SPORTSPEOPLE

• In cycling, it is a cyclist.
• In hockey, it is a hockey player. 
• In skiing, it is a skier.
• In basketball, it is a basketball player.
• In tennis, it is a tennis player.
• In sailing, it is a sailor.
• In football, it is a football player.
• In swimming, it is a swimmer.

USEFUL VOCABULARY: FOOTBALL

• a footballer / football player
• a referee – they control the game and give a penalty
• a goalkeeper – their job is to catch the ball
• a forward – a centre / a centre forward
• a left winger
• a defender
• a stopper
• a substitute
• a linesman
• a midfielder
• a captain – the leader of a sport team
• spectators – people who are watching a sporting event or a game
• a fan – it is a supporter of a team
• a coach – they help sportspeople practise and prepare for competitions

FOOTBALL RULES

• There are ten footballers and one goalkeeper. The footballers are wearing football shirts and boots.
• Full time is 90 minutes, and half time is 45 minutes.
• A referee controls the game and gives penalty. They use a whistle.
• The playing area for football is a pitch. The place around the pitch for spectators is a stadium (a total area.)
• The winner is the team that scores more goals.

PROFESSIONAL SPORT

Playing sports professionally requires:

• a lot of time and money
• hard physical training
• stamina and sacrifice

Unfortunately, professional sports are often connected with several negative sides. Top sportsmen and women try to be the best and it often leads to overtraining, and doping – taking steroids or growth hormones and it has a very negative impact on their health and career. Success in professional sport is nowadays connected with money and popularity, and for some people, it’s quite difficult to cope with being rich and famous.

POPULAR SPORTS IN SLOVAKIA, THE USA & BRITAIN

The Slovaks are good at hockey. A lot of Slovak hockey players play in American and Canadian National Hockey League teams. We keen on football, tennis and skiing as well.

Our top athletes are: Peter Sagan in cycling and Petra Vlhová in skiing.

As for the Americans, they like baseball, American football, basketball, tennis, ice-hockey and skiing.

The British are sport-loving people. Sports like cricket, rugby, golf, football and tennis originated in Britain and spread all over the world. The most popular game is football.

OLYMPIC GAMES

It is the greatest holiday for all sportsmen, women and sport fans.

There are Summer and Winter Olympic Games which are held every four years in a different country. The first Olympics took place in ancient Greece nearly 3000 years ago. Only men could compete and they were naked and barefoot. In 1894 a Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin started the modern Olympic games.

• Coubertin´s message is: „ It is not important to win but to take part. “
• The main idea/creed of the Olympics is: „ The better wins regardless of his colour, origin or religion.“

Symbol of the Olympics is: Five Olympic Rings in 5 different colours that represent the unity of the 5 continents:

• Black: Africa
• Blue: Europe
• Red: America
• Yellow: Asia
• Green: Australia

MY ATTITUDE TO SPORTS

Sports and games play an important role in my life, and they are one of my hobbies. Some people take sports very seriously, which means sport is very important to them. When they play team games, they are very competitive (they try hard and always want to win). As for me, I am the complete opposite. I only play for fun/ for pleasure.

When I was younger, I learned to swim, ride the bike and play badminton. Later I started to play various ball games such as volleyball and basketball. (I also tried…)These days I go cycling, swimming and hiking and in winter skiing and snowboarding. As for watching sports, I love watching tennis tournaments and the matches of our ice-hockey team. I must say that I prefer active sport to passive sport.

WHAT DOES MY PE LESSON LOOK LIKE?

We have our physical education only twice a week. Before the lesson starts, we change into sportswear in a dressing room. We put on a T-shirt, shorts and sneakers/ trainers. If it is colder, we wear tracksuits and a sweatshirt. At the beginning of the lesson, we always do a little warm-up exercise. When the weather is good, we go out and run, jump into the sand or play games.

In winter or bad weather, we go to the gym, and there we do gymnastics, climb the rope or pole and play some games.