2010-09-25 6:15 pm
Horses have been involved with human sport since the very beginning. But except as part of the cavalry in war, a horse was never involved in martial sport, until the invention of jousting. Jousting is a contact sport, played by two jousters mounted on quality horses against each other.
Being a contact sport, it meant injury, for the rider yes, but for the horse too. The rider at least had the comfort of wearing a full body armor which for the most part protected him from life threatening injuries. The game essentially consists of the two jousters carrying the colors of their knighthood or realm on a lance and riding towards each other, trying to dismount the other using their lance.
A lance is basically a long spear like weapon which is made of wood and too heavy to be thrown. It is rather thrust at the enemy/opponent. Combined with the weight of the fast moving mount and its rider, the thrust of a lance is a powerful and deadly stroke.
Thus in jousting the lance is used to unhorse the opposing player and this unhorsing is called tilting. In case this is not achieved, points are awarded for strategic thrusts which injure the opponent. The score is kept in lances and a 3 lance lead is usually enough to secure victory. Thus the horse has been a part of sport since medieval times.
In modern times, jousting is a forgotten sport like many other horse based ones and it can only be seen in renaissance fairs and medieval revivals. However they do not recreate the magic of the jousting of lore.
Tags: | 0 Comments
2010-09-25 6:15 pm
Polo is an ancient sport indeed. It is being played since 5th century B.C and possibly even earlier. It is supposed to have originated in the ancient kingdom of Persia, which extended from the steppes to the East to the Mediterranean in the West. Modern Iran continued this tradition and polo was their national game for long.
The modern game's journey can be traced from Constantinople through China to Calcutta. The name itself is derived from the Tibetan word for ball, €œpulu€. The game has been popularized solely through the efforts of the British Empire, who fashioned it after the one played in Manipur in India. From India, to Britain to all over the world, polo has branched out through the club system.
Polo today is played in a ground which is 300 yards long and 160 to 200 yards wide. Even though there are only 4 players to a side, polo can be considered to be the world's greatest team game as the players don't just have to gel with their team mates but also with their €œpolo ponies€. In spite of their name, the polo ponies are actually full blooded horses at times stronger and larger than their racing counterparts. In this ultimate team game, it is important for a player to be strong not only in his hitting and accuracy but more so in his horsemanship. The polo pony is such an integral part of the team that it contributes up to 70 percent of a player's worth to the team.
Tags: | 0 Comments
2010-09-25 6:15 pm
Equestrian means 'of a horse or related to a horse'. Equestrian sports include almost any sport played which involves a horse but this article will speak only about those equestrian sports taking place in the Olympics. The history of equestrian sports at the Olympics started in Paris, 1900.
In its present form the sport consists of three individual events: show jumping, dressage and eventing. Show jumping is a course or track event designed to test the skills of the rider as well as the horse. The event is a timed one and the participants are given scores based on time and jump faults. Time faults occur when the participant exceeds the time limit and jump faults happens when the horse knocks over a hurdle. A rider scores a clear round if he does not have any fault on his tally.
The dressage event is one designed to showcase the horse's movements in freedom and to develop the gymnastic ability of the horse to its maximum potential whereby it shows a willingness to perform and responds to the rider's every touch with ease. The event is judged by tests which involves a series of prescribed movements on a scale of 0 to 10, with 10 being highest.
The eventing part of the equestrian competition can be described as a combination of dressage and show jumping. It also involves a cross country circuit having obstacles like ditches, bridges and hedges. It is usually a two to three day event.
These equestrian events put on display, the oneness between man and animal and is truly beautiful to watch and exhilarating to participate in.
Tags: | 0 Comments
2010-09-25 6:15 pm
Women always want to look good with whatever figure they have. Fashion stores attract them the most where they look for the latest designs of clothes and lingerie. There are many lingerie brands that offer different varieties of lingerie and swimwear. One such brand that specializes in D-K cups is Bravissimo.
Women can also purchase swimwear in D-K cups with Bravissimo. Offering a Bravissimo Voucher Code can really bring that smile on the face of a woman. It gives them the opportunity to buy best of the brand and at a discounted price. Over weight women always find it difficult to buy lingerie of their size.
Bravissimo takes care of all the worries as they offer lingerie and swimwear of different colors and textures. You can get matching swimwear and lingerie that makes you feel more confident. Women having negative experience of buying lingerie can now enjoy shopping at Bravissimo.
Bravissimo Voucher Code can be obtained from many websites on the internet that promote this brand. You will just need to become a member of these sites by a simple registration method. You don
Tags: | 0 Comments