Спорт и Олимпийские игры /english/

Sports.

Sport is an important part of our life. There are many people who are fond of sport because it is the way to keep fit and healthy. It is also the way to organize people. There is the organization of people who participate in the international sports peace actions. These people want to unite more people from different countries in sports and cultural events.
Everyone knows what the Olympic Games are. In 776 B.C. the first OG were held at the foot of Mount Olympus to honour the Greeks chief god, Zeus. The Greeks thought that physical fitness and strength in their education of youth was very important. Therefore, contests in running, jumping, discus and javelin throwing, boxing, and horse and chariot racing were held in individual cities, and the winners competed every four years at Mount Olympus. Winners were greatly honored by having olive wreaths placed on their heads and having poems sung about their deeds.
Originally, these were held as games of friendship, and any wars in progress were stopped to allow the games to take place. The Greeks attached so much importance to these games that they calculated time in four-year cycles called “Olympiads” dating from 776 B.C.
In 394 A.D. the Games were abolished and were not renewed until many centuries later. In 1896 the International Olympic Committee was set up and the first modern OG took place. Of course, the competitions were held in Greece to symbolize the continuation of the tradition.
Today most countries are represented not only in summer competitions for men and women which include track and field athletics, as well as swimming, shooting, boxing etc., but also in separate Winter Games including all kinds of winter sports.
The International Olympic Committee decides upon the program of the games, the number of participants and the city-host for the Games. The games are opened with a spectacular ceremony, in which the Olympic flame is lit by a torch carried from Athens be relays of runners.
The British people have always been known for their love of sports. The most popular games in England are golf, cricket, football and tennis. Every schoolboy knows the names of the best teams and their players. A crowd of devoted fans usually go after their favourite team to other towns to support the players at guest matches.
The game particularly associated with England is cricket. It is England's national summer game. Nobody knows exactly how old the game is, but some form of cricket was being played in England in the 13th century. Cricket is played by men and boys, women and girls. There are two teams of eleven each. One team must bat, and the other team must field. When the first team finishes batting, the second team must begin. The batsman must all the time guard his “wicket”, three pieces of wood which are pushed into the ground. The game is very slow.
The number of people who play lawn tennis is great. The tennis championships held at Wimbledon for two weeks at the end of June and beginning of July are the main events of the lawn tennis season in Britain and, in fact, in the world.
One type of football, in which the players carried the oval ball in their hands, appeared in 1859 at Rugby School. That is why the game took the name of Rugby, or “rugger”. The rules of the game are different from football known as “soccer”, and there are 15 players instead of 11, in a team.
Soccer matches get big crowds. The Cup Final is one of the most important football matches of the year in England; it is always played at the Wembley stadium, near London.
As for me I don't like sports. I'm not a very organized person and the main thing is that I don't have free tine for going in for sports regularly. All my physical training is morning exercises. Sometimes when our family goes to our countryhouse I ride a bicycle there. We have physical training in our school. We usually run around the school building. But I'm always tired after 5 minutes running. Actually I prefer swimming to all kinds of sport.
Mazhorova Anastasia.