1.
Sport of athletics
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Athletics is a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running. The results of racing events are decided by finishing position, while the jumps, the simplicity of the competitions, and the lack of a need for expensive equipment, makes athletics one of the most commonly competed sports in the world. Athletics is mostly an individual sport, with the exception of relay races and competitions which combine athletes performances for a team score, organized athletics are traced back to the Ancient Olympic Games from 776 BCE. The rules and format of the events in athletics were defined in Western Europe and North America in the 19th and early 20th century. Most modern top level meetings are conducted by the International Association of Athletics Federations, the athletics meeting forms the backbone of the Summer Olympics. The foremost international athletics meeting is the IAAF World Championships in Athletics, other top level competitions in athletics include the IAAF World Cross Country Championships and the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships. Athletes with a disability compete at the Summer Paralympics and the IPC Athletics World Championships. The word athletics is derived from the Ancient Greek ἀθλητής from ἆθλον or ἆθλος, initially, the term was used to describe athletic contests in general – i. e. sporting competition based primarily on human physical feats. In the 19th century, the term acquired a more narrow definition in Europe. This definition continues to be the most prominent one in the United Kingdom, furthermore, foreign words in many German and Roman languages which are related to the term athletics also have a similar meaning. In much of North America, athletics is synonymous with sports in general, the word athletics is rarely used to refer to the sport of athletics in this region. Track and field is preferred, and is used in the United States and Canada to refer to most athletics events, including racewalking, Athletic contests in running, walking, jumping and throwing are among the oldest of all sports and their roots are prehistoric. Athletics events were depicted in the Ancient Egyptian tombs in Saqqara, with illustrations of running at the Heb Sed festival, the Tailteann Games were an ancient Celtic festival in Ireland, founded around 1800 BCE, and the thirty-day meeting included running and stone-throwing among its sporting events. The original and only event at the first Olympics in 776 BCE was a running event known as the stadion. This later expanded to include throwing and jumping events within the ancient pentathlon, Athletics competitions also took place at other Panhellenic Games, which were founded later around 500 BCE. The Cotswold Olimpick Games, a festival which emerged in 17th century England. Annually, from 1796 to 1798, LOlympiade de la République was held in revolutionary France, the premier event of this competition was a running event, but various ancient Greek disciplines were also on display
2.
Peachtree Road Race
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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race is a 10-kilometer run held annually in Atlanta, Georgia, on July 4, Independence Day. The AJC Peachtree Road Race is the worlds largest 10-kilometer race, the race has become a city-wide tradition in which over 70,000 amateur and professional runners try to register for one of the limited 60,000 spots. The event also includes a race, which precedes the footrace. In recent years, the race also has a special divisions for soldiers stationed in the Middle East, the race attracts some of the worlds elite 10K runners and has served as both the United States mens and womens 10K championship. Children can participate in the Peachtree Junior 3K, 1/2K or 50m Dash, the AJC Peachtree Road Race was started in 1970 by the Atlanta Track Club. The first year,110 runners ran from the old Sears building at the corner of Peachtree Road, the race was sponsored by Carling Brewery. The next year, the race increased to 198 runners, organizers used the sponsorship money to purchase T-shirts but underestimated the number of participants. T-shirts were given out to the first finishers, until they ran out, in 1972, the organizers ordered only 250 T-shirts but 330 runners ran the race. In 1974, the event grew to 765 runners, in 1975 there were over 1,000 runners, in 1976, Carling Brewery dropped its sponsorship of the race and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution began sponsoring the race, bringing it added coverage and popularity. That year over 2,300 runners competed, in 1977 over 6,500 runners competed, overwhelming the capacity of Central City Park. As a result, in 1978 the course was moved to starting at Lenox Square, in 1979 the race attracted over 20,000 runners. In 1980, the number of participants was limited to 25,000 runners, in 1982, the Shepherd Center wheelchair division was formed for the race. The race became so popular that by 1989, the race reached capacity in only nine days, the AJC Peachtree Road Race has become an event important in Atlanta culture. In addition to the 60,000 participants, there are approximately 150,000 observers who line both sides of the course to cheer and support the runners. Some runners deliberately wear costumes, many of which are patriotic, the entire race is also televised on WXIA-TV. The race hosted the USA Mens 10 km Championship in 2007, the AJC Peachtree Road Race is a 10, 000-meter road race. The race starts on Peachtree Road at Lenox Square Mall, the race continues down Peachtree into midtown Atlanta, turning left onto 10th Street for the final kilometer before ending at 10th St. and Charles Allen Drive. Piedmont Park provides the setting for post-race festivities that include a band, Mile 5 has been known as the Olympic Mile, where banners and theme music entertained IOC members in 1990 during Atlantas bid for the 1996 Summer Olympics
3.
Long-distance running
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Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least three kilometres. Physiologically, it is largely aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength, among mammals, humans are well adapted for running significant distances, and particularly so among primates. The endurance running hypothesis suggests that running endurance in the Homo genus arose because travelling over large areas improved scavenging opportunities, the capacity for endurance running is also found in migratory ungulates and a limited number of terrestrial carnivores, such as dogs, wolves and hyenas. Long distance running can also be used as a means to improve cardiovascular health, Running improves aerobic fitness by increasing the activity of enzymes and hormones that stimulate the muscles and the heart to work more efficiently. Endurance running is often a component of military training and has been so historically. Professional running is most commonly found in the field of sports, long-distance running as a form of tradition or ceremony is known among the Hopi and Tarahumara people, among others. Distance running can also serve as an exercise for family, friends, colleagues. The social element of distance running has been linked with improved performance, in the sport of athletics, long-distance events are defined as races covering three kilometres and above. The three most common types are track running, road running and cross country running, all of which are defined by their terrain – all-weather tracks, roads and natural terrain, respectively. In collegiate cross country races in the United States, men race 8000 or 10000 meters, depending on their division, the Summer Olympics features three long-distance running events, the 5000 metres,10,000 metres and marathon. Since the late 1980s, Kenyans, Moroccans and Ethiopians have dominated in major international long-distance competitions, in this method, the hunter would run at a slow and steady pace between one hour and a few days, in an area where the animal has no place to hide. The Old Testament has a few mentions of messengers running to deliver messages, for example, in 2 Samuel 18, two runners, Ahimaaz son of Zadok and a Cushite run to deliver King David the message of the death of his son Absalom. Running messengers are reported from early Sumer, were named lasimu as military men as well as the officials who disseminated documents throughout the kingdom by running. Ancient Greece was famous for its running messengers, who were named hemerodromoi and he collapsed and died as he delivered the message “we won”.2 miles /42.195 km is based on this legend. Humans are considered among the best distance runners among all running animals, game animals are faster over short distances, but they have less endurance than humans. Unlike other primates whose bodies are designed to walk on four legs or climb trees and this leads to different bone and muscular demands especially in the legs and pelvis. Dissipation of metabolic heat, humans’ ability to cool the body by sweating through the surface provides many advantages over panting through the mouth or nose. These include a surface of evaporation and independence of the respiratory cycle
4.
Road running
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Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. These events are classified as long-distance according to athletics terminology. They may involve large numbers of runners or wheelchair entrants, the three most common IAAF recognized distances for road running events are 10K runs, half marathons and marathons. Despite this, there are far more 5K road race events, due to their popularity for charity races and similar, less competitive reasons to hold an event. Road running may offer those involved a range of challenges and interests such as dealing with hills, sharp bends, varied surfaces, inclement weather, aerobic fitness, or the ability of the body to use oxygen, is the biggest factor contributing to success. The impact of running on roads puts more stress on the feet, knees and it can compensate by providing a consistent, level surface. It may put less strain on the Achilles tendon, before engaging in road running, one should choose a shoe that best suits ones foot type and running style. Road running is one of forms of road racing, which also include road bicycle racing. Race courses are held on the streets of major cities and towns. Other common distances include 5 kilometres,8 kilometres,12 kilometres, some major events have unique distances. Most road race courses are certified to be accurate to within 0. 1%, certified courses are often intentionally lengthened by one metre per km to ensure that they are not short of the stated distance. A Jones Counter attached to a bicycle is used to course length. Remeasurement to verify the length is undertaken when a record is set on a course. Running that covers a distance farther than a marathon is called ultrarunning, such events can be measured in distance or by time. Beyond the ultramarathon lie the multiday and stage races, Road running is unique among athletic events because in many cases first time amateurs are welcome to participate in the same event as members of running clubs and even current world-class champions. Sometimes race times are recorded manually by race organizers, most road races feature electronic timing using transponders, Road races are often community-wide events that highlight or raise money for an issue or project. In the USA, Susan G. Komens Race for the Cure is held nationwide to raise breast cancer awareness and this race is also run in Germany, Italy and Puerto Rico. Similarly, Race for Life holds races throughout the UK to raise money for Cancer Research UK, first person race reports frequently appear on the Dead Runners Society electronic mailing list
5.
Marathon
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The marathon is a long-distance running race with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres, usually run as a road race. The event was instituted in commemoration of the run of the Greek soldier Pheidippides, a messenger from the Battle of Marathon to Athens. The marathon was one of the original modern Olympic events in 1896, more than 800 marathons are held throughout the world each year, with the vast majority of competitors being recreational athletes as larger marathons can have tens of thousands of participants. The name Marathon comes from the legend of Philippides or Pheidippides and it is said that he ran the entire distance without stopping and burst into the assembly, exclaiming νενικήκαμεν, before collapsing and dying. Lucian of Samosata also gives the story, but names the runner Philippides, there is debate about the historical accuracy of this legend. In some Herodotus manuscripts, the name of the runner between Athens and Sparta is given as Philippides, in 1879, Robert Browning wrote the poem Pheidippides. Brownings poem, his story, became part of late 19th century popular culture and was accepted as a historic legend. This route, as it existed when the Olympics were revived in 1896, was approximately 40 kilometres long, and this route is considerably shorter, some 35 kilometres, but includes a very steep initial climb of more than 5 kilometres. When the modern Olympics began in 1896, the initiators and organizers were looking for a great popularizing event, the idea of a marathon race came from Michel Bréal, who wanted the event to feature in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens. This idea was supported by Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympics. The Greeks staged a race for the Olympic marathon on 10 March 1896 that was won by Charilaos Vasilakos in 3 hours and 18 minutes. The winner of the first Olympic marathon, on 10 April 1896, was Spyridon Louis, the marathon of the 2004 Summer Olympics was run on the traditional route from Marathon to Athens, ending at Panathinaiko Stadium, the venue for the 1896 Summer Olympics. The womens marathon was introduced at the 1984 Summer Olympics and was won by Joan Benoit of the United States with a time of 2 hours 24 minutes and 52 seconds. It has become a tradition for the mens Olympic marathon to be the last event of the athletics calendar, often, the mens marathon medals are awarded during the closing ceremony. The Olympic mens record is 2,06,32, set at the 2008 Summer Olympics by Samuel Kamau Wanjiru of Kenya, the Olympic womens record is 2,23,07, set at the 2012 Summer Olympics by Tiki Gelana of Ethiopia. The mens London 2012 Summer Olympic marathon winner was Stephen Kiprotich of Uganda, per capita, the Kalenjin ethnic group of Rift Valley Province in Kenya has produced a highly disproportionate share of marathon and track-and-field winners. Johnny Hayes victory at the 1908 Summer Olympics contributed to the growth of long-distance running and marathoning in the United States. Later that year, races around the season including the Empire City Marathon held on New Years Day 1909 in Yonkers, New York
6.
Track and field
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Track and field is a sport which includes athletic contests established on the skills of running, jumping, and throwing. The name is derived from the sports venue, a stadium with an oval running track enclosing a grass field where the throwing and jumping events take place. Track and field is categorised under the sport of athletics, which also includes road running, cross country running. The foot racing events, which include sprints, middle- and long-distance events, the jumping and throwing events are won by the athlete who achieves the greatest distance or height. Regular jumping events include long jump, triple jump, high jump and pole vault, while the most common throwing events are shot put, javelin, discus and hammer. There are also combined events or multi events, such as the pentathlon consisting of five events, heptathlon consisting of seven events, in these, athletes participate in a combination of track and field events. Most track and field events are individual sports with a victor, the most prominent team events are relay races. Events are almost exclusively divided by gender, although both the mens and womens competitions are held at the same venue. It is one of the oldest sports, in ancient times, it was an event held in conjunction with festivals and sports meets such as the Ancient Olympic Games in Greece. The ancient Olympic Games began in the year 776 BC, when Koroibos, a cook from the city of Elis, won the stadium race. According to some traditions, this was the only athletic event of the games for the first 13 Olympic festivals. In modern times, the two most prestigious track and field competitions are athletics competition at the Olympic Games and the IAAF World Championships in Athletics. The International Association of Athletics Federations is the governing body. Records are kept of the best performances in specific events, at world and national levels, however, if athletes are deemed to have violated the events rules or regulations, they are disqualified from the competition and their marks are erased. In North America, the track and field may be used to refer to other athletics events, such as the marathon. The sport of track and field has its roots in human prehistory, Track and field-style events are among the oldest of all sporting competitions, as running, jumping and throwing are natural and universal forms of human physical expression. The first recorded examples of organized track and field events at a festival are the Ancient Olympic Games. At the first Games in 776 BC in Olympia, Greece, only one event was contested, Track and field events were also present at the Panhellenic Games in Greece around this period, and they spread to Rome in Italy around 200 BC
7.
Atlanta
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Atlanta is the capital of and the most populous city in the U. S. state of Georgia, with an estimated 2015 population of 463,878. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, home to 5,710,795 people, Atlanta is the county seat of Fulton County, and a small portion of the city extends eastward into DeKalb County. In 1837, Atlanta was founded at the intersection of two lines, and the city rose from the ashes of the American Civil War to become a national center of commerce. Atlantas economy is considered diverse, with dominant sectors that include logistics, professional and business services, media operations, Atlanta has topographic features that include rolling hills and dense tree coverage. Revitalization of Atlantas neighborhoods, initially spurred by the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, has intensified in the 21st century, altering the demographics, politics. Prior to the arrival of European settlers in north Georgia, Creek Indians inhabited the area, standing Peachtree, a Creek village located where Peachtree Creek flows into the Chattahoochee River, was the closest Indian settlement to what is now Atlanta. As part of the removal of Native Americans from northern Georgia from 1802 to 1825, the Creek ceded the area in 1821. In 1836, the Georgia General Assembly voted to build the Western, the initial route was to run southward from Chattanooga to a terminus east of the Chattahoochee River, which would then be linked to Savannah. After engineers surveyed various possible locations for the terminus, the zero milepost was driven into the ground in what is now Five Points. A year later, the area around the milepost had developed into a settlement, first known as Terminus, and later as Thrasherville after a merchant who built homes. By 1842, the town had six buildings and 30 residents and was renamed Marthasville to honor the Governors daughter, later, J. Edgar Thomson, Chief Engineer of the Georgia Railroad, suggested the town be renamed Atlantica-Pacifica, which was shortened to Atlanta. The residents approved, and the town was incorporated as Atlanta on December 29,1847, by 1860, Atlantas population had grown to 9,554. During the American Civil War, the nexus of multiple railroads in Atlanta made the city a hub for the distribution of military supplies, in 1864, the Union Army moved southward following the capture of Chattanooga and began its invasion of north Georgia. On the next day, Mayor James Calhoun surrendered Atlanta to the Union Army, on November 11,1864, Sherman prepared for the Union Armys March to the Sea by ordering Atlanta to be burned to the ground, sparing only the citys churches and hospitals. After the Civil War ended in 1865, Atlanta was gradually rebuilt, due to the citys superior rail transportation network, the state capital was moved from Milledgeville to Atlanta in 1868. In the 1880 Census, Atlanta surpassed Savannah as Georgias largest city, by 1885, the founding of the Georgia School of Technology and the citys black colleges had established Atlanta as a center for higher education. In 1895, Atlanta hosted the Cotton States and International Exposition, during the first decades of the 20th century, Atlanta experienced a period of unprecedented growth. In three decades time, Atlantas population tripled as the city expanded to include nearby streetcar suburbs
8.
Metric system
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The metric system is an internationally agreed decimal system of measurement. Many sources also cite Liberia and Myanmar as the other countries not to have done so. Although the originators intended to devise a system that was accessible to all. Control of the units of measure was maintained by the French government until 1875, when it was passed to an intergovernmental organisation. From its beginning, the features of the metric system were the standard set of interrelated base units. These base units are used to larger and smaller units that could replace a huge number of other units of measure in existence. Although the system was first developed for use, the development of coherent units of measure made it particularly suitable for science. Although the metric system has changed and developed since its inception, designed for transnational use, it consisted of a basic set of units of measurement, now known as base units. At the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789, most countries, the metric system was designed to be universal—in the words of the French philosopher Marquis de Condorcet it was to be for all people for all time. However, these overtures failed and the custody of the metric system remained in the hands of the French government until 1875. In languages where the distinction is made, unit names are common nouns, the concept of using consistent classical names for the prefixes was first proposed in a report by the Commission on Weights and Measures in May 1793. The prefix kilo, for example, is used to multiply the unit by 1000, thus the kilogram and kilometre are a thousand grams and metres respectively, and a milligram and millimetre are one thousandth of a gram and metre respectively. These relations can be written symbolically as,1 mg =0, however,1935 extensions to the prefix system did not follow this convention, the prefixes nano- and micro-, for example have Greek roots. During the 19th century the prefix myria-, derived from the Greek word μύριοι, was used as a multiplier for 10000, prefixes are not usually used to indicate multiples of a second greater than 1, the non-SI units of minute, hour and day are used instead. On the other hand, prefixes are used for multiples of the unit of volume. The base units used in the system must be realisable. Each of the units in SI is accompanied by a mise en pratique published by the BIPM that describes in detail at least one way in which the base unit can be measured. In practice, such realisation is done under the auspices of a mutual acceptance arrangement, in the original version of the metric system the base units could be derived from a specified length and the weight of a specified volume of pure water
9.
Imperial units
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The system of imperial units or the imperial system is the system of units first defined in the British Weights and Measures Act of 1824, which was later refined and reduced. The Imperial units replaced the Winchester Standards, which were in effect from 1588 to 1825, the system came into official use across the British Empire. The imperial system developed from what were first known as English units, the Weights and Measures Act of 1824 was initially scheduled to go into effect on 1 May 1825. However, the Weights and Measures Act of 1825 pushed back the date to 1 January 1826, the 1824 Act allowed the continued use of pre-imperial units provided that they were customary, widely known, and clearly marked with imperial equivalents. Apothecaries units are mentioned neither in the act of 1824 nor 1825, at the time, apothecaries weights and measures were regulated in England, Wales, and Berwick-upon-Tweed by the London College of Physicians, and in Ireland by the Dublin College of Physicians. In Scotland, apothecaries units were unofficially regulated by the Edinburgh College of Physicians, the three colleges published, at infrequent intervals, pharmacopoeiae, the London and Dublin editions having the force of law. The Medical Act of 1858 transferred to The Crown the right to publish the official pharmacopoeia and to regulate apothecaries weights, Metric equivalents in this article usually assume the latest official definition. Before this date, the most precise measurement of the imperial Standard Yard was 0.914398416 metres, in 1824, the various different gallons in use in the British Empire were replaced by the imperial gallon, a unit close in volume to the ale gallon. It was originally defined as the volume of 10 pounds of distilled water weighed in air with brass weights with the standing at 30 inches of mercury at a temperature of 62 °F. The Weights and Measures Act of 1985 switched to a gallon of exactly 4.54609 l and these measurements were in use from 1826, when the new imperial gallon was defined, but were officially abolished in the United Kingdom on 1 January 1971. In the USA, though no longer recommended, the system is still used occasionally in medicine. The troy pound was made the unit of mass by the 1824 Act, however, its use was abolished in the UK on 1 January 1879, with only the troy ounce. The Weights and Measures Act 1855 made the pound the primary unit of mass. In all the systems, the unit is the pound. For the yard, the length of a pendulum beating seconds at the latitude of Greenwich at Mean Sea Level in vacuo was defined as 39.01393 inches, the imperial system is one of many systems of English units. Although most of the units are defined in more than one system, some units were used to a much greater extent, or for different purposes. The distinctions between these systems are not drawn precisely. One such distinction is that between these systems and older British/English units/systems or newer additions, the US customary system is historically derived from the English units that were in use at the time of settlement
10.
East Asia
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East Asia is the eastern subregion of the Asian continent, which can be defined in either geographical or ethno-cultural terms. Geographically and geopolitically, it includes China, Taiwan, Mongolia, Korea and Japan, it covers about 12,000,000 km2, or about 28% of the Asian continent, the East Asian people comprise more than 1.5 billion people. About 38% of the population of Asia and 22%, or over one fifth, the overall population density of the region is 133 inhabitants per square kilometre, about three times the world average of 45/km2. Historically, societies in East Asia have been part of the Chinese cultural sphere, major religions include Buddhism, Confucianism or Neo-Confucianism, Taoism, Chinese folk religion in China and Taiwan, Shinto in Japan, Korean shamanism in Korea. Shamanism is also prevalent among Mongolians and other populations of northern East Asia. The Chinese calendar is the root from which many other East Asian calendars are derived, Chinese Dynasties dominated the region in matters of culture, trade, and exploration as well as militarily for a very long time. There are records of tributes sent overseas from the kingdoms of Korea. There were also considerable levels of cultural and religious exchange between the Chinese and other regional Dynasties and Kingdoms, as connections began to strengthen with the Western world, Chinas power began to diminish. Around the same time, Japan solidified itself as a nation state, throughout World War II, Korea, Taiwan, much of eastern China, Hong Kong, and Vietnam all fell under Japanese control. Culturally, China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam are commonly seen as being encompassed by cultural East Asia, there are mixed debates around the world whether these countries or regions should be considered in East Asia or not. Vietnam Siberia in Russia Sovereignty issues exist over some territories in the South China Sea, however, in this context, the term Far East is often more appropriate which covers ASEAN countries and the countries in East Asia. However, being a Eurocentric term, Far East describes the geographical position in relation to Europe rather than its location within Asia. Alternatively, the term Asia Pacific Region is often used in describing East Asia and this usage, which is seen in economic and diplomatic discussions, is at odds with the historical meanings of both East Asia and Northeast Asia. The Council on Foreign Relations defines Northeast Asia as Japan and Korea, the military and economic superpower of China became the largest economy in the world in 2014, surpassing the United States of America. Currently in East Asia, trading systems are open, and zero or low duties on imports of consumer and capital goods etc. have considerably helped stimulate cost-efficiency. Free and flexible labor and other markets are important factors making for high levels of business-economic performance. East Asian populations have demonstrated highly positive work ethics, there are relatively large and fast-growing markets for consumer goods and services of all kinds. The culture of East Asia has been influenced by the civilisation of China, East Asia, as well as Vietnam, share a Confucian ethical philosophy, Buddhism, political and legal structures, and historically a common writing system
Leonard Patrick Komon (KEN) 26:44 (2010)
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