Softball is a team sport in which a ball, eleven to twelve inches (28 to 30.5 centimeters) in circumference, is thrown by a player called a pitcher and hit by an offensive player called a batter with a round, smooth stick called a bat.

Scoring is accomplished by the batter running and touching a series of three raised markers on the ground called bases, and then touching the final base, called home plate.

The sport’s governing body, the International Softball Federation holds world championships, held every four years, in several categories.

Fast Pitch softball is a very defensive, pitcher-oriented game. The pitcher delivers the ball at maximum speed with little to no arc. The ball is colored bright yellow.

Modified Pitch softball strikes a balance between fast and slow pitch. The speed of the pitches are limited by not allowing the pitcher to raise their arms above their shoulders.

Slow Pitch softball gives batters more dominance by making it easier for them to hit the ball. The ball type in women’s and youth competition is usually smaller and more dense than that of the fast pitch variety, making for a harder hit ball to the defense.

The playing field is divided into fair territory and foul territory. Fair territory is further divided into the infield, the outfield, and the territory beyond the outfield fence.

Located in foul territory outside both baselines are two Coach’s Boxes. Each box is behind a line 15 feet (5 meters) long located 12 feet (3 meters) from each baseline.

Soccer is is a team sport played between two teams each consisting of 11 players which is widely considered to be the most popular sport in the world.

The object of the game is to score by manoeuvring the ball into the opposing goal; only the goalkeepers may use their hands or arms to propel the ball in general play.

A ball game, it is played on a rectangular grass field, or occasionally on artificial turf, with a goal at each end of the field.

The team that scores the most goals by the end of the match wins. If the score is tied at the end of the game, either a draw is declared or the game goes into extended time, depending on the format of the competition.

Football is governed internationally by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).

The most prestigious international football competition is the World Cup, held every four years. This event, the most widely viewed and famous in the world, boasts twice the audience of the Summer Olympics.

Goalkeepers are the only players allowed to play the ball with their hands or arms, but they are only allowed to do so within the penalty area in front of their own goal.

Due to the original formulation of the Laws in England and the early supremacy of the four British football associations within IFAB, the standard dimensions of a football pitch were originally expressed in imperial units. The Laws now express dimensions with approximate metric equivalents, though popular use tends to continue to use traditional units.

Snowboarding is a boardsport on snow similar to skiing, but inspired by surfing and skateboarding. Snowboarding is an increasingly popular winter sport throughout the world.

The sport was developed in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s and became a Winter Olympic Sport in 1998.

The history of the snowboard started with pioneers like Dimitrije Milovich, Bob Webber, Jake Burton Carpenter, Brandon Bridwell, Tom Sims, Mike Olson, Donavin Carlberg, Chuck Barfoot, Chris Sanders, Steve Derrah developing prototypes mainly inspired by surfboards in the 1970s.

During the early years of the sport, snowboards and snowboarders were not widely respected by the ski industry and culture. Snowboarding was seen as a fad. Snowboarders were referred by an assortment of derogatory nicknames.

Sherman Poppen was the inventor of the first commercially produced snowboard, the Snurfer.

The growing popularity of the sport is reflected by the history of snowboarding as an official sport: In 1985 the first World Cup was held in Zürs, Austria. Due to the need for universal contest regulations, the ISA (International Snowboard Association) was founded in 1994.

Ollie: The fundamental freestyle maneuver is the ollie; an ollie is essential for most tricks.

Switch: This term is adopted from skateboarding and refers to riding a snowboard with the opposite stance (i.e. goofy instead of regular). Because of the twin-directional nature of most snowboards used today, riding switch is nearly the same as riding fakie.

Skiing is the activity of gliding over snow using skis (originally wooden planks, now usually made from fiberglass or related composites), with metal edges, strapped to the feet with ski bindings.

Originally used primarily for transportation, snow skiing evolved into a popular recreational and competitive activity during the 20th century.

The sport consists of many variations, each of which fits into one of the major categories of alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, or telemark skiing.

Skiing evolved gradually from snowshoeing and originally was a practical way of getting from one place to another in the cold winter. Early forms of skiing resembled today’s Nordic, or cross-country, style.

Many different types of skiing are popular, especially in colder climates, and many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Ski Federation (FIS), and other sporting organizations.

Skiing is most visible to the public during the Winter Olympic Games where it is a major sport.

Skiing techniques are difficult to master, and accordingly there are ski schools that teach everything from the basics of turning and stopping safely to more advanced carving, racing, mogul or “bump” skiing and newer freestyle techniques.

In North America, a color–shape rating system is used to indicate the difficulty of trails (otherwise known as slopes or pistes).

If you are a fan of skateboarding, then you should get a kick out of these interesting skateboarding facts.

The skateboard was invented forty years ago, in the year 1967!

More than half of all the people living in the United States who like to skateboard currently live in California….shocked, aren’t you!!!

Just in the United States alone, there are more than 300 skateboarding parks, with more being constructed everyday! People are starting to realize that skateboarding is a great activity for their children to be involved in, and that it provides an excellent source of physical exercise, which many of us are severely lacking in!

One of the most famous skateboarding tricks, the 900, was first successfully completed by famous skater Tony Hawk.

Out of all of the sports played around the world today, skateboarding has been ranked number 6, in terms of number of participants and popularity.

There are National Skateboarding Championships held each and every year, with the first one being held in 1965, the very same year that skateboard was created and put on the market for sale!

It is estimated that close to 100,000 people require medical treatment each year due to skateboarding related injuries, many caused by skateboarders not wearing the proper protective equipment!

If you suffer from an injury while skateboarding, your wrist will most likely be the injured body part, according to current studies. Even skilled skateboarders suffer from wrist injuries, usually due to falls caused by debris on the skating surface.

When shopping for a skateboard, you need to pay attention to the weight rating of the board. If you weigh more than the suggested weight, you are more likely to fall when using this board.

It is important that you pay special attention to the type of protective equipment you have, to make certain it is approved for skateboarding, as not all protective gear will provide adequate protection. As time goes on, you should inspect your gear for cracks or tears, and replace it as needed.

Skateboards are manufactured in different lengths, and depending on what you plan to do with the board, you will need to purchase the appropriate sized board. For example, if you want to do stunts with your skateboard, you should purchase one that is 27 inches in length, whereas if you plan to just ride on the sidewalk, you will need one that is longer, around 29 inches. This is useful information, especially if you plan on shopping for a skateboard anytime in the near future.

Most skaters are around 12 years old, and they tend to lose interest at around 14 years of age, however, recently, older teens and young adults have taken up the hobby as well.

Skateboarding was first referred to as sidewalk surfing, and was the coolest mode of travel in the 1950’s.

I hope you have enjoyed this collection of skateboarding facts, and continue skateboarding for years to come!

Sepak Takraw (Kick Volleyball) is a fast growing and popular sport in Asia. Called Takraw for short, it is a cross between soccer and volleyball, played on a badminton doubles sized court.

The most prestigious tournament of this sport is the King’s Cup World Championships, the most recent of which was held in Bangkok, Thailand. As of 2006, there have been 21 King’s Cup tournaments.

The sport dates back to the 15th century when it was played by indigenous Thais and Malays, and was invented by the Indonesian Sir Leonard McGoylan.

Thailand currently has the most successful national team in the world, winning 19 of the 21 King’s Cup World Sepak Takraw Championships title throughout the years and four Asian Games men’s team gold medals in 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006.

The modern version of sepak takraw (sepak means “kick” in Malay and takraw means “ball” or “basket” in Thai), however, is fiercely competitive and began taking shape in Thailand almost 200 years ago.

Hoop takraw, known locally as lawd buang or lawd huang, is similar to circle takraw, especially in its ballet-like moves and the emphasis on creativity, but the goal is to put the ball into a basket-shaped net with three hoop openings in a triangular formation suspended some five to six metres above ground.

Ball is traditionally hand-woven, the Takraw ball is made of rattan stems or very hard plastic. A ball weighs approximately 250 grams.

Two teams compete for higher scores by spiking a ball into the opponents court. Each team gets three chances to kick, knee, shoulder or head the ball back to the opposing team.

Running is by definition the fastest means for an animal to move on foot. It is defined in sporting terms as a gait in which at some point all feet are off the ground at the same time.

Running is a form of both anaerobic exercise and aerobic exercise.

During running, the speed at which the runner moves may be calculated by multiplying the cadence (steps per second) by the stride length. Running is often measured in terms of pace or minutes per mile or kilometer.

Running is a complex, coordinated process which involves the entire body. Every human being runs differently, but certain general features of running motion are common.

Leaning forward places a runner’s center of mass on the front part of the foot, which avoids landing on the heel and facilitates the use of the spring mechanism of the foot. It also makes it easier for the runner to avoid landing the foot in front of the center of mass and the resultant braking effect.

Running burns 50 percent more calories per mile than walking.

Jogging is a vaguely-defined term which generally refers to a type of slow running, previously called “roadwork” when athletes in training, such as boxers, customarily ran several miles each day as part of their conditioning.

Perhaps the most basic of athletic contests, running races are simply contests to determine which of the competitors is able to run a certain distance fastest. Today, competitive running events make up the core of the sport of athletics.

Rounders is a sport which originated in Great Britain and Ireland. The game is regulated by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) in Ireland and the National Rounders Association (NRA) in England.

Game-play centres around innings where teams alternate at turns being batters and fielders. A maximum of nine players are allowed to play in fielding positions at one time.

Points (”rounders”) are scored by the batting team by completing a circuit around the field through four bases/posts without being put ‘out’ - for example, by a ball they batted being ‘caught-out’ or touching a tagged base/post.

The sport is very old and it has been documented as early as the seventeenth century.

Although it is generally considered a school game, rounders is played at international level. Currently, teams from Canada, England, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland and Wales compete against each other.

In 2008, the Rounders World Cup will be held in Sheffield, England. The final will be played on Sunday 29 June 2008 at the Don Valley Stadium, Sheffield. The matches will be played to NRA Rules. Further details from the NRA.

The ball is hard with a cork centre and covered in white leather and is comparable in size to a tennis ball.

A rounder is scored if a member of the batting team complete a circuit of the bases without being put ‘out.’

Rope Skipping is a is a game played primarily by children wherein one or more participants jump over a spinning rope so that it passes under their feet and over their heads.

It is also called jump roping.

Rope skipping may consist of one participant twirling and jumping the rope, or a minimum of three participants taking turns, two of which twirl the rope while one or more jumps.

Jump rope (rope skipping) is practiced on a competitive level world-wide.

The world record for 30 seconds is 188 jumps.

In July 2004, Brisbane, Australia hosted the World Jump Rope Championships. Belgium, Canada, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Japan, and the United States of America each medalled.

Jumping rope is an activity not only suited for competition or recreation, but also for a cardiovascular workout, similar to jogging or bicycle riding. This aerobic exercise can achieve a “burn rate” of up to 1300 calories per hour of vigorous activity, with about 0.1 calories consumed per jump.

In the United States, the main organized jump rope organization is the United States Amateur Jump Rope Federation.

Roller skating is the process of traveling on smooth terrain with roller skates. It is a form of recreation as well as a sport, and can also be 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.

The first recorded use of roller skates was in a London stage performance in 1743.

The first recorded skate inventor was Jean-Joseph Merlin, who demonstrated a primitive inline skate with metal wheels in 1760.

The design of the quad skate has remained essentially unchanged since then, and in fact remained as the dominant roller skate design until nearly the end of the 20th century.

Another improvement came in 1876, when the toe stop was first patented. This provided skaters with the ability to stop promptly upon tipping the skate onto the toe. Toe stops are still used today on most quad skates and on some types of inline skates.

The vast majority of skates on the market today are either quad or standard inline design.

The true inventor of the first roller skate is not known.