Physical Education · Ch 1 — Management of Sporting Events
Community Sports
Community Sports
Community sports events can be held in residential societies, villages, cities and schools. Their purpose is not only to display the skills of children but to create harmony among people of all age groups, including senior citizens, women and the differently-abled. A few of the events that can be organised as community sports are described below.
Sports Day
Sports Day is one of the key events in the annual calendar of most residential areas and community schools. It showcases the abilities of children and youth and, just as importantly, gives community members a chance to meet, greet and interact. The focus should be the maximum engagement of all members, not only the participation of talented athletes. In recent years the Government of India has celebrated National Sports Day on 29th August, the birth anniversary of the hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand. On the same date in 2019 the Fit India Movement was launched by the Prime Minister to encourage people to stay fit and active and keep lifestyle diseases away.
Health Run
A Health Run is held to improve health standards in a society and to spread awareness about the importance of physical activity, or to raise charity. Here the aim of the runners is to take part rather than to win, and a large number of registrations gives the run its full impact. There is no age bar and no need to run a long distance, and such runs are often organised by NGOs or health departments.
Run for Fun
The purpose of a Run for Fun is to spread the message of staying fit and healthy, and sometimes to raise funds. In schools these friendly races attract children and parents and can be held for any age group, provided the physical education teacher plans carefully to avoid accidents. Examples include the lemon-and-spoon race, sack race, three-legged race, parent-and-child race, teacher-and-child race, banana race and road running.
Run for Specific Cause
This run is organised to spread awareness about a social issue — such as cleanliness or a greener environment, or causes such as cancer, AIDS or gender inequality — or to generate charity for a definite cause.