FIND OUT MORE. Competitions 354–355 • Olympics 356–357
Arts and Entertainment^353
WHAT ARE THE WORLD’S MOST
POPULAR TEAM SPORTS?
Football is the world’s biggest team
sport. American football and baseball
are the most popular in the USA. Ice
hockey, cricket, and rugby are strong in
other nations. Hockey, handball,
netball, and volleyball get less media
coverage but are widely played.WHAT ARE THE X GAMES?
The X stands for extreme. The X Games began in
1995 in the USA. They are now the biggest annual
international event for extreme sports. Summer events
are inline skating, skateboarding, stunt biking, and
motocross. Winter events are snowboarding and
skiing. In the past, competitions were also held for
skysurfing (with parachutes), barefoot waterskiing ,
ice-climbing, and mountain biking in the snow.
Team sports involve more than one person per side and require
the members of a team to co-operate with one another to win the
game. Nearly all team sports are ball games. Teams are organized
into clubs, which attract more long-term interest and support than
individuals – clubs and teams outlast their star players.
Extreme sports are events that are a deliberate extension or
intensification of older games. Extreme sports are dangerous,
challenging, and sometimes bizarre. They have few rules and are
usually not team-based. Players use their skills to control the risks.
WHAT DOES A TEAM COACH DO?
A coach trains the individual players to work
together as a successful team. Coaches motivate the
players to keep up the discipline and focus required
during training. They also create strategies for
winning. During a game a coach may substitute
players who are performing badly or are injured.1 BASKETBALL
Michael Jordan (1963–) is often called the greatest basketball player of all
time. The 1.83-m (6-ft-6-in) player was with the Chicago Bulls in 1984–
1994 and 1995–1998, with a year off in between as a baseball player.1 BASEBALL
Baseball is the national sport of the USA. The base man for
the New York Yankees dives to catch the ball in his mitt
(glove) in a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.1 RUGBY
Rugby union is a hugely popular team sport in Australia and South
Africa as well as western Europe. Here, Australia (in the yellow shirts)
play South Africa at Ellis Park, Johannesburg, in 2002. South Africa won.EXTREME SPORTS
TEAM SPORTS
ROCK CLIMBING 3
France’s Catherine Destivelle (1960–) climbs a steep rock cliff in Spain.
Unlike traditional rock climbing where the climber uses safety ropes
fixed in place with bolts, she has no ropes to guide her.Helmet helps prevent
injury to the head
when the rider fallsGoggles protect the
eyes from the glare
of the snow