Benefits of Playing Sports for Individuals and Communities

This article discusses the benefits of playing sports for individuals and communities, including improved physical and mental health, teamwork skills, increased confidence, and more. It also explores approaches to encourage sports participation, steps for encouragement, and inspirational case studies of successful sports players. The importance of sports in maintaining a healthy and positive lifestyle is emphasized.

SL415 Understanding
Sport Development

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Benefits of playing sports for individual or an community:...................................................1
Approaches to encourage to play sports.................................................................................2
Steps for encouragement........................................................................................................3
Inspirational case studies about some sports players.............................................................3
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................4
.........................................................................................................................................................4
References........................................................................................................................................5
sport. 2020. Available through <https://www.lexico.com/definition/sport>./.......................5

INTRODUCTION
Sports is defined as an activities which usually involves physical exercises and abilities in
which a team or an individual participates against each other or games played for entertainment
(sport, 2020). The following discussion is based on UK's sports culture in terms of benefits,
encouragement and approaches that how they can develop in their country to maintain their
people's health conditions.
MAIN BODY
Benefits of playing sports for individual or an community:
 Healthy body: Sports is important for healthy body physically as well as mentally. As it
helps in improving lung functions and mental health. It supports in gaining strong energy
skills and strong heart. It reduces stress that leads to better sleep. This all benefits is
because sports involves workouts which mainly assist in internal and external system of
body.
 Teaches teamwork: Sports when played in group or team needs coordination and
support among teammates. This helps in conflict management and teaches teamwork to
all the members of a group.
 Skills gaining: Sports results in developing skills like leadership and problem-solving
skills. Because every team has a leader who leads it's teammates for a goal by solving
their issues and managing conflicts among them (Baker, Cobley, Schorer and Wattie,
2017).
 New connections: Sports helps to maintain a social life as being a part of a team or
tournament, people meets new people and make connections so this is considered as
strong point in benefits. Because socially strong people can gain more involvement in
events and opportunities.
 Increased confidence and self-esteem: Sports are games in which one looses and one
wins. The one who wins gets motivation and more confidence to play again and the one
who looses spots it's mistakes and learn from them to never repeat again this helps in
self-esteem part.
 Discipline: Generally coaches who teaches sports are strict and disciplined. And teach
their students to maintain the decorum and discipline while playing. Because sports
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requires a huge discipline to crack any competition that's it helps in real life also to be in
a discipline.
 Career and passion: Sports are not just for the entertainment part. Most people take it as
their career and passion also. So it has benefit in a career growth by following passions
for the same. This is helpful in achieving earning and entertainment both at the same time
(Bean and Forneris, 2017).
Approaches to encourage to play sports
 Sports club: Introducing sports club in the country which initiates new and different
sports through which people can gain interest for their entertainment. There are various
levels at which it can start like first at district level, second at state level, third at national
level and last at international level. These can introduced for the people of different age
groups like for kids, adolescents, adults and senior citizens. It easily helps in gaining
interest among the people.
 Fitness festivals: Festivals are the another category which comes in an entertainment
part. And there are many people who are fitness freak in UK. Sports is the biggest reason
for fitness because it includes workouts: physical as well as mental. So through festivals,
awareness can be created about the sports playing
 Role Model: By giving the examples of various sports player who followed their sports
playing passion and are successful by earning excellent today. Appreciation of role
models must be done so that other people can be motivated towards sports. For example,
Gareth Bale, Paul Pogba, Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane, Daniel Sturridge, Anthony
Joshua and many more (Higham, 2018).
 Projects on sports: Initiation on sports based projects are mandatory to encourage
people. Because projects creates need among people to do it for some benefit. For
example, project on collecting funds to organise sports activities for indoor and outdoor
games. Because organization of sports event motivates people to participate more and
collecting rewards through them.
 Knowledge about benefits: People can more be attracted towards sports by making them
aware and imparting knowledge about what benefits and importance are associated with
sports. Social campaign should be conducted for all these activities to be executed so that
more people can go for their passion, fitness and earning part.
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Steps for encouragement
1. Analysing interested sport: This is a first step that people should analyse their inner-self
that in exactly which sport they are interested in, so that it can benefit them either in
mental health or in physical health or both.
2. Set up: After analysing, it is necessary to set up all the things related to the sport like
necessary equipments, environment, people and safety measures in case of any injury like
first aid box, hand gloves, protection for face and body, whichever is important
accordingly (Hoshizaki & et. al., 2017).
3. Time consideration: It is mandatory to know the approximate time taken to play sport so
that other work can also be done on time according to the schedule and not miss the other
important works. So scheduling is must to involve any sport activity for discipline and
focus.
4. Support as a coach: Sport is beneficial for those who play with a proper guidance under
any coach or master in that particular sport. If anyone cannot afford the coach because
they charge high for teaching, then anyone can learn through internet and recorded videos
on YouTube so that it can be more enjoyable for anyone.
5. Boosting morale: Inner satisfaction and self motivation are important in sports because
winning and loosing are the two most mandatory parts of it. Most people loose their hope
in only one lost game, but this is considered as negativity in people so boosting morale
must be done to follow sports passion and basically for the health conditions. This work
is mainly done by the coaches that is why it is said that sports without coach becomes
difficult to play and enhancement motivation level can be incomplete (Jones & et. al.,
2017).
Inspirational case studies about some sports players
Jack Johnson(Boxer): He is the first African and American heavyweight champion of
the world and specializes in Boxing. His story is all about racism and sports because his colour
was black. Initial days in his sports career was very difficult for to him face as white people were
not agreeing him to compete and participate in boxing. He practised a lot so that he can defeat
black or white in tournaments but no white was even interested in him to play with. But one day,
the boxer: Tommy Burns accepted his invitation to fight and they competed against each other.
Jack won that match and from then onwards Jack continuously defeated many white for about
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seven years. Even he got married with a white women. He continued playing till 60's and then
died in the car accident. But his life sets an example and inspiration for other people that
following dreams in sports can led to fitness and better career as well (Schulenkorf, 2017).
Bethany Hamilton(Surfer): She specializes in surfing and started chasing her dreams at
the age of 5, she attempted many competitions and won. But in the age of 13, one day she was
casually surfing unknowingly the presence of shark underwater. Shark attacked her left arm
suddenly but her father saved her from that tragedy. She was one armless after that incident. She
didn't lost her hope and never left her dream to stop surfing, she continued doing that and
achieved winning many a times after a lot of practice and struggle. There was a movie based on
her inspirational life named “Soul Surfer” covered all her life's incidents.
Pele(Footballer): He is one of the great footballer the world has ever seen. Initially he
was very poor and working in a tea shop and play football by making his own through socks
stuffed ball. He was passionate in playing football but was having no money to proceed in this
field. So he started working overtime and struggled in collecting money. He finally saved money
and came out of poverty and started playing with coach of football and practised a lot for
winning at every level of sport stages. And he finally succeeded in doing so. He won many
matches till it's the end of his career. And marked a benchmark for other sports players by his
efforts and accomplishing them in a very fine way. His life journey from poverty to achiever has
a great inspiration to most of the people till now (Svensson and Levine, 2017).
CONCLUSION
It is concluded that sports plays a very important part in everybody's life. Because it has
the ability to sort out health issues, mental issues, life issues and many more. It is necessary to
adopt sport in life to become healthy and wealthy. Discussion on benefits, approaches, steps and
inspirational stories are done so as to know the importance of sports and how vital it is to focus
on. Every single person must play one or the another game so that they can remain positive in
their life.
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References
Books and Journals
Baker, J., Cobley, S., Schorer, J. and Wattie, N. eds., 2017. Routledge handbook of talent
identification and development in sport. Taylor & Francis.
Bean, C. and Forneris, T., 2017. Is life skill development a by-product of sport participation?
Perceptions of youth sport coaches. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology .29(2). pp.234-
250.
Higham, J., 2018. Sport tourism development. Channel view publications.
Hoshizaki, T.B. & et. al., 2017. The development of a threshold curve for the understanding of
concussion in sport. Trauma .19(3). pp.196-206.
Jones, G.J. & et. al., 2017. An integrative review of sport-based youth development
literature. Sport in Society .20(1). pp.161-179.
Schulenkorf, N., 2017. Managing sport-for-development: Reflections and outlook. Sport
management review.20(3). pp.243-251.
Svensson, P.G. and Levine, J., 2017. Rethinking sport for development and peace: The capability
approach. Sport in Society .20(7). pp.905-923.
Online
sport. 2020. Available through <https://www.lexico.com/definition/sport>./
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