Belarusian athletes took part in the Olympics in 1952 for the first time and have been their active participants since then. The greatest Olympic achievements have been gained by Belarusian sportsmen in gymnastics and athletics. The greatest success was achieved by Olga Korbut more than twenty years ago. She impressed the world with the complexity and novelty of her performance. One of the American newspapers suggested that gymnastics should be basically divided into two periods — before Olga and after Olga. Outstanding results were shown by Alexander Medved, a heavy-weight wrestler, three-time Olympic champion.
At present sport in our country is paid a lot of attention to by the government and much is being done to set up all necessary facilities for its development. Physical education is an essential part of the school and university curricula. Extra-class activities at our school include a wide range of different sporting events and competitions. Any pupil can join a sports section at his own choice.
I am sure that either as a player or merely as a spectator almost every person likes sport. Some people do sports professionally, others have regular work outs to keep fit, but not to take part in contests.
As for me, I am not a sporty person in the true sense of the word. I don’t take much interest in sports. Nevertheless, I regularly attend PT lessons at which I jump, run and play games, but I have no ambitions in sports, I never worry about the results.
As a fan I do have my favourite sport, which is figure-skating. I have never done it myself, but I love watching world and European championships. I am always fascinated by the grace, speed and skill of the skaters and how well they can dance on the ice.
There’s no denying,the fact that great sportsmen have even the right to be called outstanding people because they’ve done their utmost to reveal man’s ability both in the physical and moral aspects.
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I’m absolutely sure that doing sports is the best way to keep fit. There is always a kind of sport which will suit you and there are many different kinds to choose from. If you like team games, try hockey, football, volleyball or basketball. Games for you to play with a friend include badminton, squash and tennis, and if you enjoy doing things on your own, you may take up swimming, riding, golf or athletics.
Different sports may be best done at different times of the year — athletics and water sports in summer, skiing and skating in winter. Many sports do not depend on the weather, since they are played indoors. Risk sports have also become one of the fast growing leisure activities nowadays.
But you don’t need to be good at sports to enjoy them — according to the Olympic motto it is the participation and not winning, that matters.
And what is a sportsman? Certainly he is one who is interested in sports. But even if a person is not good at sports or has hardly ever put on a track suit, he can be called a sportsman if he has something that is called the «sporting spirit». «The sporting spirit» is the ability to lose, to face hard knocks, not to get angry when something is wrong. It is the ability for both, to win without boasting afterwards and to lose without complaining.
I personally can’t imagine my life without sport. I go jogging every morning and cycle twice a week. Sometimes I play badminton with a friend.
My favourite sport, however, is basketball. I love it because it’s a team game and requires all kinds of skills. You must do your best and at the same time you should keep your eye on what your teammates are doing and you need a quick brain too. Two years ago I took up karate and devoted much time to it. Unfortunately I soon had to give it up because I had some health problems at that time. I am also keen on watching such kinds of sport in which there is a lot of risk. Maybe in future I will do one of these: climbing or car racing or windsurfing.
