Brief History of Sport in Canada 1600-present Early Canada (1600-1850) Games were important to early native culture Games focused around ceremonial &

Brief History of Sport in Canada

1600-present

Early Canada (1600-1850)

• Games were important to early native culture

• Games focused around ceremonial & religious practices

• Baggataway – lacrosse

• Arrival of British (1763) brought sports like cricket, horse-racing, fox-hunting, & snow shoeing

• “Under classes” like farmers & settlers did not have time or $ for recreation

• Sporting clubs centered around drinking (Scottish merchants began the Montreal CC)

Victorian Period (1850-1920)

• Industrialization (following WWI) provided “free time”

• Main focus – socialization

• No leagues or competitions

• 1860 – 24 clubs in 4 sp; 1894 – 234 in 15

Emergence of Sport as a Commodity (1920-1960)

• WWII ended poverty & unemployment of Great Depression

• Amateur & professional sport emerged and contributed to nationalism

• TV (1950s) changed sport forever

• 1917 – NHL (1926 – 10 teams; 2 divisions)

Sport & Canadian State (1960 – present)

• Improved legislation in sports following WWII

• Government involvement

• 1950s – Diefenbaker (success in sport needed to boost national pride)

• Bill C–131 – 1st time federal gov was officially involved in promotion & dev of fitness & amateur sport

• 1961-$30,000• Today - $5 million+• Canada Games

History of the Olympic Games

Baron Pierre de Coubertin (1863-1937)

Founder of the Olympic Games

Body is buried at Olympia in Greece

Games emphasize peace, international understanding, & whole development (body, mind, spirit) of human body

776 BC

• First Olympic event takes place with only 1 event

• Stade race – a sprint of 600 feet (192.28m)

Athens, 1896

• 1st modern “Olympic Games” held in Athens, Greece

• 13 countries• 9 sports• 311 male

participants

Paris, 1900

• A near disaster, these games were poorly organized & received little attention

• 13 new sports added• Women competed in

golf & tennis

St. Louis, 1904

• Held at same time as World Fair

• Only 12 countries participated, with majority of competitors being American

• 1st Canadian to win GOLD – Desmarteau (Montreal policeman)

London, 1908

• Use of proper rules but all judges were British so animosity existed among all teams

• Figure skating first introduced as a sport

Stockholm, 1912

• Games well-organized & involved twice as many competitors

• 2490 male athletes• 57 female athletes• Women participated in

swimming• No incidents or

protests

1914-1918

Olympic Games were cancelled because of WWI

Antwerp, 1920

• Hosted by Belgium following WWI

• 29 countries (but Germany, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria & Turkey were not allowed)

• Ice hockey introduced as sport

Paris, 1924

• Large increase in participating countries

• 44 countries• 3092 competitors• Summer & Winter

games began to be held separately

Amsterdam, 1928

• Women participated in athletics & gymnastics

• Several women collapsed at end of 800m race

• 48 countries took part

Los Angeles, 1932

• Travel costs reduced # participants

• More spectators attended than ever; 100,000 at opening ceremonies

• 1st Olympic Village to accommodate participants

Berlin, 1936

• IOC insisted Games take place despite persecution of Jews by Hitler’s Nazi party

• Hitler used Games to show German superiority as a race

• Jesse Owens (black American) won 4 gold medals

1939 - 1945

Games cancelled because of WWII

London, 1948

• London still recovering from war

• 59 countries• 4500 participants• Germany, Japan, &

Soviet Union did not attend

Helsinki, 1952

• “Friendly Games” b/c of Germany’s absence

• Soviet Union returns after 40 years away

• Beginning of East-West rivalry that still exists

Melbourne, 1956

• Unexpected events & political turmoil

• Foreign horses could not enter country

• Equestrian events took place in Sweden

• Several countries withdrew b/c of political unrest

Rome, 1960

• No political problems• All-white team

represented South Africa (apartheid)

• Events witnessed on television

• Danish cyclist died after using drugs to enhance performance

Tokyo, 1964

• Very expensive Games

• 94 countries despite several being banned (S Africa, N Korea, & Indonesia)

Mexico City, 1968

• East & West Germany entered as separate teams

• Violent demonstration over cost of Games & poverty (people killed)

• 1st time drug testing• “Black power” salute

by 2 USA athletes

Munich, 1972

• Black American athletes staged protests during medal ceremonies again

• Palestinian terrorists killed several Israeli athletes & officials

• Some teams/competitors left the Games

Montreal, 1976

$2 billion spent in preparation

French Canadians upset b/c Queen Elizabeth II opened ceremonies

Issues with Africa & apartheid; 32 nations walked when IOC refused to ban NZ

Moscow, 1980

• Games were successfully organized

• 81 teams took part• Boycott by Western

countries, spearheaded by USA

• Security was very heavy

Los Angeles, 1984

• Most commercialized games to date

• Enormous profit• 140 countries • Soviet Union, Cuba, &

most East European countries boycotted

Seoul, 1988

• Superbly organized & turned large profit

• No boycotts, disruptions or protests took place

• Ben Johnson disqualified for banned substances

• Pro tennis players

Barcelona, 1992

• Peaceful games without incident

• S Africa permitted after 30-yr ban

• USA “Dream Team” participates in b-ball

• 12 separate teams represent USSR

1994

Winter & Summer Games begin to be held at 2-yr intervals to each other.

Atlanta, 1996

• Almost every country participated in these Games

• 197 countries• 10,788 athletes• Dark side – small

bomb in a public place

Sydney, 2000

• Games flawlessly organized

• No incidents• 10,651 athletes• 300 events

The Olympic Games…

- have survived more than 100 yrs, 2 World Wars, boycotts, bombs, killings, & numerous political

demonstrations