of the game, what kinds of hits count for an elimination, how long eliminated players are out of the game, and more.