The Different Types of Sports Competitions

Sports are organized, controlled and played by individuals at a level of play equivalent to the level of expertise of those organizing the event. Although sports competitions are often based on athletic events, sports competitions may also take the form of cultural events, like theatrical performances, games or martial arts contests. Sports competitions are normally governed by some kind of established rules or traditions, which aim to ensure fair contest, and enable consistent adjudication of all the winner’s outcomes. Unlike most events, the organizing of sports competitions requires a lot of time, energy and dedication, as even simple sports such as football require months of training, coaching and other preparations before the competition can realistically begin. Organizing sports competitions usually involves many different people from all over the country and across the world, as the event requires large amounts of resources and time to be successfully completed.

A brief overview of the most common sports competitions around the world includes some interesting entries such as ice skating, fencing and table tennis, as each sport constitutes a significant part of the overall Olympic Games program. Most other sports, however, do not feature in the Olympic Games, making them rather popular recreational activities in their own rights. The most commonly known sports competitions around the world include American football, American basketball, baseball, Australian soccer, basketball, hockey, soccer, track and field, swimming and surfing. The definition of each sport will be somewhat representative of its overall definition, but each sport will have its own unique aspects and sub-topics, as well as particular characteristics.

A sports competition is often judged by a panel of experts who are both experienced and familiar with the games, providing a level of objective and analytical judgment about each event. The judgements are made by people who have a level of experience in the particular sports involved and who understand the physical and mental demands that it places on the athletes during the course of the competition. It is important that the judging process upholds high standards of fairness and equality of the contest, as sport can become more complex and sensitive to changes in the physical environment, in the form of unfair advantages or unfair disadvantage due to previous unfair treatment or exclusion. In order to ensure fair competition throughout the athletic calendar, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) sets out certain rules and regulations for the different sports competitions, such as the amount of contact allowed, the use of banned performance-enhancing drugs and any other rule which could potentially limit the options for athletes to choose the sport in which they compete.