-
Period: 10,000 BCE to 8000 BCE
Pre-Agricultural Societies
• Humans were compelled to be active physically to
stay alive.
• Hunting and gathering societies were constantly
on the move in search of food and shelter.
• Engaging in warfare was common.
• Survival needs meant little opportunity for
“leisure” time. -
Period: 1000 BCE to 1 BCE
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece was the first civilization to
pursue physical activity for the sake of physical
as well as mental benefits.
• Athleticism and athletic events held religious
significance.
• The ancient Greeks believed that the gods
bestowed extraordinary powers upon athletes.
• Winners of sporting events presented offerings to
the gods. -
776 BCE
The Ancient Olympics
The ancient Greeks organized sporting events
into competitions between nations.
• First recorded Olympic Games
took place in Athens in 776 BCE.
• First Games featured only one
event: a foot race, or “stade.”
• Other sports—e.g., wrestling,
discus, boxing, long jump,
javelin—came later.
An Olympic truce (peace)
allowed athletes to travel
safely to Athens without fear
of attack by enemies. -
Period: 50 BCE to 500 BCE
The Roman Empire
Mainland Greece was integrated into the Roman
Empire in about 50 BCE-500 CE.
• The Romans continued the Olympic tradition
but favoured more brutal sporting events, e.g.,
gladiatorial combat.
• Athleticism and the Olympic Games waned when
the Roman Empire declined.
• The Modern Olympic revival did not occur until
many centuries later, in 1896. -
1420
Italian physician Vittorino da Feltre started the first childhood physical education classes
The Renaissance saw a revival of interest in
Greek and Roman culture.
• Athleticism again became a social ideal.
• Study of human anatomy and physiology
intensified.
• Italian physician Vittorino da Feltre started the
first childhood physical education classes in 1420. -
Period: to
The Industrial Revolution and the Victorian Era
Popular recreational activities included bicycling,
roller skating, horseback riding, boating, and
swimming.
• Rules and time limits were set on spectator
sports such as cricket, football, and tennis to
accommodate workers’ schedules.
• Most Victorians believed that too much physical
activity would harm a woman’s delicate
constitution. -
Sport and Physical Education in the Victorian Era
• Physical education and sport became
a growing part of the British “public”
(i.e., private) school system.
• Victorian young men brought their
sports to the British colonies.
• In Upper Canada in the 1840s, Dr.
Egerton Ryerson established a more
accessible public education system
that included physical education. -
Period: to
The Growth in Amateur and Professional Sports
The years 1882-1914 saw rapid growth in
amateur and professional sports.
• Professional teams were born when teams started
paying their athletes to retain them full time and
to motivate them.
• The explosive growth of professional leagues after
World War II resulted from better wages, a higher
standard of living, more leisure time, an increase
in population, and the advent of television. -
Period: to
Aboriginal Canadian Marathon Runner Tom Longboat
-
The Revival of the Olympic Games
French educator Baron de Coubertin (1862-
1937) revived the Olympic Games for
“gentlemen” only in Athens in 1896.
• The Games were intended to promote the ideal of
“a sound mind in a healthy body” and
to toughen up young Frenchmen for
combat.
• De Coubertin believed physical
activity led to character development
and mental and spiritual growth.
• The first modern Olympic Games
excluded women and non-Europeans.
• Winter Olympic Games were added in
1924. -
The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC)
The COC was first recognized by the
International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1907.
• A private, nonprofit corporation that represents
Canada in the international Olympic sports
movement
• Responsible for all aspects of Canada’s
involvement in the Olympic Games as well as the
Pan American Games -
Period: to
Nergo League in baseball flourished in North America
• “Negro Leagues” in baseball
flourished in North America
in the 1920s and 1930s when
segregation prevented blacks
from associating with whites. -
Women's First-Ever Participation in the Olympics
-
The Berlin Olympics
-
The Asahi Team Won the First of Five Consecutive Pacific Northwest League Championships
Canadian-born sons of Japanese immigrants
organized their own baseball leagues in British
Columbia in the 1920s.
• The strongest team was the Asahi (or “Morning
Sun”) from Vancouver.
• In 1937, the Asahi team won the first of
five consecutive Pacific Northwest League
championships.
• They played what sportswriters dubbed “brain
ball” because of their reliance on swift baserunning and steals, superb fielding, and expert
bunting rather than brute strength and power. -
Period: to
Sprinter Harry Jerome
-
The First Back Professional Baseball Player
In 1946, African American
Jackie Robinson (1919-
1972) became the first black
professional baseball player
signed to the major leagues.
• Robinson broke the colour
barrier forever when he joined
the Montréal Royals, the Triple-A
minor league affiliate of the
Brooklyn Dodgers.
• He was promoted to the
Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. -
The First Paralympics
The Paralympics—Games for athletes with a
disability—are linked to the Olympics (they are
held every two years at the same venue).
• The Summer Paralympic Games include many
diverse sports, including archery, cycling, sitting
volleyball, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair
fencing, wheelchair rugby, and wheelchair tennis.
• The Winter Paralympic Games feature five sports: alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, ice sledge hockey, and wheelchair dance sport. -
The ParticipACTION
ParticipACTION was created
under Prime Minister Pierre
Trudeau in 1971 to encourage
Canadians to become more
physically active on a regular
basis.
• This nonprofit organization
ended in 2001 due to lack of
funding but was revived in 2007
due to concerns about the
health of Canadians.
• ParticipACTION’s TV ads
promoting active, healthy living
are broadcast to audiences
across Canada. -
Title IX was passed
Title IX is a section of the U.S. Educational
Amendments legislation.
• This landmark equal-opportunity legislation was
passed in 1972.
• It prohibited gender discrimination of any kind in
schools.
• Title IX has paved the way for more scholarships
for Canadian female athletes attending U.S.
universities. -
South Africa's racist Apartheid policy
• South Africa’s racist Apartheid
policy banned non-whites from
participating in sporting events
with whites until apartheid was
abolished in 1990. -
The Integrated Pan-Canadian Healthy Living Stategy
In response to the obesity epidemic, in 2005
the Canadian government launched a plan
emphasizing healthy eating and physical
activity.
• The plan puts a government priority on preventing
disease, disability, and injury.
• It aims to promote health and reduce obesity,
especially among children. -
First Olympic Games in which women were allowed to compete in every sport
The first modern Olympic Games in 1896
excluded women entirely.
• One hundred years later, Canada’s Olympic team
consisted of more women than men.
• The 2012 London Olympics were the first Games
in which women were allowed to compete in every
sport.
• Women from Brunei and Saudi Arabia competed in
London for the first time.
Today, the world of sport no longer considers
women too frail to participate in so-called
“male” sports such as boxing, wrestling, and
bodybuilding. -
The Special Olympics
Eunice Kennedy Shriver,
sister of U.S. President
John F. Kennedy,
championed recreational
programs for people with
intellectual disabilities.
• Shriver’s vision grew into the
Special Olympics.
• The Special Olympics feature
more than 32 Olympic-style
individual and team sports.
• At the 2013 Games in
PyeongChang, Korea, 111
nations participated. -
The 2014 "Own the Podium"
“Own the Podium” is an initiative that was
designed to deliver more Olympic and
Paralympic medals for Canada.
• Largely as a result
of Own the Podium,
Canadian athletes
won the third-most
gold medals (10)
at the 2014 Winter
Olympics in Sochi.
• Canada came in fourth
place at the 2014
Winter Paralympics in
Sochi.