1. The epitome of athletic achievement is the Olympiad!  This sport is an olympic event.  Only two other sports attract more participating countries.
2. Generally speaking, if a young man or woman is not proficient in a sport by the time they enter high school, there is little or no chance that they will be permitted to participate in a school sport.  Most coaches want established winners.  This sport does not require previous experience.  As a matter of fact, it is very possible for a person to start in this sport as a high school junior and compete on a national level before they enter college.
3. In some sports an athlete's peak performance will ebb at 16 years of age, other sports at 20, and still others at 28 or even 30 years of age, but beyond the age of 30, an athlete is definitely "over the hill."  Not in this sport.  This sport has had a national champion who was over 60 years old and also a 16 year-old, and every age in between.
4. There are girl's sports and boy's sports, but this sport is both.
5. There are indoor sports and outdoor sports.  This sport is both.
6. There are winter sports and summer sports.  This sport is both and is featured at winter and summer olympics.
7. Football requires a team, while an individual can compete in track.  This sport offers individual participation, team participation, or both at the same time.
8. Chances are, the high schools in your area do not offer one sport with a zero injury records.  Serious injury is a part of most sports.  This sport is the safest of all sports.
9. Sports arenas, courses, courts, gymnasiums and the like, use up a great deal of real estate and usually cost millions of dollars.  This sport requires little more than a 50 foot long by 20 foot wide room.
10. This is among the most disciplined of all sports.  Many students report a marked improvement in their ability to concentrate when they apply the principles of this sport to their academic pursuits.
11. "PURITY" is a term used in sports to describe the degree of precision with which a physical function must be executed.  This sport requires the highest degree of purity.
12. Sportsmanship:  "quality and conduct of a person who accepts victory and defeat graciously."  In many sports it is not unusual to see one athlete physically attack another.  To date there is no record of such behavior in this sport.
13. In most sports, physically handicapped people are treated like invalids.  Which, by the way, they resent.  Not in this sport.
14. College scholarships are awarded in this sport.  (These scholarships can be won by both men and women on the same team.)
15. Qualifying for a team is not a guarantee that one will get a chance to play.  Coaches enter their best athletes and the rest sit on the bench.  In this sport, everyone participates.

by: R.A. Soldivera