Sport in Georgia (country)

Historically, Georgia has been famous for its physical education; it is known that the Romans were fascinated with Georgians' physical qualities after seeing the training techniques of ancient Iberia.[1]

Ancient Georgian iconic art depicting wrestling.

Among the most popular sports in Georgia are football, basketball, rugby union, wrestling, judo and weightlifting. Other famous sports in 19th-century Georgia were horse polo and lelo, a traditional Georgian game later replaced by rugby union.

Football

Rugby union

Main article: Rugby union in Georgia

Ireland playing Georgia at the 2007 Rugby World Cup.

Rugby union is a popular team sport played in Georgia.

Wrestling

Wrestling remains a historically important sport of Georgia and some historians think that the Greco-Roman style of wrestling incorporates many Georgian elements.[2] Within Georgia, one of the most popularized styles of wrestling is the Kakhetian style. However, there have been a number of other styles that are not as widely used today. For example, the Khevsureti region of Georgia has three different styles of wrestling.

Basketball

Despite the country's small size, it has produced several world elite basketball players including Tornike Shengelia, Vladimir Stepania, Nikoloz Tskitishvili and most notably Zaza Pachulia. The people of Georgia have shown great support for their national team. Mikheil Saakashvili, former president of the country traveled to Lithuania, to support his team at the 2011 EuroBasket and will co-host the EuroBasket 2021 in Tbilisi with Czech Republic, Germany and Italy, as another 1,500 fans from Georgia did.Tornike Shengelia is playing in Euroleague,they had wins against Serbia, Lithuania and Greece,they (Georgians) are 27th in world ranking.

Motorsport

The first and only race circuit in the Caucasian region is located in Georgia. Rustavi International Motorpark originally built in 1978 was re-opened in 2012 after total reconstruction[3] costing $20 million. The track satisfies the FIA Grade 2 requirements and currently hosts the Legends car racing series and Formula Alfa competitions.[4]

Lelo burti

Main article: Lelo burti

A sport like the English sport of rugby, founded in Guria,every year gurians are playing it, there aren't very hard rules.It is not important how many players are in game. Lelo or lelo burti (Georgian: ლელო ბურთი), literally a "field ball [playing]", is a Georgian folk sport, which is a full contact ball game, and very similar to rugby.[1] Within Georgian rugby union terminology, the word lelo is used to mean a try, and the popularity of rugby union in Georgia has also been attributed to it.[2] In 2014, lelo burti, along with khridoli, a traditional martial art, was inscribed by the government of Georgia as a "nonmaterial monument" of culture.[3]

It appears in the 12th century Georgian epic poem The Knight in the Panther's Skin in which the characters play lelo burti.

Winter sports

Luge

Nodar Kumaritashvili (Georgian: ნოდარ ქუმარიტაშვილი; November 25, 1988 – February 12, 2010) suffered a fatal crash during a training run prior to the 2010 Winter Olympics competition in Vancouver, Canada. He was the fourth athlete to die during Winter Olympics preparations in history, and the first in 18 years. The opening ceremonies of the Games, led by IOC President Jacques Rogge, which took place later on the fateful day, were dedicated to the 21-year-old.

See also

• Ministry of Sport & Youth Affairs of Georgia
• Sport in Abkhazia

References

1. Romans erected the statue of the Iberian King Pharsman after he demonstrated Georgian training methods during his visit to Rome; Cassius Dio, Roman History, LXIX, 15.3
2. Williams, Douglas. Georgia in my Heart, 1999.
3. "Rustavi 2 Broadcasting Company". 2012-04-29. Archived from the original on 2013-05-01. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
4. "Georgian National Broadcaster". 2012-04-30.