Are you one of the more than 200 million sports fans in the United States? Nearly everyone can find a sport they enjoy because sports are such a large industry and there are so many different kinds of sports. There are extreme sports, as well as baseball, football, hockey, wrestling, NASCAR, golf, sports fishing, bowling, and basketball. The Reno Air Races have even been added, along with card games and chess competitions. Hundreds of well-known figures in basketball, baseball, football, and other sports, not to mention all the famous faces in auto racing, are among our favorite Heroes, along with Pele, Wayne Gretsky, Tiger Woods, Lance Armstrong, and others.
But why is sports such a big deal in America? Though the human race as a whole enjoys competition, sports are not just popular among Americans. Greeks, Romans, and Aztecs all enjoyed sports as well. Since humans enjoy competition, it is a natural trait of our species. Even the great apes and chimpanzees, our closest relatives and fellow bipedal carbon-based species, appear to enjoy competitive play and certainly competition for the role of the Alpha Male, which also appears to be innate. When we watch our pets at home, we see dogs fight over toys or bones, cats play together, and if you look at young children playing in sandboxes, you will see the same thing.
Perhaps it was these tendencies that drew you to sports as a young child. And as an adult, you still enjoy watching the competition, despite your concern that getting hurt by engaging in too much competition beyond a casual game of soccer, you still find the competition to be fascinating. We are all drawn to sports, which is a good thing because many people believe that if they did not participate in sports, they might as well not be alive. Consider these insights.