Individual sports Sports in the United States

1 individual sports

1.1 motor sports

1.1.1 indianapolis 500
1.1.2 nascar
1.1.3 other motorsports


1.2 golf
1.3 tennis
1.4 track , field
1.5 combat sports
1.6 swimming , water sports
1.7 other popular individual sports

individual sports
motor sports


danica patrick successful woman in history of american open-wheel racing—her win in 2008 indy japan 300 women s victory in indycar series race , third place in 2009 indianapolis 500 highest finish there ever woman.

motor sports popular in united states americans show little interest in major international competitions, such formula 1 grand prix series , motogp, preferring home-grown racing series. however, americans have achieved great success in these international series, such mario andretti , kenny roberts.

americans, rest of world, began using public streets host of automobile races. time progressed discovered these venues unsafe public offered relatively little crowd control. promoters , drivers in united states discovered horse racing tracks provide better conditions drivers , spectators public streets. result has been long-standing popularity of oval track racing, not used in rest of world, while road racing has waned. however, extensive though illegal street racing culture still persists.

indianapolis 500


indianapolis motor speedway among world s premier racing facilities.

historically, open wheel racing popular nationwide, indianapolis 500 being followed race. however, acrimonious split in 1994 between primary series, cart (later known champ car), , indianapolis motor speedway (the site of indy 500) led formation of indy racing league, launched rival indycar series in 1996. point, popularity of open wheel racing in u.s. declined dramatically. feud settled in 2008 agreement merge 2 series under indycar banner, enormous damage had been done sport. post-merger, indycar continues remain slight gains per year, despite product has become compelling.

nascar


jimmie johnson has won driver of year 5 times.

the cart-irl feud coincided enormous expansion of stock car racing, governed nascar, past regional circuit followed in southern united states national sport. nascar s audience peaked in mid 2000s, , has declined bit, though continues have around 2–4 million viewers per race. among nascar s popular drivers jeff gordon, jimmie johnson, tony stewart, dale earnhardt jr., , kyle busch. nascar s popular race daytona 500 held each year @ daytona beach, florida in february.

other motorsports

the start of 2015 daytona 500, biggest race in nascar

among better known sports car races in united states 24 hours of daytona, 12 hours of sebring, , petit le mans, have featured in world sportscar championship, imsa gt championship, intercontinental le mans cup, fia world endurance championship, american le mans series, rolex sports car series , united sportscar championship.

another 1 of popular forms of motorsports in united states indigenous sport of drag racing. largest drag racing organization national hot rod association.

several other motorsports enjoy varying degrees of popularity in united states: short track motor racing, motocross, monster truck competitions (including popular monster jam circuit), demolition derby, figure 8 racing , tractor pulling.

golf


jack nicklaus regarded greatest golfer of time, winning total of 18 career major championships.



louise suggs 1 of founders of lpga tour , modern ladies golf.

golf played in united states 25 million people. sport s national governing body, united states golf association (usga), jointly responsible r&a setting , administering rules of golf. usga conducts 3 national championships open professionals: u.s. open, u.s. women s open , u.s. senior open, , add fourth, u.s. senior women s open, in 2018. pga of america organizes pga championship, senior pga championship , women s pga championship. 3 legs of grand slam of golf based in united states: pga championship, u.s. open , masters. (the open championship, known in u.s. british open, played in united kingdom.)

the pga tour main professional golf tour in united states, , lpga tour main women s professional tour. of note pga champions tour, players on 50 compete. golf aired on several television networks, such golf channel, nbc, espn, cbs , fox.

notable golfers include walter hagen, ben hogan, jack nicklaus, arnold palmer, tiger woods, patty berg, mickey wright, louise suggs , babe zaharias.

tennis


billie jean king founded women s tennis association , other organizations. in 1973, @ age 29, won battle of sexes (tennis).

tennis played in united states in 5 categories (men s , ladies singles; men s, ladies , mixed doubles); however, popular singles. pinnacle of sport in country open played in late august @ usta billie jean king national tennis center in new york. indian wells masters, miami masters , cincinnati masters part of atp world tour masters 1000 , former wta tier (currently premier mandatory , premier 5).

the united states has had considerable success in tennis many years, players such don budge, billie jean king, chris evert, jimmy connors (8 major singles titles), john mcenroe (7 major singles titles), andre agassi (8 major singles titles) , pete sampras (14 major singles titles) dominating sport in past. more recently, williams sisters, venus williams (7 major singles titles) , serena williams (23 major singles titles), have been dominant force in women s game, , twin brothers bob , mike bryan have claimed significant career records men s doubles teams.

track , field


participants in 2010 boston marathon in wellesley, after halfway mark.

usa track & field governing body track , field in united states. organizes annual usa outdoor track , field championships , usa indoor track , field championships. iaaf diamond league features 1 round in united states, prefontaine classic; series formerly included adidas grand prix well. 3 of world marathon majors held in united states: boston marathon, chicago marathon , new york city marathon. freihofer s run women iaaf road race label event.

billy mills breaks tape in 10,000 m in 1964 olympics. u.s. marine corps photo

the united states has set world standards in various disciplines of track , field both male , female athletes. tyson gay , michael johnson hold various sprint records male athletes, while florence griffith joyner set various world sprint records female athletes. alan webb s personal record on mile 3 seconds short of world record, while mary slaney set many world records middle-distance disciplines.

florence griffith joyner considered fastest woman of time based on fact world records set in 1988 both 100 m , 200 m still stand.

a turning point occurred in track in running boom of 1970s. after series of american successes in various distances marathoners frank shorter , bill rodgers middle-distance runners dave wottle , steve prefontaine, running american pastime began take shape. high school track in united states became unique foundation creating united states middle-distance running talent pool, , 1972 1981 average of 13 high school boys in united states run under 4:10 in mile per year. during time, several national high school records in united states set , remained largely unbroken until 2000s. number of high school boys running mile under 4:10 per year dropped abruptly 1982, , female participation in many distance events forbidden athletic authorities until 1980s. renaissance in high school track developed when jack daniels, former olympian, published training manual called daniels running formula , became used distance training protocol among american coaches along arthur lydiard s high-mileage regimen. carl lewis credited normalizing practice of having lengthy track career opposed retiring once reaching age when less realistic of gaining personal best result. united states home school-sponsored track , field, tradition in schools middle school through college feature track , field team. due amount of american athletes satisfy olympic norm standards, holds national trials select best of top-tier athletes olympic competition.

combat sports

oscar de la hoya won ten world titles in 6 different weight classes, including lineal championship in 3 weight classes. winning gold medal in lightweight division , owns national boxing promotional firm , 1 of few boxers take on promotional responsibilities while still active.

boxing in united states became center of professional boxing in 20th century. national boxing association founded in 1921 , began sanction title fights. in 1960s , 1970s, muhammad ali became iconic figure, transformed role , image of african american athlete in america embrace of racial pride, , transcended sport refusing serve in vietnam war. in 1980s , 1990s, major boxers such mike tyson , riddick bowe marked crime , self-destruction.

mixed martial arts developed in 1990s, , has achieved popularity in 21st century. many companies promote mma cards, u.s.-based ufc dominant.

traditional wrestling performed @ scholastic level; high school wrestling 1 of popular participatory sports young men in united states, , college wrestling has small following.

professional wrestling, evolved scripted (kayfabe) form of sports entertainment on course of 20th century, enjoys widespread popularity spectator sport. interest in pro wrestling peaked during monday night wars of 1980s , 1990s. due competition between world wrestling federation (wwf) , wcw, 2 biggest professional wrestling organizations in country during last 2 decades of 20th century. stated that, between 2 companies, estimated 16 million viewers tuned in every week. following conclusion of wars , wcw s subsumption wwf become modern wwe, professional wrestling s audience has diminished; however, still pulls in of cable television s highest weekly ratings. wwe remains dominant professional wrestling company in u.s.; not hold monopoly, numerous smaller federations have existed, 2 current examples including global force wrestling (formerly known tna) , ring of honor (roh).

judo in united states not popular , eclipsed more popular martial arts karate , taekwondo.

swimming , water sports

kelly slater surfing in boost mobile pro @ trestles

swimming major competitive sport @ high school , college level, receives little mainstream media attention outside of olympics.

surfing in united states , watersports popular in u.s. in coastal areas. california , hawaii popular locations surfing. association of surfing professionals founded in 1983.

other popular individual sports

skateboarding heelflip.



skateboarding – skateboarding culture born in u.s., holds many of top tournaments , produces majority of professional skateboarders.
hunting , fishing popular in u.s., in rural areas. other popular outdoors activities in country include hiking, mountain climbing, paintball , kayaking. in winter, many americans head mountainous areas skiing , snowboarding.
road bicycle racing has increased in popularity, fueled success of cyclists greg lemond , 8 consecutive tours de france won american contestants (although 8 discarded in wake of doping revelations against 2 winners, lance armstrong , floyd landis). mountain biking practiced, in rocky mountains.
rodeo – professional rodeo cowboys association main professional rodeo organization in world. bull riding, subset of rodeo, enjoys popularity standalone sport, pro competition, professional bull riders.
horse racing – breeders cup , triple crown 2 prominent competitions.
bowling – bowling popular participation game sport in u.s. more 43 million people going bowling @ least once year.
figure skating sport in individuals, duos, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. first winter sport included in olympics, in 1908.




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