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Category: Sport of the day (page 2 of 3)

Head to the Beach with Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

 

In beach volleyball, two teams of two players aim to hit the ball over the net and to the ground, while keeping the ball inside the court. The sport is very similar to regular volleyball but is played on sand.

Teams are allowed up to three touches of the ball among them before they are required to send the ball over the net. Teams continue to send the ball back and forth, and the tally ends when a team gains a point by ‘grounding’ the ball on the opposing team’s side of the net, or if the ball falls outside of the court.

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From TV to the Track: Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

 

A sprint form of automobile racing, the sport of rallycross is held on a mixed-surface racing circuit. Predominantly popular in countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Great Britain, the sport uses specifically built road cars.

The sport is a combination of rallying and circuit racing, with the short races taking place on mixed surfaces; dirt and asphalt. Races often occur in amphitheatres, and the vehicles used are able to accelerate from 0mph to 60mph in less than two seconds.

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Hop, Skip and Jump into Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

 

The triple jump is a track and field event, which has been covered in the Olympic Games (in some form) since the ancient Greek Olympics. The event involves the competitor running down the track, and performing a ‘hop, skip and jump’ into a sand pit.

The ‘hop’ has to be made so that the athlete lands on the same foot they took off from, the ‘skip’ or ‘step’ then follows with the second landing being on the other foot and the final jump takes place with both feet in the sand pit.

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Taking the Leap: Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

 

The extreme sport of BASE jumping derives from skydiving and involves jumping from fixed objects as opposed to jumping from a plane, high in the sky. This element makes the sport even more dangerous as there is less time to complete the jump from the lower altitude.

Participants in this sport leap from their chosen structure, and free-fall to the ground below. They aim to deploy their safety parachute at the last possible moment. With the high risk involved and the small margin for error, it is clear to see how the sport has earned its extreme sport title. B.A.S.E is an acronym, standing for the four categories of fixed objects BASE jumpers can use:

B- Buildings
A- Antennas
S- Spans (bridges)
E- Earth (cliffs)

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Sail through the week with Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

 

Fleet Racing is the most common form of competitive sailing. This form of racing comes in two formats; one-design racing and handicap racing. One-design races involve boats of the same design while handicap competitions allow for different types of boats in the same race. To ensure the result is fair, the slower boats begin the race before the faster models. Alternatively, the boats are all given a rating and these ratings are used in calculating the final result instead of the time alone.

A Wheely Fast Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

Wheelchair racing is a Paralympic sport, open to athletes with any qualifying type of disability: this includes amputees, spinal cord injuries, cerebral palsy or partially sighted (when combined with another disability).

There are different classifications for competition to allow athletes with differing disabilities to take part fairly in the sport. Athletes are classified depending on the nature and severity of their disability. 

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Risky Rafting: Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

 

White water rafting is a team sport, involving the navigation of an inflatable raft down the fast, white water of a river. The sport can include risky areas of white water, with different rivers graded with levels of difficulty. Teamwork is essential in balancing and manoeuvring the raft, ensuring the fastest route is taken, and done so safely.

It is an extreme sport when carried out in technical rivers, and mistakes can be fatal. The classes of white water range from the lowest difficulty rating, class 1, with very small rough areas requiring slight manoeuvring to class 6. Class 6 rapids are considered so dangerous that they are ‘not navigable on a reliably safe basis’. Huge waves, large rocks and drops can be expected on these rapids and have proved extremely dangerous in comparison to the lower classes.

 

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Get your head around freestyle football: Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

 

Freestyle football, known as freestyle soccer in North America, involves performing tricks with a football and any part of the body. The sport has become increasingly popular across the world and is governed by the Freestyle Football Federation.

Competitors in the sport perform a short performance of their skills (either three 30 second performances or a single minute long performance, depending on the competition) and judges rank them using six criteria; difficulty, originality, all round skills, trick execution, number of mistakes and trick variety.

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Skim through today’s Sport of the Day

Ailsa Harvey

 

Skimboarding is a board sport which involves gliding along the water’s surface while standing on a board. A skimboard is smaller than a surfboard and has no fins.

In skimboarding competitions, competitors ride out towards the breaking waves, and turn to ride the wave back to shore. Wave-riding skimboarders perform a range of different manoeuvres on the water surface and in the air to gain points. In order to ride out to the breaking waves, the rider needs to be travelling with as much speed as possible to continue skimming in the deeper water. To do this they need to run fast on the beach before jumping onto the board.

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Sport of the Day – Dressage

Ailsa Harvey

 

This equestrian sport involves the training of horses, to execute precise movements by using subtle signals from the rider. ‘Dressage’ is derived from the French word for ‘training’ and is loosely described as a “horse ballet”.

The purpose of the sport is said to be to develop a horse’s natural athletic ability and showcase their “willingness to perform”. Competitors aim to be able to control the animal while appearing relaxed, with the horse performing the required movements.

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