sports nation

Sports Nation

How many times have been bored because you do not have anything to do? How many times have you tough that there is something missing in your live? If that is the case probably you are missing some adrenaline in your veins. I was one of those people and I found the answer to these questions practicing sports. Sports are an important part of academic development as well as personal growth. They help you in more ways that you can imagine and what a better way to show it than by telling my experience.

Welcome to Purdue University.

Amateur basketball courts are open 24/7 at Purdue campus.

“Sports do not build character. They reveal it.”, John Wooden. As Wooden said sports teach people life lessons and are more than just a bunch of folks doing physical activity. I believe that if people knew more about this topic and someone share their experiences with them, probably they would get more interested and start practicing one sport; this is the purpose of this photo essay. One sport which I recently started playing was basketball. Before coming to college I lived in Monterrey one year. There I was the new student and I did not talk to anyone be-cause I did not know anyone. The extreme hot weather that Monterrey has makes it almost impossible to practice any sport outdoors. Because of weather and few friends that I had, my only option for having fun was practicing any sport outdoors. Because of weather and few friends that I had, my only option for having fun was practicing Basketball indoors. The only thing I knew about basketball was that in order to get points you had to shoot the ball throw the basket. However, as I started playing with others, I learned the rules quickly and made new friends.

Mackey Arena considered one of the noisiest courts in the country.

At Purdue, as fast as I could I bought tickets for a basketball game. I went to the match against Michigan. The first thing I noticed was that all students that were at Mackey Arena had the same passion for the game as me. Second, I noticed that all Purdue players were more athletic than any Mexican player. The game ended up with a victory for Purdue. The son of my engineering advisor was a member of the team and I previously had had the opportunity to meet him. After the match I went downstairs and talked to him. He offered me to wait a few minutes so he could get me a ball signed by all players in the team. That was the best game ever.

The most popular sport in my home country is soccer. Almost everyone practice it profession-ally or just for fun. I never liked it and that is why I started focusing on other activities. The one that caught my attention the most was American football. It is true that it is a physical game and that not everyone can play it at a high level, including me, but the game is not only about overweight folks hitting each other, it is a game of strategy, mental toughness, discipline and respect for the rival. I really learned a lot by practicing football.

Rose-Ade stadium has a capacity for 34,907 fans.

I do not think many people know about this but Purdue football is one of the most consistent and tradi-tional programs nationwide. Each year the university gives to the National Football League great players that became stars in their teams. Purdue is also known to be cradle of quarterbacks since each player that has played that position as starter in the university has always started at least one NFL match for about 30 consecutive years. Players such as Drew Brees, starting quarterback for the New Orleans Saints and Purdue alumni, are actively involved with university to maintain the prestige of the program.

In all home match-ups, Purdue musical band plays different college anthems.

Volleyball is the sport that has the most places in campus for its practice. This is a very popular activity at Purdue, not so much as a sport but as a socializing activity. From my own experience I can say that if you just step aside a volleyball court where others are playing and ask for permission to play with them, you will enjoy it. If we talk of it as a formal sport, Purdue women team is ranked among the best in the nation. Many mem-bers of the team that have been interviewed about how they became so good or how they became interested in the sport answered that by playing with people from all around the campus informally they have been able to improve their skills.

The top of the net is 2.24 meters above the ground.

Tennis, also known as the white sport, is also a very important activity at Purdue. One can say that it is only practiced at an amateur level, but the truth is that for the university it has the same importance as football. One fact that not many people are aware of is that about 15 miles to the north of the campus, there is a huge tennis complex called Swartz Tennis Center where athletes that play this game practice every day. Intercollegiate tennis competitions are also held at this location.

Purdue students love playing tennis as a hobby, nevertheless it is impossible to have match in winter.

Finally, in my personal opinion, one thing that I have learned by practicing several sports is that whichever the activity is that you carry out and even if you practice it at a professional level you must never disregard aca-demics. An injury can end up a very glorious career at sports in one second, but what you learn from books and professors will always stay with you. Athlete-students that can handle both actions are really admirable. I encourage you to reflect more about this topic and if you ever feel like putting your running shoes on and start playing any sport, do it, of course after you have finished your homework.

Purdue’s cradle of the future leaders: Hicks Library.