Adidas vb kp comp 3.0 Volleyball Kneepads

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From the adidas performance range these will bring your knees ultimate protection during the game.Anatomatically Shaped , Gives You Extra Freedom During The Game.

Nylon Trim Braided Knotted Sports Volleyball Net 9.6M x 1M Blue

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£21.75



For  volleyball game use and professional sports training,
Suitable for standard volleyball yard or playground.
Color: Blue,White; Net Weight: 857g

Top All Inclusive Family Vacation Destination in Cuba

Cuba is famous for its all inclusive resorts, and is a wonderful place to go for an all inclusive family vacation, and there is none better, and in fact many regard it as the best hotel in Cuba, and that is the 386 room beachfront Iberostar Varadero.

The Iberostar Varadero is new, and Ibersostar bring their massive European reputation to Cuba and add to it. Here you will be right on the beautiful pristine beach and 20 minutes from downtown Varadero, and 40 minutes from the airport.

It is not only an all inclusive resort, but they do food 24 hours a day, which if you have hungry teenagers makes it a perfect place for a family beach vacation.

In terms of what the Iberostar Varadero offers, then the 386 rooms are all in eleven 3-storey buildings.

The rooms are large and air conditioned with a balcony or terrace, Satellite TV, and full bathroom. If you book a suite, then the room facilities are the same except there is a sitting area.

There is one buffet restaurant, and three a la carte restaurants featuring Japanese, Meditteranean, and Cuban Cuisine, where you will need a reservation, and dress code applies. You need to know that some restaurants aren’t open all the time, and you may find the number of times you can eat in them has constraints.

Buffets do tend to be quite bland, but the food in the a la carte restaurants is excellent. The buffets however are ideal for a family vacation where children tend not to have the exotic tastes of their parents.

The all inclusive family vacation element is well catered for with loads to do to keep particularly the slightly older child occupied, and of course the parent who doesn’t want to just lie on a sunbed imbibing the great range of all inclusive drinks whilst enjoying the beachfront position.

The all inclusive activities include, windsurfing, catamarans, kayaking, tennis, water polo, archery, beach volleyball, pool tables, table tennis, and for the 4-12 year olds there is a Kid’s Club, games room, and pool.

The adults in the family are more likely to be interested in the Aerobics, dance lessons, and a daily activities program, and the nightly entertainments, and then teenagers and parents can enjoy the disco.

There is a very high satisfaction rate, and there are very good reasons for naming the Iberostar Varadero as not only the best all inclusive, but in fact the best resort in Cuba.

The kind of comments heard include the attentiveness of the staff, and the service supplied. The beautiful beach, kept clean daily, the huge pool with swim up bar, Jacuzzi and water toys for all to use free of charge. A good description is luxury, comfort, elegance, with top class food in the a la carte restaurants.

Unlike other all inclusive resorts, there are top quality brands available at the Iberostar Varadero.

More than anything else, because obviously the facilities are what you would expect from a five star resort, it is how well all the staff carry out their functions, that guests remark on most frequently. Bearing in mind the shortages of what we would call basics in Cuba, it is a kindness to tip them well, leave toiletries behind when you go for them to take home and use.

You will have a great family all inclusive family vacation here at the Iberostar Varadero, always providing you don’t mind a bit of noise from the various entertainments. Good value, beachfront, and Iberostar at its best.

Duck Hunting – Enjoy a Great Adventure Trip in New Orleans

To have a spectacular and thrilling adventure, go on duck hunting charters in New Orleans. New Orleans duck hunting trips are just the ticket for people who love hunting, but lack experience; those who don’t know where to go hunting; or those who do not have any hunting buddies. While duck hunting in the New Orleans area with the outfitter, you could come across many species like gadwall, widgeon, redhead, bufflehead, mallards and pintails, to name a few. Taking New Orleans duck hunting trips with an experienced outfitter who knows the area, along with a friend or other hunting enthusiast, sounds like an ideal plan for any huntsman. The best part is of duck hunting charters in New Orleans is that you can enjoy the experience even if you have no expertise or prior knowledge about duck hunting.

New Orleans duck hunting trips are taken in broad daylight in order that you can focus better and the likelihood of hunting your catch also increases. You could experience no success in hunting all day if you do not have hands-on experience or do not know where to look. Whether an experienced huntsmen looking for company and guidance or getting teens involved in outdoor activities, duck hunting in the New Orleans area is the just the thing that you’ve been looking for.

Learning about hunting, fishing and shooting is the most effective way to insure that we have new outdoorsmen and women onboard to ensure the future of outdoor traditions like hunting. Duck hunting charters in New Orleans offer you a customized hunting adventure that you have not experienced before. Though hunting as a sport requires patience, duck hunting charters in New Orleans could provide an extremely exciting experience.

Escape into the wilderness, experience the calm of nature and get in tune with your inner huntsman on duck hunting charters in New Orleans. Duck hunting in the New Orleans area provides the ultimate destination for entertaining business clients, conducting corporate meetings and seminars, or just relaxing and unwinding with friends and family. Louisiana winters the largest concentration of migrating waterfowl in America. At the Arkansas-Louisiana state line, the flyway narrows to a one-mile bottleneck where seventy percent of all migrating waterfowl will pass. Duck hunting charters in New Orleans do not provide hunting licenses. The hunter needs purchase his license in advance. Guns and ammunition are also the responsibility of the hunter and so is bringing their own rain gear, chest waders or boots.

Are you looking for new orleans duck hunting trips and fishing trips? Then book your next trip at Ellender Charters.W e offer inshore, offshore, bow fishing, red fishing and also guided duck hunts in new orleans. To enjoy a thrilling experience in duck hunting and catching variety of fishes, please visit our website.

Olympic Competitions and the Metric System of Measurement

The metric system of measurement is an internationally agreed-upon set of units for expressing the amounts of various quantities such as length, mass, time, and temperature. As of now, every nation in the world has adopted the metric system, with only four exceptions: the United States, Brunei, Burma, and Yemen (which use the English units of measurement). Because of its convenience and consistency, scientists have used the metric system of units for more than 200 years. Originally, the metric system was based on only three fundamental units: the meter for length, the kilogram for mass, and the second for time. Today, there are more than 50 officially recognized units for various scientific quantities.

The Metric system was developed in France during the Napoleonic reign of France in the 1790’s. The metric system has several advantages over the English system due to which the scientific community has adopted the metric system almost from its inception. In fact, the metric system missed being nationalized in U.S. by one vote in the Continental Congress in the late 1700’s or early 1800’s. As it is used by most nations of the world, it has commercial and trade advantage. If American manufacturers having both domestic and international customers are to compete, they have to absorb the added cost of dealing with two systems of measurement.

A marathon is an endurance foot race which covers 26 miles, 385 yards (42.2 kilometers). It is named after the Greek Battle of Marathon, which occurred in 490 BCE. In addition to being an Olympic event for both men and women, marathons are run all over the world on a variety of terrain types by athletes at various skill levels. To perform well in a marathon, an athlete undergoes a vigorous period of training to develop stamina and learn his or her physical limitations.

It is said that after the Greeks were victorious over the Persians at the Battle of Marathon, they sent a runner to Athens with the news. The runner, Pheidippides, ran the entire distance to Athens without stopping, announced the victory, and then dropped dead, due to the physical stress on his body caused by the long run. Numerous authors included the story in poems and songs, including Robert Browning in 1876. Browning’s poem inspired Michel Breal, who organized the revival of the Olympic Games in 1896 and included a marathon.

History, however, seems to suggest that Pheidippides was actually sent from Athens to Sparta to request assistance at Marathon. This is how Herodotus, who wrote extensively about the Greco-Persian wars, told the story. A runner was certainly sent from Marathon to Athens to relay the news, but it may not have been Pheidippides, and the journey was probably not completed without a single stop.

In a modern marathon, organizers set out a race course which meets the distance requirement, which was set in the 1908 Olympic Games at London. The course is left open for a set period of time, usually around four hours, and runners who fail to complete the course are picked up and brought to the finish line. In marathons with a larger group of less experienced runners, the course may be left open longer, to allow them to finish. Long distance running is very demanding on the body. Runners have an extensive training program which mixes endurance running with resting, so that the body is not damaged. They also monitor their physical health during the race, in an effort to maintain the proper electrolyte balance so that they do not suffer from an imbalance of salts in the body. 

The Olympics began in 776 B.C. with a single event, a 200-yard dash called a stadion. In time, 2- stadia and 24-stadia events were added, and wrestling appeared in 708 B.C. Eventually, interest in the games declined, and they were discontinued in 394 A.D. In 1896, the modern Olympics were initiated and held in Greece. The games attracted about 500 athletes from 13 nations. Since then, the games have been held at various cities around the world every four years. The games have steadily increased in the number of participants, as well as the number of events. In 1896, 311 men competed from 13 nations, and the United States won gold medals in 9 of the 12 events. In 1996, over 10,000 men and women athletes competed from 197 nations. The summer games feature archery, basketball, boxing, canoeing, cycling, fencing, field hockey, gymnastics, handball, horseback riding, judo, rowing, shooting, soccer, swimming, tennis, track and field, volleyball, water polo, weight lifting, wrestling, and yachting.

In the past, U.S. track and field competitions were conducted using the English system of measurement. That is, American runners competed at distances of 100 yards, 440 yards, and one mile. In Olympic competitions, events are conducted using the metric system owing to its international acceptance. Olympic runners compete at comparable distances such as 100, 400, and 1500 meters. The marathon, however, is an exception. It corresponds to the distance run by the Greek messenger who carried news of the Athenian victory on the Plains of Marathon in 490 B.C. That legendary distance was 26 miles, 385 yards.

In 1924, the Olympic winter games were introduced at Chamonix, France. Subsequently, the winter games have been held three times in the United States, twice at Lake Placid and once at Squaw Valley. The winter games feature skating, skiing, bobsledding, luge, tobogganing, and ice hockey. In Nordic cross-country skiing, the races are 10, 20, 30, and 50 kilometers; in ski jumping, the ramps are 70 and 90 meters. Thus, Olympic competitions – winter and summer – employ the metric system of measurement. The 400-meter Olympic race is nearly identical to 440 yards, and the world records for the two races are within tenths of a second.

History Of Tennis, Rules Of Tennis

Tennis is a sport that has been there for hundreds of years. It is believed that the game was first developed in Europe- by European Monks . The rackets and balls utilized in previous game were of varied types. The game was absolutely well-known amongst the monks in the monasteries in Europe. Though, there was an instance when the church was contemplating on banning the game.

However, it was Major Walter C Wingfield who patented the tennis equipment and the rules of tennis game. These rules were almost the same as to the rules of the present rules for tennis. These patenting took place in the same year when tennis courts began appearing in the United States. Within a short span of time ( a year), tennis equipment began making an appearance in other countries outside the US.

This was the time when croquet was the most popular game. To be able to play tennis then, people started making use of croquet courts. They set up the courts for tennis.

Wimbledon, the oldest tennis tournament, was first realized in 1877. The courts used in Wimbledon then were slightly different from the courts in play today. Though, the rules were generally the same as today.

Tennis Rules

Rules for Tennis were first adopted on 1 January 1924. Making rules and regulations for tennis lies with the International Tennis Federation and it was accompanied by a Rules of Tennis Committee, which periodically monitors rules and make necessary recommendations for any modification, if it is needed. Suggested changes in rules can be on a permanent basis or for a limited trial duration. The board of directors take recommendations and pass it on to the general meeting of the International Tennis Federation for its perusal. The rules are applied only after the members of the general meeting arrive at a consensus.

Rules cover all aspects of tennis such as the size of the court, permanent fixtures, specifications of tennis balls, rackets, as well as the scoring system. There are rules that also manage the service methods, and the various kinds of faults.

Rules also covers (in substance) to behavior of the tennis players on and off the court. There are separate rules for a singles and doubles game. Rules may also vary slightly from one tournament to another. There are various rulebooks that give details of the numerous technicalities of the game to the players, officials and the spectators. Aside from this, from the game, tennis rules also include anti-doping laws to prevent players from taking banned substances.

Varsity Sports

When talking about Varsity Sports, you have many to choose from. The selection does vary slightly depending upon if you are a male or female. You will not find baseball or football on the list for females just as you will not find volleyball or field hockey on the list for males.

No matter which side you play on, sports has always been very competitive. There are men and women who train the entire lives for one sport. Although these young men and women are in school, they still take there sport very seriously.

It is a part of their everyday life just as going to work is for us. In the division for men, you can choose from football, hockey, skiing, soccer, and many others. In the division for women, you can choose from basketball, indoor hockey, softball, squash and many others as well.

The competition in varsity sports has grown over the years. The people that play on these teams look at their particular sport as though they are pro’s. Newspapers and radio stations, magazines and talk shows are all watching them to see who the next interview is going to be.

For many, such as those that are in varsity football, they are striving to be the next big story. This will help advance their career in the professional status. For some, they are on the team because college requires it.

Varsity Sports is for those that have played in high school and are looking to further their career. In some states, being on the varsity football team or the hockey team is the goal for young men and women. Some may feel it is there way out of a small town and for others the whole town may just expect it.

Being in the sports industry can offer a lot of benefits. It can help keep you fit and in shape, keeps many out of harms way and teaches many of life benefits. These are just a few reasons why so many are into sports.

For some sports is a way of life. They start out watching a certain sport with their family and get hooked. After that, they join a team in middle school, graduate to high school and join there team and move on to college on the Varsity team if they are good enough.

The sports industry has its own rules and regulations that you must follow. Each individual sport goes by a different set. The way you play, the type of field that you are on and the kind of equipment that you use are all different. Be sure to choose the type of Varsity Sport that is right for you.

Climbing Preparation for Your Mt. Apo Adventure

Climbing the Philippines’ highest mountain, the Mount Apo, will surely be a great and fun adventure for you and your companions, however, certain preparations must be made first.

Considering that this is an outdoor activity that requires not only a healthy body but an equally prepared mind as well, certain preparatory measures must be considered prior to taking your first step towards the apex of the Mindanao peak. 

Here are some tips that could help you keep going when you and your friends (or other family members) opt to climb the majestic mountain soon especially that summer is just around the corner: 

1. Never miss a healthy first meal for the day. Eating a nutritious and balanced breakfast is important for you to get the right amount of carbohydrates and nutrients to generate the much-needed energy for your great Mt. Apo climb. Remember that climbing a landform that is 3,144 meters above sea level is not an easy task. In short, you have to be packed with energy as you kick start your adventure.
2. Provide your family all the details of your trek. This is a necessary move that you should take before you even think of wearing your trekking shoes and carry your climbing bag. This will ensure your safety throughout the climb. This means that your family is aware of when they should expect you home. Therefore, when you tell them that you would be back by Tuesday, they will surely look for you should you not be home yet by then.
3. Be aware of the weather forecast during your climb to Mount Apo. Since reaching the top of Mt. Apo would entail a few days of trekking and climbing, depending on the trail that you are taking, it is extremely important to know the weather updates on the days that you will be away for your own safety. By doing so, you will be saved from bad experience when you climb on a bad weather.
4. Never leave the compass. Climbing Mt. Apo is definitely an exciting journey, especially if it would be your first time to be on top of it. Amid this excitement, you must never forget the fact that you might not be familiar of the terrain and the right way to reach the peak. With the help of a compass, you will be guided on which path to take. 

Keep posted for more practical tips as you climb Mount Apo!

Tbi in High School and College Athletics

Mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) occurs quite frequently in high school and college athletics. Impaired cognitive functioning is often observed in athletes who have had multiple concussions.

Younger Athletes Recover Less Quickly

Athletes at several colleges and high schools participated in a recent study to compare cognition pre and post concussion. Concussions were defined by loss of consciousness and the length of time needed for changes in mental status to substantially improve. Study results showed that college athletes had lost consciousness at a higher rate than their high school athlete counterparts. Twenty-four hours after injury, athletes with concussions and control subjects had substantial memory differences. However, injured high school athletes experienced longer memory difficulties than did the injured collegiates. The researchers speculated that less mature brains are more vulnerable to brain injury and recovery less quickly.

Girls More Vulnerable to TBI

Another recent study determined that girls appear to experience higher concussion rates than boys in sports played by both boys and girls.

Researchers reviewed U.S. high school athletes’ injuries among youths participating in the following sports: boys’ football, basketball, soccer, wrestling, baseball, girls’ soccer, volleyball, basketball and softball. They concluded that during the 2005-06 school year, high school athletes experienced approximately 135,901 concussions.

Young women participating in soccer had a 68 percent higher concussion rate than males participating in the same sport. In basketball, girls were an astonishing 200 percent more likely than their male counterparts to be injured with a concussion.

No Gain from Playing Through the Pain

The researchers expressed surprise at the huge discrepancy in injury rates, and hypothesized that boys’ larger neck muscles might serve to better absorb shock and prevent injury. They also hinted at socio-cultural reasons for the different rates of injury. Boys are taught not to let others know when they are in pain and typically continue playing while injured unless knocked unconscious.

Playing through the pain of a concussion is one of the worst mistakes an athlete can make, leading to potentially lifelong debilitating injury.

Where Kids should go for play on raining days!

Where Kids should go for play on raining days!

What options you have for your little one’s daily play when the sun’s not shining and the rain, snow, too cold or too hot weather! We got some tips for your children active on not so nice days to active inside on date which not on your children’s agenda to running around the backyard or play at park! Here below are the options.

Inflatable Bounce. Bounce are most company kids play equipment, and kids love to play on it. When the weather is not cooperation and kids are too boring to stand at hole, let them bouncing at one the the indoor play spaces. Search one of such play place on internet and check the games prepare for kids, usually indoor bounce provides inflatable bouncer, slides, soccer, football, dodge-ball, volleyball, basketball and all kinds of amusement activities.

Play and education on Museum. Add a pinch of educational entertainment to your child’s indoor play at one museums. The Museum features a giant interactive board game, role-playing in a child-sized community called “Home Town” and art activities. The Museum’s “Pocket Park” is an area for kids of preschool age and under that includes an interactive pond, a pretend orchard, a sandbox, a crawling area and an indoor tree house. The Discovery World Science and Technology Center has educational indoor activities in their “Simple Machine Shipyard,” musical “Virtual Les Paul” exhibit, “The City of Freshwater and Liquid House” and the “Techno Jungle.” Another option, displays science- and nature-based exhibits; your family can take a self-guided tour, or you can sign up the kids for a class or camp.

Trampoline park. A trampoline park have jumping area for all ages, trampoline park are exciting sport for whole family play. Full activities of trampoline park including the main court (Free jump), the Foam Zone (freestyle jumping in to foam pit), Dodge-ball, Sky slam and more!

Free jump burn up to 1,000 calories an hour on wall-to-wall trampolines! Free jump is low-impact, healthy and fun that combines calisthenics, core exercises and strength-building aerobics. it is one of the most dynamic, effective and active workouts you can get! Don’t worry, any level of athlete will feel rejuvenated after this workout. 

Foam zone experience true freedom! Jump, fly and flip from a trampoline runway into a pit filled with foam cubes. There’s no better way to experience the pure joy of weightlessness.
Indoor Playground Activity Check with your friend or parents of your kids schoolmate to located a indoor playground for play inside on cold, snow or raining days!. Indoor playground place is a park-filled climber adventure, ball-battler, playhouses, slides toys and climber-types of play equipment for kids 2-12 years old. Usually indoor playground including play frame for children 6-12 and as well as specialized stations just for toddlers.

Play doesn’t always mean running around, jumping or skipping. Art-loving kids can get creative indoors in more crafty spaces. The Art Museum’s Open Studio provides themed hands-on art-making activities for children of all ages. for the Arts offers artistic play during classes, summer camps and art-themed birthday parties. Kids learn new techniques and can explore with materials during workshops led by trained artist instructors.

The Volley and Overhead Smash in Tennis

The net attack is the heavy artillery of tennis. It is supposed to crush all defence. As such it must be regarded as a point-winning stroke at all times, no matter whether the shot is volley or smash.

Once at the net hit from the point at the first opportunity given to get the racquet squarely on the ball. All the laws of footwork explained for the drive are theoretically the same in volleying. In practice you seldom have time to change your feet to a set position, so you obviate trouble by throwing the weight on the foot nearest to the ball and pushing it in the shot.

Volleys are of two classes: (1) the low volley, made from below the waist; and (2) the high volley, from the waist to the head. In contradistinction to the hitting plane classification are the two styles known as (1) the deep volley and (2) the stop volley.

All low volleys are blocked. High volleys may be either blocked or hit. Volleys should never be stroked. There is no follow through on a low volley and very little on a high one.

You will hear much talk of “chop” volleys. A chop stroke is one where the racquet travels from above the line of flight of the ball, down and through it, and the angle made behind the racquet is greater than 45 degrees, and many approach 90 degrees. Therefore I say that no volleys should be chopped, for the tendency is to pop the ball up in the air off any chop. Slice volleys if you want to, or hit them flat, for both these shots are made at a very small angle to the flight-line of the ball, the racquet face travelling almost along its plane.

In all volleys, high or low, the wrist should be locked and absolutely stiff. It should always be below the racquet head, thus bracing the racquet against the impact of the ball. Allow the force of the incoming shot, plus your own weight, to return the ball, and do not strive to “wrist” it over. The tilted racquet face will give any required angle to the return by glancing the ball off the strings, so no wrist turn is needed.

Low volleys can never be hit hard, and owing to the height of the net should usually be sharply angled, to allow distance for the rise. Any ball met at a higher plane than the top of the net may be hit hard. The stroke should be crisp, snappy, and decisive, but it should stop as it meets the ball. The follow through should be very small. Most low volleys should be soft and short. Most high volleys require speed and length.

The “stop” volley is nothing more than a shot blocked short. There is no force used. The racquet simply meets the oncoming ball and stops it. The ball rebounds and falls of its own weight. There is little bounce to such a shot, and that may be reduced by allowing the racquet to slide slightly under the ball at the moment of impact, thus imparting back spin to the ball.

Volleying is a science based on the old geometric axiom that a straight line is the shortest distance between two points. I mean that a volleyer must always cover the straight passing shot since it is the shortest shot with which to pass him, and he must volley straight to his opening and not waste time trying freakish curving volleys that give the base-liner time to recover. It is Johnston’s great straight volley that makes him such a dangerous net man. He is always “punching” his volley straight and hard to the opening in his opponent’s court.

A net player must have ground strokes in order to attain the net position. Do not think that a service and volley will suffice against first-class tennis.

Strive to kill your volleys at once, but should your shot not win, follow the ball ‘cross and again cover the straight shot. Always force the man striving to pass you to play the hardest possible shot.

Attack with your volleys. Never defend the ball when at the net. The only defensive volley is one at your feet as you come in. It is a mid-court shot. Volleys should win with placement more than speed, although speed may be used on a high volley.

Closely related to the volley, yet in no way a volley stroke, is the overhead smash. It is the Big Bertha of tennis. It is the long range terror that should always score. The rules of footwork, position, and direction that govern the volley will suffice for the overhead. The swing alone is different. The swing should be closely allied to the slice service, the racquet and arm swinging freely from the shoulder, the wrist flexible and the racquet imparting a slight twist to the ball to hold it in court. The overhead is mainly a point winner through speed, since its bounce is so high that a slow placement often allows time for a recovery.

Do not leap in the air unnecessarily to hit overhead balls. Keep at least one foot, and when possible both feet, on the ground in smashing, as it aids in regulating the weight, and gives better balance. Hit flat and decisively to the point if desired.

Most missed overhead shots are due to the eye leaving the ball; but a second class of errors are due to lack of confidence that gives a cramped, half-hearted swing. Follow through your overhead shot to the limit of your swing.

The overhead is essentially a doubles shot, because in singles the chances of passing the net man are greater than lobbing over his head, while in doubles two men cover the net so easily that the best way to open the court is to lob one man back.

In smashing, the longest distance is the safest shot since it allows a greater margin of error. Therefore smash ‘cross court when pressed, but pull your short lobs either side as determined by the man you are playing.

Never drop a lob you can hit overhead, as it forces you back and gives the attacking position to your opponent. Never smash with a reverse twist, always hit with a straight racquet face and direct to the opening.

Closely connected to the overhead since it is the usual defence to any hard smash, is the lob.

A lob is a high toss of the ball landing between the service-line and the baseline. An excellent lob should be within 6 feet of the baseline.

Lobs are essentially defensive. The ideas in lobbing are: (1) to give yourself time to recover position when pulled out of court by your opponent’s shot; (2) to drive back the net man and break up his attack; (3) to tire your opponent; (4) occasionally to, win cleanly by placement. This is usually a lob volley from a close net rally, and is a slightly different stroke.

There is (1) the chop lob, a heavily under-cut spin that hangs in the air. This, is the best defensive lob, as it goes high and gives plenty of time to recover position. (2) The stroke lob or flat lob, hit with a slight top spin. This is the point-winning lob since it gives no time to, the player to run around it, as it is lower and faster than the chop. In making this lob, start your swing like a drive, but allow the racquet to slow up and the face to tilt upward just as you meet the ball. This, shot should seldom go above 10 feet in the air, since it tends to go out with the float of the ball.

The chop lob, which is a decided under cut, should rise from 20 to 30 feet, or more, high and must go deep. It is better to lob out and run your opponent back, thus tiring him, than to lob short and give him confidence by an easy kill. The value of a lob is mainly one of upsetting your opponent, and its effects are very apparent if you unexpectedly bring off one at the crucial period of a match.

Purchasing kids sports accessories online

Online Volleyball:

                        

Volley ball game accessories are sold in many stores. Not only in sports outlets, but also available in online websites as well. People can easily get the products of volleyball on online websites as many products and designs are available. Volley ball sport equipments available in online websites are of many types – volleyballs, volleyball socks, volleyball shoes, volleyball team wear, volleyball apparel, volleyball equipment and many more. These volley ball online products are available in different brands -Asics, Mikasa, Active Ankle, Mizuno, Tachikara, Tandem etc.

Online Volley Ball products are available for everyone. We can place the order for volleyball products online for all age groups of people ranging with its sizes, models and designs. Volley ball online products are available for reasonable prices and come with free shipping charges.

Kids Cycling Helmets:

Cycling helmets for kids are now becoming popular .We can see many kids wearing these cycling helmets. Kids cycling helmets should be designed with lightweight to provide ventilation in order to maintain the body temperature. It’s good to select the good quality kids cycling helmets which protect the head to balance the heat produced from head. We can even buy the helmets through online shopping. There are many online websites which sells kids cycling helmets in various models and designs based on comfort and quality.

As kids love spider man, batman, Barbie, the kids cycling helmets are coming with these designs and different colors on the helmets.  It’s preferable to buy kids cycling helmet which have the adjustable strap.  Moreover, kids cycling helmets varies from boys to girls. So, parents are buying kids cycling helmets which are modeled with a stylish look and which come with safety as well.

Badminton Kit Bags:

Badminton kit bags are durable with good quality and used to keep many badminton accessories. Badminton kit consists of rackets, cocks, wristbands, grips etc. Depending upon the age, the Kits were designed from lightweight to the heavy weighted accessories. For kids also, the badminton kit is designed in a way to start up.

Many online websites provides the badminton kit bags with many different accessories which have more comfort and designs. Online sales have been increased due to high increase in sales through online shopping.  Badminton kit bags are designed in a way where we can fit one racket to many rackets depending on its size.

Badminton Kit bags are coming in a way where we can hang them to our shoulders to carry easily. Now-a-Days People prefer to buy badminton kit bags which have durability, light weight with stylish look. 

Nylon Net Bag Carry Braided Mesh Net Bag for Volleyball Basketball Football–Red and White

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£3.26

Description:

Nylon mesh net ball bag
Useful and practical mesh bag
With two braided handle for user-friendliness
Product with good durability
Great for gyms, stadiums, ball game rooms
Holding Capacity: Approx. 10 to 15balls (soccer balls, basketballs, volleyballs, footballs, or kids play balls of similar size)
Grid Size: Approx. 3.9 x 3.9inch / 10 x 10cm
Total Length: Approx. 41.4inch / 115cm (folded)
Material: Nylon
Color: Red and white

Package Included:

1 x Ball Net bag
Nylon mesh net ball bag

Mikasa Indoor-Outdoor Volleyball, Accu-Balance True Shape Retention Ball-White

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Accu-Balance true shape retention

JBM Adults Volleyball Knee Pads Guard Brace Patella Support Protector Knee Stabilizer Safe Comfortable Elastic Durable Impact Resistance Pain Relief for Basketball Football Soccer Running Baseball Paintball Skateboarding Skating Inline Roller Skating Climbing Biking Mountain Bike Cycling

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£35.00



JBM Multi Sports Protective Gear

Touch and Durable Materials
This support pad set equipment is sculpted with long lasting material that is soft and comfortable to the touch and snug when worn. It is well fitting and firm yet well fitting so as not to hinder movement. The material is specially designed with EVA well- padded material so as to cushion any fall and minimize impact. The firmness is instilled by tough uniquely placed plastic plates.

Item specifics
Color: Blue and Black
Material: Polyester, PP, PE

Suitable Sport:
Basketball
Football
Soccer
Running
Baseball
Paintball
Skateboarding
Skating
Inline Roller
Skating
Climbing
Biking
Mountain
Bike
Cycling
Package:
1 Pair of Knee pad

1 year warranty!
Please Leave us a FEEDBACK AND REVIEW to assist our brand to improve our product design and go further.ONE SIZE FOR MOST, These volleyball knee pads is a great patella protector designed for mens and womens who like outdoor sports activities, avoid knee ligaments to get hurt through providing cushion for external pressure. This knee support is also suitable for those who are suffering knee pains for twisted knee, arthritic knee and knee injuries. This knee protection serves as a knee stabilizer strengthening the knee joint and promote knee healing.

Songmics Badminton Net Portable Tennis Volleyball Height Adjustable with Stand SYQ300

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£29.95

Status: new and original packaging

Product Parameters:
Material: steel poles + PE net
Size: 300 x 155 x 103 cm
Diameter of pole: 19 mm

Shipping List:
1 x Badminton Net
1 x Carry Bag
4 x Ground pegs

Notes:
– Not suitable for children under 3 years.

Adjustable height. everything you need to play badminton, tennis and volleyball. Bringing fun for you and your family

JBM Multi Color Arms Compression Sleeve Brace Support Wrap Cuff Elbow Protector Pads Safe Comfortable Elastic Breathable Warm Durable Pain Relief for Running Basketball Baseball Volleyball Golf Tennis Badminton Boating Weightlifting Gym Power Lifting Fitness Exercise Cycling Biking

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£35.00



JBM Arms Compression Sleeve Support Wrap Band

ONE SIZE FOR ALL
The arms compression sleeve goes with a standard size, which is suitable for mens and womens who love outdoor sports activities. As designed according to arm shape, this elbow brace will fit well to one’s arm. For the high elasticity, users could adjust the size according to one’s need. Sportsman wear this arm compression sleeve during sports activities to protect elbow from hurt or relieve elbow pains.

WEARS COMFORTABLE AND DURABLE
The arms protector is breathable which can absorb most of the sweat to keep dry and clean. With the designing of sleeve style, this elbow equipment is convenient for users to put on or take off. Users could adjust the size flexibly for the high elasticity. The soft and lightweight material allow users to wear the elbow compression sleeve comfortable. The adoption of high quality materials makes this elbow compression sleeve hard to be broken, giving users a durable usage.

COLOR AVAILABLE:
Black
White
Please choose from VAIRATION
SUITABLE USERS:
Mens
Womens
Adults
Youth
Teens
Unisex

SUITABLE SPORTS:
Basketball
Baseball
Volleyball
Golf
Tennis
Badminton
Running
Boating
Weightlifting
Power lifting
Gym
Fitness Exercise
Cycling
Biking

WARRANTY
ONE YEAR Warranty Guaranteed

JBMalways value the customer user experience.
Please kindly leave FEEDBACK and RATING below.

ARM SLEEVE BRACE SUPPORT The arms compression sleeve goes with a standard size, which is suitable for mens and womens who love outdoor sports activities. As designed according to arm shape, this elbow brace will fit well to one’s arm.

JBM Adults Thumb Stabilizer Finger Brace Thumb Compression Support Tendonitis Carpal Tunnel Wrist Brace Adjustable Breathable Reversible Comfortable Durable for Basketball Volleyball Boating Badminton Running Weightlifting GYM Fitness Exercise Table Tennis Climbing Biking Cycling

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£45.00



JBM has been focusing on the development of sports protective gear. Our products are specially designed for outdoor-activities, such as running, basketball, football, volleyball, cycling. Safety protection is always our primary concern and we will continue to provide the best products for our customers.

JBM thumb stabilizer

One size fit all
This thumb stabilizer goes with a standard size, which is suitable for mens and womens sports, including those who are suffering the thumb pain or carpal tunnel. One thumb support fit for both right and left hands.

Best thumb stabilizer
Due to the regular activities of thumb, it is easy to cause friction to the wrist tendon sheath, and thus result a tendonitis or carpal tunnel. This finger brace is a great finger support to deal with this symptom through stabilizing the thumb and preventing the repeated friction on wrist tendon sheath. Sportsman with the thumb brace will not feel thumb pain any more once the tendonitis tissue get recovery.

Wears comfortable and durable
The finger stabilizer adopts the material of highly breathability and hygroscopicity, which always stay clean and dry, makes users wear comfortable even after the High-intensity sports activities or training. This thumb brace wears close to the thumb and wrist for the reasonable designing and adjustable system. The excellent quality of the materials decide this finger brace to be used durable.

Suitable sports:
Basketball
Volleyball
Boating
Badminton
Weightlifting
Table Tennis
Climbing
Biking
Cycling
Motorcycling
Power-lifting

Color:
Black

Warranty
ONE YEAR Warranty Guaranteed

JBMalways value the customer user experience.
Please kindly leave FEEDBACK and RATING below.

ONE SIZE FIT ALL This adult thumb stabilizer goes with a standard size, which is suitable for all kinds of sports enthusiasts, mens and womens, including those who are suffering the thumb pain or carpal tunnel. One thumb support fit for both right and left hands.

Mikasa Stylish Tri-coloured Vxs-bf Outdoor Recreational Beach Volleyball

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£18.01

MIKASA TRI-COLOURED VXS-BF OUTDOOR BEACH FEVER FIVB OFFICIAL VOLLEYBALL

Sport-Thieme Soft Foam Volleyball

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£16.16



The Sport-Thieme soft foam volleyball – perfectly suited to children The Sport-Thieme soft foam volleyball is manufactured from open-pored soft foam and has very good bounce characteristics. Thanks to its small size and light weight, it is particularly suitable for children’s hands. The soft ball also prevents children from being nervous.Very good bounce

Fletion Arm Sleeves (1 Pair) Outdoor Sports or Football, Basketball, Baseball,Volleyball Running Cycling Hiking Golf Elbow Support Arm Sleeve Of Unisex Lycra Sun Protection UV Cover Arm Cooling Sleeves

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Package Include:1pair*Sun protective Arm SleevesMaterial:100% Lycra Elastic Fabric,Soft and Breathable

Volleyball Indoor Outdoor Training Pu Leather 3 Colors New High Quality Training

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£8.15



Description:
1.Use soft super fiber materials, effectively damping the stress in the beating process, spherical covering for hand more widely.
2.Use special process, multiple prevent leakage design, special structure to prevent impurity into sphere, not affect the smooth sphere surface, ensure excellent performance.
3.Use ultra fiber PU material, comfortable, super strong air tightness, wear resistant, 3 colors, more easy to distinguish while flying in the air.
4.Butyl liner, anti deformation, fine workmanship, super high price performance.
Color:Yellow + Blue + White.
Material:PU.
Specifications:International Standard V.
Features:comfortable, soft leather.
Suitable for:indoor and outdoor.
Package includes:
1 x Volleyball.
1 x Air mouth.
1 x Net bagmade of natural and high quality goose feather.

Mikasa Beach Champ VXT30 Beach Volleyball Ball

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Mikasa Beach Champ VXT30 Beach Volleyball Ball

JBM Multi Purpose Magic Scarf Head Band Wrap Eyes Cover Hair Tie Wrist Brace Fashion Comfortable Soft Breathable Durable for Skiing Basketball Tennis Badminton Volleyball Golf Running Soccer Football Baseball Biking Cycling Hiking Climbing Camping Gym Fitness

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£35.00



JBM MAGIC SCARF HEAD BAND WRAP EYES COVER HAIR TIE WRIST BRACE

COOL AND FASHION
This magic scarf goes with a standard size, which is suitable for mens and womens who love outdoor sports activities. Users adjust the size according to one’s head size. Sportsman wear this head wrap with classic black color look cool and fashion, which increase the observability of sports activities. For those who pursue fashion, this magic scarf is a good choice.

FIX HAIR ABSORB SWEAT
Long hair often block the view or let sportsman feel hotter during the sports activities, which may effect user’s performance. The magic scarf help fix hair and prevent it moving with sportsman’s action. The headband is also regarded as sweatband for great breathability. It could absorb sweat produced during activities and keep cool.

WEARS COMFORTABLE AND DURABLE
The sweatband is soft and lightweight. Users adjust this sweatband flexibly to meet head size. Wearing this magic scarf would neither slide nor cause any pressure to user’s head, just giving users a totally comfortable fit. As the sweatband adopts breathable and high quality material, which is washable and reusable. Usually users wear this scarf for a long time.

COLOR AVAILABLE:
Black
Red
Blue
Gray
Please choose from VARIATION

SUITABLE USERS:
Mens
Womens
Adults
Youth
Teens

SUITABLE SPORTS
Skiing
Basketball
Volleyball
Soccer
Football
Baseball
Tennis
Badminton
Golf
Running
Gym
Fitness
Biking
Cycling
Hiking
Walking
Climbing
Camping

WARRANTY
ONE YEAR Warranty Guaranteed

JBMalways value the customer user experience.
Please kindly leave FEEDBACK and RATING below.

COOL AND FASHION This magic scarf goes with a standard size, which is suitable for mens and womens who love outdoor sports activities. Users adjust this sports scarf according to one’s head size. Sportsman wear this head wrap with classic black color look cool and fashion, which increase the observability of sports activities. For those who pursue fashion, this magic scarf is definitely a good choice.

VOLLEYBALL BLACK T SHIRT KEEP CALM AND PLAY VOLLEYBALL

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VOLLEYBALL KEEP CALM AND PLAY VOLLEYBALL BLACK T SHIRT Available in sizes S-XXL ,fun gift .Made using quality Fruit of The Loom Garment

JBM Adults Knee Brace Support Compression Sleeve Patella Knee Stabilizer Safe Durable Comfortable Elastic Adjustable Pain Relief for Running Football Soccer Basketball Baseball Volleyball Tennis Badminton GYM Weightlifting Power Lifting Fitness Exercise Climbing Cycling Biking Hiking

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JBM KNEE BRACE Support
WEARS COMFORTABLE AND DURABLE
This knee pad is breathable which absorb sweat to keep dry and clean. The knee support adopts adjustable system, which is convenient for users to adjust the size flexibly. The soft and lightweight material allow users to wear the knee brace comfortable. High quality materials decided this patella equipment to be durable.

IMPACT RESISTANCE PAIN RELIEF
The external part of the knee brace adopts additional thicker cushion designing, which could protect the knee joint from hurt through absorbing the impact and cushion the external pressure produced during crash. This knee equipment also serves as a knee stabilizer for those who have knee issues, through helping fix the knee joint, promote knee healing and relieve knee pain.

COLOR AVAILABLE:
Blue
Red
Please choose from VARIATION

SUITABLE USERS:
Mens
Womens
Adults
Youth
Teens
Boys
Girls
Unisex

SUITABLE SPORTS:
Running
Football
Soccer
Basketball
Baseball
Volleyball
Tennis
Badminton
Weightlifting
Power Lifting
Fitness Exercise
GYM
Climbing
Cycling
Biking
Hiking

WARRANTY
ONE YEAR Warranty Guaranteed

JBMalways value the customer user experience.
Please kindly leave FEEDBACK and RATING below.

SPEEDY RECOVERY knee brace is a perfect knee stabilizer which adopts dual fix designing to strengthen the stability of the patella and better protect knees to avoid lateral displacement. In addition, this knee guard is really soft, which can reduce the pressure on the knee caused by injured knees like twisted knee, arthritic knee, acl knee, score knee, meniscus tear.

Eager for a Volleyball Scholarship

Polishing exposure and technique as well as learning advanced tactics of the game is the key to the volleyball recruitment environment.

Volleyball originated in the United States, and is only now beginning to achieve the type of popularity in the U.S. that it receives elsewhere in the world, where it ranks behind only college soccer among participation sports.

Here are some information specific to college volleyball scholarships and the volleyball recruiting process.

• The high school season concur with the college season so most coaches actually recruit during the club season. Most college volleyball coaches recruit players at junior local tournaments, national qualifiers and regional tournaments;
• NCAA allows each division 1 Volleyball program 4.5 scholarships for Men and 12 for women. In division 2 the ratio is 4.5 for men and 8 for women;
• It doesn’t an issue how good you are, to get recruited and be in line for a college volleyball scholarship you need to tell the college coaches who you are and why you deserve to be recruited;
• The process of finding and contacting coaches and dealing with the rules and regulations enforced by the NCAA and NAIA is quite a daunting process for both athletes and parents. The use of college volleyball recruiting service is a must for all athletes who are serious about playing college volleyball;
• As a high school volleyball player you should be aware that the standard of play at college volleyball level is very high. You should attend a few games to gauge the actual intensity of volleyball at this level. Remember that only the absolute top players will be approached with scholarship offers;
• Many fine talented young volleyball players are overlooked each year because they didn’t submit their athletic scholarship resume to the “right” colleges or left out vital information. It’s also a fact that many colleges simply don’t allocate all of their volleyball recruiting funds because “suitable” athletes didn’t approach them;
• Most players will have to contact the college volleyball coaches themselves;

You can try to do this yourself or use some college volleyball recruiting service. Try D1athletes.com it is an interactive and proactive environment for facilitating positive and effective communication between Coaches and Athletes. Having an extra effort to be deserved at your chosen camp is a must.

Vincere Unisex Sand Socks Neoprene Beach Scuba Snorkel Volleyball Soccer Shoes

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Protect your feet from hot sand, mud, dirt, slime, and seaweed this summer with these Vincere Unisex Neoprene Sand Socks! These slip on booties are perfect for beach volleyball or soccer, scuba diving, snorkeling, surfing, boating, watersports, or just a day at the beach. The neoprene soles are tough for protection yet comfortable to wear all day long. The lycra upper has a UV protection rating of 50 to shield your skin from burns. These sand socks are slim enough to be worn with shoes or sandals. Available in a variety of adult unisex sizes.Protect your feet from hot sand, mud, dirt, slime and seaweed

Different Types of Sports Awards

Since the ancient times, people love sports. The motivation to compete and become a winner in a certain field is common in most people. That is why there are different types of popular sports nowadays. Many even organize their own little league or sports event in their community, school or company. With any type of sports competition, having the right awards and sports trophies is important. Winners will, of course, expect to receive a beautiful token to remember their winning moment. Here are some examples of sports awards that you can consider when organizing your own sports event.

Embossed Medals
With easy engraving and molding technology nowadays, medals can be as distinct and beautiful as you want it to be. Unlike the simple engraving of words or an image, you can have them embossed to make your award look more impressive. You can choose various imageries to emboss on the medal. It should symbolize the specific sport or the logo of your organization. Nowadays, it is easy to personalize your medals, and you can choose from available designs offered by a supplier. There are two-toned medals, and some can even look as if they are made from stained glass. You can view site here for modern design samples.

3D Crystal Trophies
This modern trophy has its unique look, which is not common in most sports awards. A 3D image, like a ball or star can be enclosed in a crystal block. It can be lit up using LED lights. The change in colors is quite impressive. This is a good option if you want something different from the usual trophies. Kids would also love to own this type of trophy, so you can consider this for school sports events.

Modern Trophy Designs
Many trophy designs now are more creative and less formal. New technologies made it easier to fabricate beautiful awards. Awards like AFL or Aussie Rules trophies can now look like gold action figures. You can also check out different designs that come in a variety of colors and materials. A silver-colored resin trophy can look impressive with gold highlights. You can also find trophies with contour forms instead of simple and boring rectangular and circular shapes. The best part is that trophies are now less expensive because of the use of cheap but good quality material and the easier and faster method of fabricating such trophies. You can now buy and personalize a good quality trophy for as low as $7 or possibly less.

Ball Case and Holder
To make a victorious moment more memorable, you can opt for a ball case or holder. The ball used during the winning game can be encased in a crystal block or mounted on a timber ball holder. A winning team, player, or coach would be proud to display such a trophy. This is also a good conversation piece if displayed at home or in an office where visitors can easily notice it.  

Whether it’s a simple ball game in your school or community or a big sports event organized and participated by big names in the industry, there are great trophy designs to choose from. Always choose an appropriate design and a reliable supplier to provide you with good quality awards and trophies.

How Did Ancient Greeks Manage To Win The Most Olympic Awards?

Copyright (c) 2010 Tatiana Bandurina

Discovering the before unknown objective laws of the modern world, each of us tends to inevitably face the curious fact that all new is well forgotten old, although with some variations adapted to the social needs of our reality. For example, very few people know that music was actively used in the athletic life of the Ancient world.

In the last few years the idea of stimulating the athletic working capacity during training by means of music has become more prominent. It is used in types of sports that seem to be absolutely incompatible with music. These include but are not limited to, wrestling, boxing, rowing, track and field, weightlifting, volleyball, and basketball.

It has been scientifically proven that by using music during sports training in these sports it is possible to significantly improve the overall mood and increase the endurance of athletes, as well as raise the level of muscular strength, speed and dexterity; thus increasing the general productivity and effectiveness of such training.

Many seem to think that use of music in such “non-musical” kinds of sports is highly novel and unconventional. But things that today seem novel and unconventional to us, already existed in the remote past and were considered to be natural and indispensable. For example, let’s have a look at ancient athletics.

One of the first countries of the Ancient world that passed law on use of music in physical training and sports within its own state, was Sparta.

Falet, Cretan wise man, sorcerer, musician and a poet, brought various motets to Sparta and these harmonious melodies were used during many gymnastic exercises, wrestling and fisticuffs (fist fights).

Some of the tunes were able to put athletes into a state of trance. They can be described as peculiar specific song-dances performed by the naked athletes in special schools during physical exercises in a unified group rhythm, controlled by music.

Mass introduction of music into the physical training of ancient Sparta prior to any other states, most likely has had a huge impact on the fact that Spartan athletes won the most Olympic awards in the VII century B.C.

According to the lists of victors of the Olympic Games, – that reached our time, – the advantage of Spartans was overwhelming and incontestable. Following the successful example of Sparta, other states started to apply “musical” sports training that become more and more popular.

In the middle of the VII century B.C. a new form of sports songs that honoured the winners of national sport competitions emerged.

Starting from the VI century B.C. the development of musical stimulation of athletics was played by Pythagoras’ followers.

Pythagoras, who in addition to all his numerous merits, was also the victor of the Olympic Games in wrestling and fist fighting. He promoted the wide application of music in physical education on a scientific-theoretical basis in every way possible. It was his students who contributed to the work of musical stimulation of human activity and scientifically proved the theoretical positions that practical application considerably increased the efficiency of applied musical influences.

Active work on stimulation of wrestling training to music was conducted by well-known Pythagoras’ associate, Milo of Croton; the singer, philosopher, scientist and most outstanding, wrestler of antiquity. Milo was a six time Olympic victor during 540-516 BC, and also repeatedly won many victories in the most important athletic festivals of ancient Greece. His athletic achievements are unique. After Milo’s career, the world apparently produced no other athletes as well renown.

Being an active member of a Pythagorean society, Milo of Croton used himself as an example to show the advantage of using music in sports training.

Great Techniques To Increase Vertical Jump – Secrets To Vertically Jump Higher

There are many different techniques to increase vertical jump which can be practiced by people of various ages and fitness. Sports like basketball, soccer, and volleyball all have athletes with excellent leaping abilities.

If you are planning to develop your jumping skills and overall health then it is not hard to put together a fitness program that can add inches to your leap in a relatively short time.

The most successful approach will combine various elements to produce an all-round improvement in any individual. Yes, it will need commitment and determination from your end for there to be a positive outcome; there is no magic wand that can produce a leap like a kangaroo in only a matter of days.

The three most popular techniques that will help you to improve your leaping ability are as follows –

1. Strength training: To be able to jump high requires strong leg muscles. There are great exercises you can do to enhance both your thighs and your claves. Leg presses are a popular technique as are step ups. If you have access to a flight of stairs or steps then by practicing on these for thirty minutes a day you will soon see an increase in the size of your leg muscles.

2. Coordination: To jump vertically high is of course essential in many sports but to also be able to control your leap and landing is equally important. Try sprinting and jumping in the air at speed and then landing upright.

3. Diet: The human body is no different than a machine in that it needs energy to be input to function. There are foods you can consume which will help you to develop muscle mass quicker but also there are products that can produce a negative outcome. If you plan to workout every day then you will need more protein and sugar for stamina and to build muscle.

The Benefits of Wearing Vibram Five Fingers

Perhaps because of its unique look and design, the initial reaction most people have upon seeing a pair of Vibram Five Fingers shoes is one of surprise. As the name suggests, this relatively new brand of athletic shoes is shaped precisely like a bare foot. While traditional shoes cover the entire foot with a single sturdy dome of leather, canvass, or other material, Five Fingers have fully articulated finger tips. Simply put, the shoes have toes.

While the revolutionary shoe design might have some people wonder about how comfortable the shoes actually are, here is one fact about the human foot that not many people know:

Toes actually play an important role in stabilizing lower body movement. Specifically, the toes help to maintain balance, thrust and equal weight distribution while walking. Vibram Five Fingers shoes allow its wearers to take advantage of the functions of our toes, providing uninhibited control and flexibility.

The patented Vibram® sole is made with a non-marking TC1 performance rubber compound. The material is sturdy and durable enough to withstand the rugged elements of both pavement and dirt yet thin and flexible enough to provide Five Fingers wearers with more acute sensitivity.

Five Fingers shoes can be worn for sports, exercise, even for leisure. Because of their unparalleled flexibility, the shoes make for great water shoes, sprint shoes, and training pairs for aerobics, yoga and other fitness exercises. Vibram Five Fingers shoes promise to provide maximum comfort and functionality. And with its unique visible toe design, these shoes are sure to get some heads turning.

Resource Box

The ShoeMart offers shoes from such exclusive brands as Vibram Five Fingers, Sperry Topsiders, and Florsheim. Available in all possible sizes at affordable values, the online retailer provides a wide selection of high quality shoes and boots for all occasions. To learn more about the company and its products and services, visit http://ift.tt/1fQQS4R or call 800-850-7463.

Getting Started with 'Coon Hunting

Coon hunting is one of the most popular sports in America today, it is quickly becoming more and more popular seemingly everyday. Very simply, hunting for Coons is great for both beginners and avid hunters, as raccoon can be a great way to practice your hunting skills for the larger game.

There are few things as fun as being out on the trail in the middle of the night, with your hunting dog bellowing in the distance and being out in the forest. Here are some great tips to help you to find the best places to go coon hunting, and also the best coon hunting supplies to utilize.

First of all, keep in mind that hunting raccoons is not only great for getting a good meal, but also good for farmers because they don’t worry about the raccoons getting into their crops and destroying them. Also, no matter how good a hunter you are, raccoons will offer a great challenge for you, because they are very good swimmers and tree climbers, and can allude you very easily.

Also, since raccoons sleep during the day and are active at night, you have to make sure that you find good trained hunting dogs to help you with your coon trip. Also, hunting wheat lights are extremely important as well. You will need a lot of different supplies and equipment nor to be a successful coon hunter, because of the difficulty that this kind of hunting can offer you.

Very simply, the hunting dog you purchase must be very quick and have excellent sense of smell. When the coons climb the tree, especially the middle of the night, just about the only way you can never find them is by using a hunting dog to track them down. The hunting lights are extremely important, because without a good one you’ll never catch the coon because you simply can’t see.

Of course, by far the most important aspect of hunting raccoons is to make sure you know the area your targets will be hiding in ahead of time. Very simply, when you don’t know this area, it will be extremely hard to find coons, particularly at night. It’s hard enough to hunt during the day without understanding the area, but when you try to do it at night, it is virtually a suicide mission.

Therefore, make sure you know all the places where the raccoons go for their feeding, where they live, their favorite trees to climb, etc. Also, if you plan and hunting on private land, make sure that you get permission from the owner of the land.

If you don’t, you will be in for a lot of legal trouble.

Of course, keep in mind that raccoons are also great tasting when you do catch them; they are a great delicacy around America. Also, during the late winter, the raccoon spurs the heaviest, making this the ideal time to go to hunting.

These are utilized many times for both for coats and hats, collars, winter gloves, etc. Therefore, when you do your hunting during the winter, you can expect to get the most return on your investment.

The bottom line is, coon hunting is a great sport for the avid outdoorsman, because you can do it outdoors, at night, and in some awesome scenery. If you enjoy being outdoors, this is a perfect four for you.

This kind of hunting can not only offer you the opportunity to profit when you catch a good coon, but can also give you a chance to unwind after a long work week. Hopefully these coon hunting tips will help you to become a successful hunter as quickly as possible.

Fun Activities for Boys at Summer Camp

There are some core activities and supporting activities undertaken at while they attend summer camp in Algonquin Park, Ontario, Canada. The core activities are undertaken by the campers under the watchful guidance of guides on a daily basis during the sessions. They are: Canoe Tripping, Swimming/Aquatics, Paddling, Earth Lore, and Ropes-Challenge. Stamina and skill building activities are regarded as supporting activities and they include: kayaking, sailing, mountain biking, archery, arts and crafts, and general athletics, which include basketball, volleyball, soccer and softball, tetherball, and disc golf. With so much water around, canoe trip camps and wilderness canoe trips remain the dominating activities at summer camp.

Boys’ camps in Algonquin Park, Ontario, Canada are extremely action packed. The fun activities make the young campers remember them for a life time and make them to keep coming back every year. A typical day starts somewhere at 7 am and boys gather around the morning Flag Pole at 8:20 am. Breakfast follows after that. Breakfast and meals at theboys’ campsin camp are delicious. The candy store also ensures that the kids do not miss out on their favorite candies in the wilderness.

There are periods after breakfast where important things pertaining to different activities are explained to campers. Then they break out in groups to hone their skills at various support activities that include: rope-challenge, wall climbing, and swimming. The activities continue till 1 pm, which is lunch time. An hour of rest follows lunch and then it is time for the main activities that a camper has opted. In the evening, after supper more delightful activities are lined up for campers. Small kids go to bed at 9 pm and for older kids “lights out” time is 10 pm.

Activities and their durations are designed to suit the age of a camper. Boys in the age group of 7-16 and young men in the age group of 16-21 have different activities to choose from depending on their interest and abilities. Some events, such as the canoe trip, span as little as 3 days to as much as 7 weeks. New boys in the age group of 7-8 can learn the ropes about camping skills in a program called “Mic Mac” that spans for one week. For first timer boys in the 9-11 age group there is a special program that spans for 13 days. The boys woodcraft camp as well as historic summer camps are special camps concentrating on specific activities. Older boys with experience in camping go for the full 7 week sessions to explore the trails completely, well, as much as possible. Their canoe trips often involve shooting the rapids and may include wilderness canoe trips. Then there are wild river canoeing for bigger boys which requires years of canoeing experience.

Secrets to Softball Hitting

Softball hitting is the key factor whether your team will bring home the trophy or will suffer the humiliating booing of the softball enthusiasts. So knowing some secrets to good preparations is a must so that during the actual play, you can show off that hard-hitting power that will stun your opponents.

How you perform in the softball field is dictated by the preparations you made before the play. Because your present physical condition and mental state are important, how you prepare makes greater impact. Are there ways to improve your softball hitting performance? The answer is a resounding yes. There are lots of things that you could do in order to develop your skill in softball hitting. Knowing these preparations will give your team greater chances of winning.

Softball experts suggest not only the actual training on how to play the game but also doing the right exercises. Since you want hard-hitting power, achieve this through exercise. A good thing to do this is to do some exercises that strengthen your arm. Your arm is your supreme weapon when it comes to hitting. So you must take care of it. Moderate weight lifting can help. Avoid heavy lifting because it won’t do any help, this might just cause harmful effect on your arms because you force it.

A good amount of bat grip is likewise important. Holding the bat the wrong way misses the ball. If your hands are tensed, you are far from the winning hit. Practice to hold the bat correctly, this will reduce arms tension and gives you even greater speed. Loose grip should be applied by the upper hand, whereas the bottom hand maintains a grip just like when you hold a hammer. Determine also how many inches your grips should be from the bat knob. This affects your hitting power.

When doing some physical exercises, concentrate on the muscles that work harder during the play. Your triceps, chest, hips, legs need sufficient strength. Following regular schedule of exercise will yield better results.

Practicing good stance make some wonders in softball hitting. Although some coaches differ in preference when it comes to correct stance, the ideal thing to do is to stand not wider than your shoulder. Good balance allows you to gain more agility, so give this aspect attention too

Practice relaxing your shoulder. This is affected by the way you position your hands. Good hand distance from the body ensures flexibility and helps the shoulder to reduce tension. Try positioning your hands three to four inches from your chest and see the difference.

This one last reminder is essential. Hitting speed is also determined by the size of the bat. Make sure that you use the one that is perfect for your size. Usually, players choose bats that are big because these bats have greater impact. But then this can surely affect the speed. This is particularly true among female players. No matter what speed practice you make if you’re uncomfortable with the weight of the bat, your chance of winning is slim.

Communication Between the Coach and Players

Whether you are in a practice, or playing a game on the field, you want to make sure that every game of baseball has effective communication between you as the coach and the players. If there is confusion, it could cause one of the players to make the wrong moves and strike instead of making a home run. Figuring out the best way to communicate effectively with your team is an important step for everyone walking away happy with the results of the game. 

If you are teaching younger children, you should decide on whether you want to use signals for plays or not. Generally, it is not recommended. Often times, younger players will be confused about what the signals mean and can easily get them mixed up with something else. This will have the wrong effect on their plays, as well as their ability to make the right moves at the right time. 

Because most of the children are not going to pay attention to the opposing teams coach, you can easily talk to the players while they are up to bat or waiting to move bases. This is easy to do and is effective in helping the kids to make the right moves. Unlike a professional game, you will most likely not have to worry about the lack of signals causing the opposing team to get ahead in the game. 

As the children grow older, and become more comfortable with the game, you can begin to add in obvious signals to help them develop their ability to watch what you think is best. You will want to make sure that the signs are easy and obvious, and that the players understand when they should be looking at you for the signs. By slowly coaching them into watching you and into the signals that you might use, it will be easier to keep them ahead and on base. 

If you want to keep your team and players on track, you will want to make sure that you are effective in the signs that you give them for this. Having the proper communication through your speech, and adding in the signs as needed, can help you to develop a strong link between your coaching insights and what the little leagues will need you to tell them.

EA Sports Active – The Virtual Gym

Because of the mass appeal it has, there is no doubt that EA Sports Active will be a huge hit. Whether you enjoy sports, you like doing cardio, strength training is your thing, or you want to focus on flexibility, there are exercises for you included in this exciting game. After all, this is what has made these types of games so popular. No matter whether you are a kid or a bit older, you can still play this since there are no restrictions on age for the game.

This movement has gone in a totally different direction than other gaming consoles out there. Some of the others encourage you sitting down for hours with snacks and drinks and playing the day away. With the Wii, and EA Sports Active, you will be on your feet and working off those calories. If you are not in the greatest shape, you can definitely get back in shape. With the first workout you’ll be burning calories and you’ll be sweating hard when you are done.

All the different exercises that can be used is why this game has been such a bit hit. In real life workouts, often you begin getting tired with the workout over time. Sure, when you saw the machine on the infomercial that you watched, it may have looked wonderful. You were going to use it all the time and get in shape. Soon you were trying to find any way you could to avoid actually having to use it. This may be true for that gym membership that you purchase when you decided to get in shape. When you use EA Sports Active you won’t get bored.

If you get tired of one exercise, there are many others to pick from. If you feel like doing a round on the speed bag, you can. If you feel like practicing your jump serve in volleyball, you can do that as well. If you feel like going for a jog on the track, you can start immediately. If sports aren’t your thing, you can stick to the strength training aspect of the game. Pick an exercise from a group of exercises such as upper or lower body.

Another wonderful thing about EA Sports Active is the customizeable aspect of it. You can come up with a completely unique workout by choosing 9 different exercises to do. Every day, you turn on the game and it remembers what you’ve done including how many calories you’ve burned.

You are also able to do individual exercises if you want to. It is the 30 day workout that is programmed in that happens to be one the main benefits of this game. You can choose a workout that is difficult, easy, or medium, and then use it for 30 days.

If you want to maintain health or get in shape, EA Sports Active is a great game. You will get variety, which is one thing that you often can’t find in a real workout. Everyone can use it and it is a great fitness tool.

Fall Down, Go Boom? Ankle Sprains are a Rite of Spring

Spring is in the air in most of the country. The brief snows are gone and recreational sports are starting their schedules. The soccer, baseball and lacrosse leagues are having their first games; the high-school track team is gearing up for competition, and The Leukemia Society’s Team-in-Training groups are just starting to increase their mileage aiming for an early summer marathon finish. Spring is in the air, and our old friend the ankle sprain is starting to show up more frequently in the office. Basketball and volleyball seasons always the main producer of this injury; but you would probably be surprised how many ankle sprains occur in outdoor sports like soccer, baseball, lacrosse and of course track and field. Ankle sprains have been reported to be approximately 20% of all sports injuries with more than 25,000 occurring every day in the United States.

Uneven, wet fields coupled with early season fatigue and competitive full-contact intensity equal injuries. The ankle is the joint that compensates for uneven surfaces. 85% of ankle injuries are sprains, which are caused by a failure to compensate for this uneven footing. Jumping, cutting and pivoting puts the ankle at risk. Many athletes put themselves at further risk by not rehabilitating these injuries properly, returning to sport too early, and giving themselves an inadequate adaptive ability. The use of narrow cleats with minimal arch support or the use of running shoes for a court sport can also place an athlete at risk for ankle sprains.

Ankle sprains occur in runners mainly because they are chatting away as they are on a long run and are simply not paying attention. How many runners have you seen fall off the curb or in a pothole while running? Lots…Pay attention to where you are going and you can prevent this type of injury. If you know you are a klutz, run on an even surface, like a track, when you are tired or distracted.

If you have an ankle sprain, you should be evaluated by a sports medicine podiatric foot and ankle surgeon if you have localized pain, swelling and bruising, as well as inability to walk more than 5-7 steps comfortably. Many a foot fracture has been missed in the emergency room when x-rays were taken only of the ankle and not the foot. The fifth metatarsal is often broken with the same mechanism of injury of an ankle sprain, so the foot should be evaluated as well. If severe ligament injury is suspected, an MRI can evaluate the grade of injury. This is really what decides whether surgery is needed for full recovery.

Treatment for ankle sprains really depends on the degree of severity, which can only be determined by your doctor. Initial treatment always includes “R-I-C-E” therapy – Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. Pain and edema is usually controlled with NSAID’s (non-steroidal anti-inflammatories) like ibuprofen. Bracing or casting coupled with non-weightbearing on crutches may be needed in more severe injuries to rest and stabilize the ankle while it heals. Return to pain-free ROM and stability is the goal. Surgery is only recommended in Grade 3 severe injuries in athlete’s or in those patient’s who have had multiple ankle sprains and suffer from chronic ankle instability. Long-term ankle instability can often be avoided with an aggressive physical therapy program. Bracing should only be used in the short-term during rehabilitation because long-term bracing actually causes atrophy and decreased ROM.

Physical therapy is needed for all ankle sprains. The goals of physical therapy should be to regain full ROM, strength and proprioception (where your brain thinks your ankle is in space). Regaining strength in the peroneal tendons as well as overall balance training are the keys to successful rehabilitation of an ankle sprain. A maintenance program of ankle strengthening, stretching, and proprioception exercises helps to decrease the risk of future ankle sprains, particularly in individuals with a history of multiple ankle sprains or of chronic instability.

Bottom line: if you happen to fall down and go “Boom”, have your ankle sprain evaluated by a podiatric foot and ankle surgeon. Delaying treatment and rehabilitation can lead to life-long instability.

Water Sports and Surfing in California

With its fabulous, year-round warm climate, California has been synonymous with surfing and the sporty, tanned, blonde-haired types who have participated in the sport since the 1960s. As such, you’d be hard pressed to find somewhere better to go if you want to ride the best waves! The undisputed hotbed of surfing in California is San Diego – the state’s second largest city. Here, you’ll find fantastic Pacific beaches with facilities specifically designed for surfers and other water sports users, as well as some of the biggest waves that the Pacific has to offer.

Home to several of the surfing industry’s biggest manufacturers and famous pro surfer Rob Machado, the city’s hottest surfing beaches can be found at Black’s Beach, Swamis, Windansea and, of course, at San Diego’s biggest beach: Mission Bay. Attracting millions of visitors each year, San Diego’s beaches are packed with surfers eager to ride the waves; and on the days when the surf isn’t up to par, you’ll be able to participate in other exciting water sports – such as water-skiing, jet skiing and paragliding.

Instruction in all water sports disciplines is available at Mission Bay Beach, with some of the biggest and best water sports schools to be found there. Just beyond the beach there is a massive park that offers other recreational activities, such as volleyball and basketball; but with plenty of picnic areas and outdoor barbeques, this park quickly fills up during the summer months, so sun-lovers must get there early to secure their spot!

Many of the best hotels in San Diego are also found in the Mission Bay Beach area, which – at only six miles from the international airport – is convenient to reach and also serves as a great base from which to explore the city and its surroundings.

As California’s second largest city you’ll find there is much to do in San Diego when you’re not surfing, swimming or generally splashing around in the sea; you’ll be able to visit everything from some of California’s best art museums to local zoos! The San Diego Museum of Art, the Museum of Man and the Natural History Museum are all popular attractions and are all found in the picturesque Balboa Park, along with the Museum of Photographic Arts.

Other cultural highlights include local theatres, opera and the San Diego Symphony. The city is also home to two major US sporting franchises: the NFL’s Chargers and the Padres, a popular Major League Baseball team. If none of those alternative attractions or activities tickle your fancy, how about trying the impressive San Diego Zoo, Seaworld, the Wild Animal Park, or even the theme park at Legoland?

Whatever attracts you to San Diego, whether it’s sun, sand, surf or the sights, you’ll be warmly welcomed by friendly locals, who will do all they can to help you enjoy your holiday.

How To Select The Right Sports Bra For Your Activities

Many women find the task of selecting a sports bra arduous and difficult. All the choices, do you select regular or a shock absorber sports bra? However, choosing the right sports bra can be as simple as selecting any other piece of clothing. It all comes down to proper fit. The trick is to determine what your needs are and then narrowing down your choice from there. Did you know that different athletic bras serve different purposes? That’s right, what works for high impact sports might not the best choice for yoga! Also, the larger busted ladies are going to require more support than average gals.

So how do you narrow down the choices? Well first is to define the type and impact of your activity or activities. We typically break this down to three levels of impact.

Low impact activities are those such as walking, bike riding, and skating. These activities require minimal bounce control, yet offer enough breast support. Low impact sports bras are suitable for activities where your breast will not experience too much bounce.

Medium impact activities would be backpacking or hiking in rough terrain, mountain biking, and skiing. These bras will give you some compression of the breast and provide more support against bounce and control.

High impact activities such as basketball, volleyball and more extreme sports. A high impact sports bra is going to give you maximum compression and control to reduce bounce and give you maximum support. Partaking in these activities with a high impact athletic bra can result in tissue damage to your breasts. Even activities such as running and aerobics require a high impact bra.

Now that you have a good idea of which categories your activities fall into, it is time to decide which style bra is best suited for you.  Now you may find that you are involved in activities that fall into all categories. That’s fine, as many women find this. You simply need to purchase more than one style of bra and make sure to use the correct one for the corresponding activity.

Women who enjoy medium to high impact activities will want a sports bra that has a compression design. This will keep your breast pressed to your chest which will reduce bounce and reduce chance of injury. If you have a very active lifestyle this is the bra for you.

Those who enjoy low impact activities will want to purchase an encapsulation sports bra. An encapsulation sports bra will provide individual support fore ach breast. Many say that it provides a more feminine shape as it offers separation of the breasts. This bra is also ideal for women with larger cup sizes since it provides individual support.

Not all athletic bras are created equal and you will need to try on and possibly test a few different brands and models to find the perfect bra for you.

Exercises To Increase Vertical Leap – Have We Got It All Wrong?

Excelling in basketball, volleyball, or track requires a hunt for exercises to increase vertical leap.   After all, the highest jumpers, especially in basketball, often make or break the team – that is, between getting the dunk or getting debunked.   

Many coaches, trainers and athletes alike have tried to squeeze many different exercises into the vertical leap list.  However, their hopes of turning an average weekend warrior to just a warrior have produced failing results.  In the end the leader of the leaping pack often goes to the guy with the gift-given genes.    

But does it have to be that way?  No. The rest of us can catch up so long we do the right things the right way.  Contrary to conventional belief, it is usually not our mediocrity or even the exercises’ fault for failing to jump higher.  Each exercise plays a role for producing the strength or power necessary to jump like Jordan or leap like LeBron.  

However, it doesn’t make sense to incorporate correct exercises into a vertical jump program that holistically fails to deliver the goods.  A program not backed by desire upon the instructor’s nor the athlete’s part, and is not well-organized and progressive, is a recipe for failure.  Monotony, sloppiness and half-heartedness won’t cut the mustard here.

With that, here’s some tips to consider when incorporating exercises to increase vertical leap into your program.  

1) How well-conditioned are you?  The more your bones and soft tissues (muscles, tendons and ligaments) are in shape before starting your vertical program, the less chance of injuries.   Quite obvious when you think about it.  However, when your tissues are weak cumulative trauma may build over the course of the program, not right away.  This makes things less obvious.  Best to contact your coach or trainer regarding this regarding this “base” training.  

2) Don’t be a failure – and don’t train to it:

• Doing the squat jump 30 times in row is a mistake. Each repetition must be performed at peak power, gaining the same height each time for each rep.  If your muscles are getting fatigued (jumping not as high with each successive rep) then your results/ gains will be minimal if not at all.
• It should take less than 10 sec to perform most exercises to increase vertical leap (depth jumps is an exception since you get ample rest between reps )

3) Most folks do plyometrics wrong – you may be too! Mistakes include:

• Poor base condition before starting a plyometrics program
• Not doing each repetition at peak performance.   Doing squat jumps without jumping as high as you can go each time will shortchange your progress
• Taking more than 10 sec per set
• Executing improper form
• Not doing more total work but in less workout time as the weeks go by.  For example, doing 10 weeks of plyometrics without increasing the total number of reps/workout, or not decreasing the total length of the workout.  If your program falls into this category, throw it in the can.  Unfortunately this includes most.

Several of you will be happy with the 4-6 inches of vertical gained after applying the above principles.   However, with a concise program specialized to increase vertical jump height such as the one I review via the link below, a 12-25 increase on your vertical is probable with a bit of dedication.

In any case, a successful program should be scientifically based and not resorting to unproven methods or “voodoo”. It also should work for about 85% of folks who complete it (the above program helped me gain 10 inches on my vertical and 14 inches on my broad jump in only ten weeks – a bit below average, but not bad for a 35-year-old).

That’s all on my discussion on exercises to increase vertical leap.  Keep jumpin’!

3 Best Muzzleloaders For Under $300

The cost of hunting and shooting supplies continues to rise, so finding a bargain is important to the dedicated outdoorsman.  Muzzleloader hunting provides the opportunity to enjoy shooting while spending less money.  This makes muzzleloaders a very cost effective hunting and shooting option.

Modern muzzleloaders have come a long way.  Today’s inline muzzleloaders are much easier to use  and are much more reliable than those made even just a few years ago.  In order to help keep your costs down, we have reviewed the 3 best muzzleloaders for under $300. 

1. CVA Optima Muzzleloader– This is an overhauled version of CVA’s original design.  Sporting a 26″ fluted stainless steel barrel, weighing just under 7 lbs and having a breech plug which requires no tools for removal, the Optima is a rock solid gun for its price.  This break barrels action is smooth and it’s out of the box trigger pull is just about 2.5 lbs.  At about $275, this is a great muzzleloader option for the hunter how wants to invest in just one muzzleloader for their arsenal.
2. Traditions Pursuit Ultralight Muzzleloader– Weighing in at just over 5 lbs., the Ultralight has a 26″ chrome fluted barrel with a CeraKote corrosion resistant finish.  The trigger breaks at about 3 lbs. of pull and the breech plug comes out with a few twists.  With an average price of about $290, this muzzleloader option is a good choice for the hunter who finds himself hunting in the thick woods as this lightweight gun is quick and easy to shoulder.
3. Thompson Center Impact– The TC Impact Muzzleloader is a break action muzzleloader weighing just about 6.5 lbs and sporting a 26″ barrel.  The break barrel mechanism, which doubles as a hood for the closed breech along with the hammer not accepting a spur makes it difficult to mount a scope on the Impact.  The most expensive of the list coming in at about $300, Thompson Center Impact is an ideal gun for a beginner or youth hunter due to its adjustable stock.

Muzzleloader hunting provides the outdoorsman with several wallet friendly options to keep them shooting.  The advances in projectiles and propellants as well as the accuracy and handling characteristics of these guns, combined with affordable prices help to keep avid hunters in the fields longer during the season.

The 3 best muzzleloaders we have highlighted above represent the hottest bargains in shooting available.  As a dedicated hunter, you should own at least one.

An Assessment of Sports Reporting In Cameroon Its Challenges and Prospects

Certification

This is to certify and attest that, Sports Journalism in Cameroon, Its Challenges and Prospects is the original work of Solomon LYONGA IKUNDI (SM07A474).

Date…………………………………….

Signature……………………………..

Kingsley Lyonga Ngange

Supervisor

Dedication

This dissertation is dedicated to my mother, Stella-Maris Nalowa Ikundi for all she has done for me and all she will do. To her, I am most grateful.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I want to begin by thanking God for his abundant blessings in my life. Yes indeed, the good lord has carried me this far and he has made me to realise some of my big dreams.

To my supervisor, brother and senior colleague, Kingsley Lyonga Ngange, I say thank you for enduring my weaknesses. Your intellectual support and your friendship gave me great inspiration and a motivation to move ahead. You are the best!

My deepest and profound gratitude goes to my grand parents, Mr. and Mrs. Ikundi in Small Soppo, my mother, Stella Ikundi, my aunt in Canada, Elizabeth Ikundi.

Today, I also think in a special way of Lydia Limeni Ikundi, Louis Ikundi, Joseph Lyonga Ikundi, Cecilia Eposi Ewunde, Emma Ikundi, Fidel Ikundi, Irene Ikundi, S.L. Ikundi and all the Ikundis. I think my plans would have backfired without these people.

I am also indebted to all those who have always made me to hope. I think of Mr. Charles Ndi Chia, Mr. Matute Menyoli, Mr. Samuel Bokuba, Mr. Zachary Nkwo, Mr. Njomo Kevin, Simon Lyonga, Mr. Mbua Evelle and all my friends.

Thank you Richard Ashu Atem-Ojong  for proof reading my work. You are a friend indeed.

To all my lecturers, Dr. Enoh Tanjong, Henry Z. Muluh, Diffang Funge and Divine Besong, thanks a million!

May the good lord reward you all immensely.

TABLE OF CONTENT

Certification……………………………………………………………………………………………i

Dedication………………………………………………………………………………………………ii

Acknowledgement……………………………………………………………………………………iii

Abstract………………………………………………………………………………………………….vi

Table of Contents………………………………………………………………………………………v

CHAPTER I: Introduction

Background

History of Sports Journalism……………………………………………………………………….6

Statement of the Problem…………………………………………………………………………….9

Hypothesis………………………………………………………………………………………………….10

Research Questions……………………………………………………………………………………10

Objectives…………………………………………………………………………………………………..10

Significance…………………………………………………………………………………………………11

CHAPTER II: Literature Review……………………………………………………………………..13

CHAPTER III: Methodology…………………………………………………………………………….18

Sampling Plan and Procedure……………………………………………………………………….19

Instrumentation…………………………………………………………………………………………….20

Pre-Test………………………………………………………………………………………………………..20

Data Collection………………………………………………………………………………………………21

Concept Explication………………………………………………………………………………………21

Limitations……………………………………………………………………………………………………..24

CHAPTER IV: Discussion and Inferences…………………………………………………………25

Chapter V: Conclusions and Generalisations…………………………………………………..32

Challenges of Sports Journalism in Cameroon………………………………………………..37

Recommendations.………………………………………………………………………………………….39

Refereneces

Appendix

Questionnaires………………………………………………………………………………………………..45

Chapter One:

History of Sports Journalism

Mark Inabinett (1994) notes that the decade or so between the end of World War I and the beginning of the Great Depression was described as a decade of change.

America and the world wanted to put the memory of the Great War behind them and enjoy life. The economy was booming and Americans fell in love with sports.

The 1920s was described as the Age of the Spectators as new and bigger stadiums and gymnasiums were built and the radio became the most favourite medium that provided news about sporting events. Newspapers too increased their coverage of sports and fans were able through the media, to keep up with their favourite teams. Baseball was the most important discipline in America in the 20s and it was during this golden age that sport fans began to emerge.

Inabinett(1994)  notes that  Grantland Rice wrote about the athletes who made the age golden. He is celebrated as the pioneer in sports writing with a writing style that employed  both hyperbole and lyricism to paint vivid images of athletes.

In August 1954, sports journalism in America was changed forever with the birth of the Sports Illustrated Magazine. During its first five years of growth, the magazine was aimed at the American middle class consumer and covered just about middle class consumer and covered just about any sports story it could cover. As years went on, the magazine began to specialise on sports like baseball, football and basketball.

HISTORY OF SPORTS JOURNALISM IN ASIA

Sports journalism in Asia started gaining importance only after 1985 in Nepal, according to Acharya(1998). At that time, there were only two broadsheet dailies, Gorkhapatra and The Rising Nepal. In those days, it was difficult to talk about a separate page for sports in  a newspaper  and even the coverage that  was given was very scanty (Shakya, 1999)

The history of sports journalism began with Sporting Times, a sports magazine published in 1956 and edited by Manindra RajShrestha. It was an English fortnightly ( Shakya.1999). The magazine ceased publication after a few issue. Since then, a number of sports magazines were published, but none of them lasted long e.g. Rangasala and another magazine published by The National sports council of Nepal called Khel Ra Kheledi in 1968.

HISTORY OF SPORTS JOURNALISM IN CAMEROON

Basically, the first sports reporters in Cameroon went on the airwaves of Radio Diffusion du Cameroun (Radio Cameroon) in the late 1960s. But it is Peter Essoka and French colleague, Abel Mbengue who quickly gained prominence when they were sent to Sudan to cover the 1970 edition of the African Nations Cup.

According to Njomo Kevin, who covered the 1994 World Cup for CRTV radio, late Mark Nebo was one of the first to present sport programmes on the national radio in the 1960s. Denis Lafon was equally running sports in Radio Buea almost at the same time.

For the broadcast media, the pioneers in English sports reporting were Mark Nebo, Peter Essoka, Zachary Nkuo, Ben Becka Jovens, Njomo Kevin, Michael Nzeh, Gregory Alem, Peter Afuh in Bamenda(RIP),  Joves Ngwa, Mboh Herbert, Ignatius Fon Echekiye.  Njomo narrates that in the French desk, names like Andre Ngangue, Abel Mbengue, David Walter Lea, Ernest Mbende, Daniel Anicet Noah, Joseph Eloundou Nzieh, Samuel Alame, Jean Lambert Nang proved to be colourful scribes.

According to Professor Boyomo Assala of the Advanced School of Mass Communications, the first all-sports newspaper in Cameroon was Courrier Sportif du Benin published from 1955 to 1974.

Historically, women have not been extremely involved in sports reportage. According to Njomo, the first female sports reporter in the country on Television was Pamela Messi in 1988, while the much loved Judith Ngale did sports on radio. Others like the late Christiana  Nkuo Ufenyi gave a proper account of themselves. In 2004, a female journalist, Magdalene Soppi Kotto was raised to the level of chief of the Sports desk at the national station of the Cameroon Radio Television.

HISTORY OF WOMEN IN SPORTS JOURNALISM

Robyn Gordon(2010) notes that the past ten years have seen a growth in the number of women in sports broadcasting with such well known broadcasters like Lesley Vissey, Robin Roberts and Andrea Kremer.

While male sports casters still outnumber female broadcasters  in Cameroon, women are participating more and more in sports, and even even given play by play commentaries. CRTV’s    Tina Kwo covered the 2009 edition of the Mount Cameroon Race of Hope and chief of radio sports, Magdalene Kotto has been covering the African Nations Cup since 2004 and gave play by play commentaries on radio and Television during the 2010 edition of the African Nations Cup in Angola.

Today, women even comprise a growing percentage of the sports audience.

Jane Chastain, Dona De Varona and Jeannie Morris are considered the pioneers in female sports broadcasting. Chastain became the first woman to work as a commentator for a major news network (CBS), according to Robyn Gordon(2010)

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Sports journalism that recorded high points in our country with the excellent performance of some local sport reporters has been experienced some low points lately with very few Cameroonians relying on local and national television, radio and newspaper for sports news.

Many a time, the local media have been accused of  failing to be current in satisfying the thirst of sport fans.

The audience seems to prefer following sports on foreign media outlets, sports reporting is even ignored by some media houses in the country; a country that has no specialised sports broadcast media. As a result of the advances in communication technologies, many channels and stations exist, almost all given some quantity of sports. The audience can now freely choose and use the media for their gratification. Many interesting sports programmes on local television like Sports Vision and  one time highly loved sports panorama are being rejected for others on Supersports like Soccer Africa. Today, the foreign media and foreign sports channels have grown so powerful, so much so that they set the sports agenda in Cameroon.

This research will be examining the following hypothesis:

Cameroonians sport fans have not derived great satisfaction from the local media, and they seem to be turning elsewhere for their sports.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

ü To what extent do All-sports foreign TV channels limit the sports audience for local television

ü Can the reporting of sports influence our choices and attitudes?

ü Which do Cameroonians rely on for sports between local and foreign media?

ü Which do Cameroonians rely on for national sports between the government owned media and the private local media?

ü Which media do Cameroonians prefer for sports between TV, radio, newspaper, internet and others?

ü Are women athletes treated and presented differently by the media?

ü Which is more covered between male and female sports?

ü What is the place of sports in the media compared with other programme genres?

ü Which sports is given greater attention in the local media?

ü Has the fusion of the media into sports contributed to the development of sports?

OBJECTIVES

This study is not a practical guide on how to become a good sports reporter. Our objectives therefore are:

To identify and situate sport journalism’s wider place within the broader field of the media in Cameroon.

• Ø It will also offer a historically informed snapshot on some of the issues, personality debates and challenges that have influenced the growth of sports reporting in this country.
• Ø The study also seeks to establish the role the media has played in making some sporting disciplines popular and world class.

• Ø It will equally examine the extent to which sports journalism in the developed world delimits the advancement of local sports reporting.

• Ø At the end of it all, this study will reveal the sports discipline that is most loved by the sports audience.

SIGNIFICANCE:

v Apart from understanding the essence of this academic work, it would be important to anticipate the logical outcome of this study on Sports journalism in Cameroon.

v This study will first and foremost help me to put into practice the theoretical concepts and facts gained in class for as John Maxwell puts it, “practice does not only make perfect, it makes permanent”.

v It will also reveal the level of exposure of Cameroonians to foreign and local media for sports update.

v The study will diagnose reasons why Cameroonians practice escapism, ignoring local media and local sports for foreign media and foreign sports.

v This study will pass across a strong message to media moguls in our country and even the government to consider possibilities of starting specialised sports channels and also to change mindsets of media employers to begin employing sports casters.

v In a special way, this study will reveal the place of women sports reporters in the media and also examine the coverage and attention given to female sports championships.

v Above all, the study will lay the platform and set the pace for subsequent studies on sports reporting in Cameroon and elsewhere.

Chapter Two

LITERATURE REVIEW

Sports has become increasingly important in the world today. In Cameroon, sport is seen as a culture, a religion and a way of life. According to ace sports reporter, Zachary Nkwo, when the Indomitable Lions succeed, alcohol is often made a virtue.

The power and audacity of sports is unquestionable and over the years, the United Nations Organisation has been using sports to preach the message of peace in war torn regions like Haiti, Darfur, Ethiopia. Many communication scholars have argued that the fusion of sports and the media has contributed immensely to crystallize major sports competitions in the world, thereby making sports reportage an important component in the print and broadcast media.

Acharya (1998) opines that sports journalism is the process of collecting, editing and disseminating the news about the activities of sports. Shakya (1999) further states that because of its vital role in disseminating news on sports events, the media is involved in the development of sports.

David Gallagher (1991) notes that the 1970s were a low point in Cameroonian journalism. He reveals that over thirty papers and disappeared in rapid succession and all or a majority of them supported the Ahidjo regime because they had no other option since Ahidjo had imposed censorship on them. Gallagher notes that most of these newspapers were heavy on sports reporting and greatly avoided politics to stay out of trouble.

Laurent Charles Boyomo Assala (1998) reveals that the first All-sports newspaper was Courrier Spotif du Benin, first published in 1955. It folded in 1974 with its downfall prompted by the expensive failure of the Cameroon National team at the 1972 Nations Cup at home. (Boyomo)

“When President Biya came to power, other sport papers came up like, Football Elite of Jean Pierre Betfiang, Sports Panorama of Bounougou Fouda, Jacques Joseph Akana’s  Sports Afrique and Progress Sports edited by Joseph Eloundou Nzie.”

Boyomo (ibid) states that most of the sport papers featured football news prominently. In Football Elite, 153 out of 160 pages were dedicated to football. CRTV Television has a one hour programme entirely for football( FOU FOU FOOT).

Boyomo Assala(1998) notes again that sports journalists in Cameroon must be careful as they report because the eye of the world is on them. He explained in his paper that supporters don’t like sports reporters who give wrong facts, who flounder with the choice of words and don’t even know the rules of the game. He quoted the example of Casimir Amassana who was trashed by fans of Tonnere for giving wrong facts.

Mutations newspaper, in its 27 JANVIER 2009 edition published reactions on the life of Zachary Nkwo. Most of those who reacted suggested that Nkwo is one of the most loved of all the sports reporters is Zachary Nkwo for his immense contribution in shaping Cameroon’s sports history. Some of the contributors noted that Nkwo painted the picture of matches in their mind and practically made players like Nkono, Abega, Mbida…Milla mystical. He received the 2008 CAMASEJ award for being an untiring professional and contributing to the growth of sports journalism in Cameroon.

Andrew Boyd (2001, 25) states that many in the audience tolerate the news only because they know that if they stay tuned they will get the latest football, cricket, or rugby results.

Local teams and clubs often feature strongly in regional news, especially if they are doing well or badly in their leagues, and this is reflected at a national level, where news usually focuses on the promotion battles and relegation struggles that mark the changing fortunes of the top and bottom contenders.

Writing about sports, Jerry Azar(1999)  pontificates that sports game settings are often a war zone, a minefield of bruised egos who have undergone rejection, dejection and in some cases ejection. Azar warns sports reporters to avoid asking the wrong questions after a bitter loss because it can set fireworks.

Boyle(2005) states that sports have become increasingly global in the contemporary mediated age. To him, the fusion of sports and the media has helped propel and transform major sports competitions such as the FIFAWorld Cup and the Olympic Games.

Organisers of major sporting events have always stressed the need for sports reporters to follow ethics. During a workshop on ethics in sports reporting concluded in Beijing on November 30, 2007, the International Olympic committee stressed the importance of the increased awareness of ethical issues in sports. Organised in close collaboration with UNESCO and the Communication University of China, the 40 journalists who took part acquired reporting skills and were drilled on the culture of China to enable them develop cross cultural strategies.

In an open letter to Michael Bascombe (2010), publisher of the news today in Grenada, on the poor state of sports reporting in Grenada, Beverly Sinclair calls on experienced sports reporters to improve on the quality of sports reporting in Grenada by imparting their skills to the cub sports reporters through seminars and workshops, and not just sit and complain that the standard of  sports reporting in their country is depreciating.  Sinclair notes that training for sports reporters is sadly lacking, but the old names can make sports reporting better since they are role models.

Robert Gordon (2010) notes that female sports reporters are becoming highly professional. He quotes Lesley Visser, the first female NFL analyst on TV,   who was voted the number one female sports caster in the United States by the American sports casters associations, who notes that even though female sports journalism is still considered young and novel by many sports fans and commentators, female sports casters are determined and will continue to convince the world that gender should not and does not affect an individual’s manner to report a story, regardless of its content and report it well.

Silwal, in Acharya(1998) notes that there has been a frequent publication of sports magazines, but all of them cease publication after a few issues. To him, the main reason for this closure of all these publications (in Nepal) is as a result of financial instability. He opines that lack of financial resources for the publication, lack of advertisement and small market influence the shutdown of sports magazines.

Juliana Koranteng, (1998) reveals that football clubs have begun pumping their share and money into the new media. Koranteng suggests that the increasing global allure of local clubs such as Manchester United, Barcelona, Arsenal, and Juventus has encouraged such clubs to consider launching their own TV channels and radio stations. They also run websites informing their publics about team news, player transfer etc e.g. Arsenal TV and www.chelsea.com According to Koranteng, football tops the coverage chart in most sports channels.

Margaret Carlisle Duncan and Michael Alan Messner(2010) have been researching on gender stereotyping in televised sports. Both believe that women are also given “short shrift” in the media. While studying and observing sports coverage on three network affiliates in Los Angeles, they report that only 9% of airtime was devoted to the coverage to the coverage of feminine sports in contrast to the 88% devoted to male athletes. Margaret Duncan notes that about 97% of commentators use different language when they talk about female athletes.

“When men are described as big, strong, brilliant, gutsy and aggressive, women are more often referred to as weary, fatigued, frustrated, panicked, vulnerable and choking.”

To the scholars, this tendency reduces female athletes to the role of children, while giving adult status to male athletes.

Corroborating Duncan and Messner, the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women, Sports and Physical Activity noted in its 2007 report that female athletes receive just three percent sports coverage in major Canadian dailies.

In an article by Africa Media Online,(2010) World Cup stories that go beyond sports reporting They note that journalists reporting about the worldcup  should be able to dig deeper to provide stories that go beyond mere sports. To these communication scholars,  126 African sport journalists who were in South Africa were tasked with telling Africa’s stories more fully and with unique perspective. Sport reporters tight with African media outlets were  expected to present South Africa in a favourable light while capitalising on the economic impact of the world cup.

Geoff Pearson et al (2007), the media coverage of football hooliganism. He argues that the tabloid’s style of reporting, such as the publishing of league tables of hooligan notoriety (Daily Mirror 1974) serve to encourage hooligans by placing them in the limelight. Pearson notes that within Britain the tabloid press in particular have found hooliganism to be an easy target for the kind of sensationalist reporting that boosts their circulation. This sensationalist style of reporting often relies on powerful headlines grounded in violent imagery and war metaphors

CHAPTER THREE

Methodology

Many Communication researchers share the view that the design of a study leads to the actual solution of the problem. Churchill (1977) notes that research design is the frame work or plan for a study that is used in collecting and analyzing a set of data.

This study on sports reporting in Cameroon, its challenges and prospects will use the descriptive research designs. More of the study will make use of the descriptive design (cross sectional design) which is more specifically the field survey. The survey method is the most appropriate one for this study because of its effectiveness in obtaining quantitative data and measuring different opinion trends and its relatively cheap nature. The study measures different aspects of Cameroonians’ perception of sports reporting in their country.

Sampling Plan and Procedure

In assessing the audience perception of sports journalism in Cameroon, this study will make use of the probability random sampling method with every member within the sampling unit having an equal chance to be included in the sample.

The sampling unit or frame is the Buea, Limbe and Mutengene communities, with an estimated population of at least seven hundred thousand people. Of this number, the opinions of 100 sports fans were analysed. Out of this population, 100 were chosen to be studied purely for academic reasons.

In terms of the male and female ratio, with 59.2% of the respondents were male and 40.8 % female.

Finally, respondents were expected to be at least 15 years old since this age group is extensively exposed to sports on the media and can be able to justify their choices and preferences.

INSTRUMENTATION

The main instrument used in this study is the questionnaire to collect data. Apart from the interrogation method employed in the use of questionnaires, other relevant material and data will be acquired through abstraction (getting materials from other documents), observation ( anecdotes from ace sports reporters).

The interview schedule or questionnaire was divided into two sections, media use for sports, and, Demographics. A total of 15 questions were drafted, featuring both closed ended questions to limit unnecessary answers and open ended questions, to allow multiple views. Double barrelled and contingent questions were greatly avoided. The questions revolved around three of the four scales of measurement such as the nominal, ordinal and interval, which are relevant to the study.

Pre-Test

The pre-test that had a pilot sample size of 10 respondents was done on May 16, 2010 in Buea. The aim of pre-testing the questionnaire is to maximise the validity and reliability of the data collecting instrument by:

Correcting Errors in the questionnaire e.g. poor framing of questions.

Pre-testing also helps to determine whether the study approach is okay.

During the exercise, areas of misunderstanding or confusion were easily corrected. Nebulous questions were made clear and the views of the respondents were considered with some questions deleted and one added.

Data Collection

I began doing observation on my study on Tuesday, April 14, 2010 interviewing some pioneer sports reporters in the country like Njomo K. Kevin and Zachary Nkwo.

Meanwhile, I began the process of administering questionnaires on May 28, 2010 and this was to last for two weeks. The 100 questionnaires were administered accordingly: Buea(67), Limbe (17), and Mutengene (16).

The response rate stood at 98%.   This high response rate is as a result of the fact that the time to administer 100 opinionnaires was ample and long. Also, the subject under study sports and sports reporting interest many people, male and female; young and old.

Data entry was done with the assistance of computer software, the Statistical Package for Social Sciences, SPSS.

Concept Explication

Agenda Setting: The power and audacity of the media to influence what people think and talk about. The media does what is referred to as issue crystallisation and greatly influences and raises issues that are given priority in public discussions. This theory was first suggested in 1972 by Maxwell McCombs and Donald Shaw.

Escapism: The tendency by the audience of avoiding and rejecting local media content for foreign media content.

Home News Abroad: News about local personalities abroad and also involves tit bits about local footballers and athletes in Europe and elsewhere out of the country.

FIFA: The International Association of Football Federations

NFL: The National Football League in America, the most popular sport league in the United States.

UEFA: Union of European Football Leagues

Interview Schedule: Questionnaires containing questions that are administered by the communication researcher who meets the respondents on a one to one basis.

Media Imperialism: The domination of one country’s media by another country’s media.

Media Use for Sports: The level of exposure to sports related media for sports update.

Sports reporting: The same like sports casting, sports reportage, sports journalism and simply means the process of gathering, filing and making public news about sports events that are of interest.

Sampling Unit: The sampling unit involves the people to be surveyed and their place of origin.

Sampling Size: The sampling size involves the number of people who are to be surveyed.

Sampling procedure: This answers the questions of how will they be selected and how will the survey be done.

All-sports Media outlet: It is either a newspaper, magazine, radio or television that specialises in the coverage of sports.

Football hooliganism: According to Ingham, R. et al., (1978), the term football   hooliganism was created by the media, the tabloid press in particular, in the mid-1960s and since then they have been extremely flexible and indeterminate in ascribing the “hooligan” label to different incidents. Football hooliganism is seen by most to mean violence and/or disorder involving football fans.

Limitations of the Study

• Ø There are hurdles and shortcomings almost everywhere in life. This study has its own inherent limitations:
• Ø It is difficult to generalise the findings of the study to the whole of Cameroon because of the relative small sample size. Financial constraints could not permit a bigger study to be carried out in all the regions of the country.
• Ø Bearing in mind that the sample size and unit were not large to reflect Cameroon, the results are there not very reliable.
• Ø Communication research is still new in our country and there is very little documented evidence on the evolution of sports reporting in Cameroon. Moreover, very few people have written about the situation of the business of sports reporting in Cameroon. This made it extremely difficult to compile literature on sports reportage.
• Ø It was also impossible to assess the peripheral areas of most importantly Buea and Limbe because of transportation problems, the high illiteracy rate in most of these villages and the absence of cable that provides access to a long list of foreign sports related channels.
• Ø Some respondents were hostile and made things very difficult for me.  Some respondents were scared to disclose some vital information especially on demographics. They went as far asking references in case anything happens to them.

Chapter Four

Discussion and Inferences

In this descriptive study, we are going to use both the univariate and bivariate methods of data analysis. Respondents were required to have be sports fans so that they can make valid judgements on the media coverage of sports in Cameroon.

As of our empirical findings, the majority of Cameroonians rely on Television for Sports(57.1 %), radio comes second with 21.4%, the new media, that is the internet is gradually making its mark among Cameroonian sport fans providing sports news to some 14.3 % of Cameroonians and newspapers are last as only 7.1 % rely on it for sports. There are very few All-sports newspapers in Cameroon and most information on the sports page of newspapers is almost always copied directly from the internet. For example, some of the sports on The Post, Monday, July 27, 2009 edition came from the BBC sports website e.g. Nigeria League, Third Best In Africa-FIFA. Sometimes these local papers ignore sports like The Post edition of Friday, October 23, 2009 that was void of sports.

Only 3.1% of the respondents claimed that they knew at least one existing All-sports newspaper, while 96.9% have never read or seen an exclusive sports newspaper in Cameroon. There is a readership problem in Cameroon. Very few people buy newspapers and very few can read, especially in the suburbs. To complicate things, most of the existing All sports papers are in French like Ndamba, published by Emmanuel Gustave Samnick

TV tells the sports story most of the time, but as can be observed, Cameroonians prefer foreign TV far more than local TV for sports. While 13.3% go for  local TV, the majority, 86.7 prefers foreign TV at all times.

Some of the reasons why Cameroonians prefer foreign TV more than Local TV includes, foreign TV`s god images, live matches of Champions league and major European championships, qualified sports analyst and also to get home news abroad. ( News about Cameroonian players in European leagues).

The king sports, football features prominently in the output of media outlets. Events such as the World Cup, European Nations Cup, African Cup of Nations, Confederations Cup and Uefa Champions league receive widespread media attention. Some 74.5% of Cameroonians see, read or hear more often of football in the media. Lawn tennis, wrestling and athletics have 8.2%, 7.2 and 7.1 coverage respectively.

From this study, we found out that  the foreign media does not give a wide coverage of sport activities in Cameroon They practically ignore the Elite championship and even the popular Mount Cameroon race of hope to talk about corruption in the government of Cameroon, President Biya`s luxurious trips abroad and just like Nicholls K. Boas (2003) opines, the West will never say anything good about Africa, Cameroon included. They will always say aberrational things and highlight on conflicts, dictatorship etc even though Africa has some good news

A bulk of Cameroonians still prefer local radio to foreign radio for sports. They get most of the home news on local radio and also listen to the radio to get the most current gossips, transfers and match reviews and previews of both local and international leagues.

While foreign media ignores sports made in our country, the coverage of foreign sports in the local media is very high. Local radio stations dedicate much time to talk about the premier league, the Spanish La Liga, Italian Serie A, Bundesliga, French Orange Ligue I and other sports related stories coming from abroad. The reason for this conundrum is the lack of sufficient sports events in our country. Apart from football, the other sporting disciplines in the country are still to prove their worth and do things, while providing the local media with information that will enable it scale its full potential.

In our country, the media gives the pride of place to male sports and very little is said about the national feminine championship, even news about the Indomitable Lionesses in the local media is rare. This is some how in line with government policy that does not facilitate the development of Feminine sport disciplines.

More male prefer foreign TV, 54.9%, while 31.1% of the female flock are for foreign TV. In terms of local TV,  8% female rely on it as to 4% male.

For the programme genre in the illustration above, more males prefer sports, news and politics, while a high number of women like music and others that includes movies, soap operas, talk shows etc.

A high majority of young people between the age of 15 and 25(63%) get their sports from foreign TV, some 12 % of those between 37 and 47 rely on foreign TV as well for sports, 8% of those between 26 and 36 get sports from channels abroad while among  those from 48, only 3% prefer foreign media for sports.

For local TV, 3% of those between 37 and 47 years rely on the local media for sports, 30% of those above 48years also prefer and use local media for sports.

Those between 15 and 25 form the greatest majority of sport fans and they are highly exposed to the media for gratification as they get not only sports, but also music, news, movies, soap operas, politics etc.

Chapter Five

Conclusion and Generalisations

In this section, we are going to interpret the data obtained from the field and search for a broader meaning of our findings.

From our findings, we observe that most sport fans, 57.1 % heavily rely on TV as compared to the 21.4 %, 14.3 % and &7.1 % for radio, internet and newspaper. From this finding, we can infer that TV tells the greatest story about sports in Cameroon because of its visual attractions. And just like George Gerbner(1956) puts it, television has become part of the family, it is the one that tells most of the story most of the time.

The study confirms the findings of a series of communication scholars like Juliana Koranteng(1998)  that of the all sport disciplines such as football, lawn tennis, athletics, boxing, basketball, handball, volleyball, wrestling, rugby, cricket etc., it is football that is seen, read or heard more often in most media outlets, while coverage of the other sporting disciplines is neglected. But since the head of state, President Paul Biya has repeatedly reiterated that there are no minor or major sporting disciplines, the state media has improved on its coverage of the annual Mount Cameroon race of hope and the Cameroon International Cycling Tour.

This pilot study on sports reporting also found out that there is afghanistanism (Tanjong 2006) in the practice of sports reporting. Local reporters sometimes deliberately or unconsciously ignore local sport realities and highlights on sports from distant areas. While 25.5% of our respondents think that the local media coverage of foreign sports is very high, 37.8 % of respondents of thesame question feel it is even very high.

There exists a conundrum when we discover that the reverse is true. Foreign media like Supersports, Eurosports, Infosports and even BBC practically ignore Cameroonian sports. For the BBC and other news media that feature sports somewhere in their programming, they highly focus on negativities from Cameroon. They delight in talking about corruption, violence like the February 2008 strike action. The foreign channels like 43.9 % of sports diehards believe, does very little and superficial coverage of Cameroonian sports.

Also, most Cameroonians practice escapism and go for foreign TV rather than local. To them, foreign TV is always at the heart of major events, producing live pictures of matches, better analysis and to get news about Cameroonian players in European topflight leagues.

While local TV seems to be disfavoured by Cameroonian sport pundits, Local radio is still held in high esteem as 59.2 % of Cameroonians prefer it, while 40.2 prefer to get sports on foreign radio like RFI, Africa No. 1, BBC Afrique and World etc.

The foreign TV’s strong presence in our media landscape has led to a kind of domination. As Tanjong (opera citate) and others have hypothesize, media imperialism is the domination of one society’s media by another country’s media. This is the truth when it comes to sports reporting on TV. CRTV may not be able to compete with specialised sport channels like Supersports, Eurosports etc. Cameroonians need an All-Sports TV channel to balance the pendulum.

One very important revelation of this study is the fact that female sports and athletes are under covered compared to male sports. In the local media in Cameroon, much is said about the Male MTN Elite one Championship, while the National Feminine League is always treated as supplementary information. Sports fans(92.9%) think that the media is biased in the reporting of female sports, while 7.1%  have maintained that the media gives a fair coverage to all sexes. Scholars like Lou Schwartz,  Pirkko Markula, a professor of socio-cultural studies of sport and leisure in the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation, Margaret Carlisle Duncan and Michael Alan Messner have been researching about the coverage of female in sports do not receive adequate media coverage. Others have opined that very few female journalists a giving opportunities to report sports.

Sports is used by most media outlets now to catch listeners attention. Comparing it with politics, news,  movies, music, others, it is the genre of sports that is most loved(31.6%). 21.4 % prefer news, 16.3 go for music, 11.2% love politics and 19.4 % are for others.

All in all,  those who go to the media hope to get satisfaction as Jay Blumler and  Elihu Katz(1974) have explained. The audience actively seeks the media in Cameroon for sports, news, music, politics, movies others for their uses and gratification.

CONCLUSION:

The coverage of major sports has been improved upon by the advancements in communication technologies. It is now very easy to broadcast live matches and the quality of sports reporting has improved as journalists are not just expected to be born sport reporters, but also to go to school to acquire skills for reporting sports.

Cameroon still has a long way to go especially with the absence of an All sports media, and women journalists are fighting for their rights to be involved in sports reporting.

In the end, what appears to be true is the fact that female sports is still under covered by the local media, meanwhile other sports disciplines receive superficial coverage in the local media and most Cameroonians seem to prefer foreign TV channels for sports because of the satisfaction they get from watching inspiring commentators and above all, sport fans admire the fidelity of these foreign sport channels in providing all necessary sports news.

Above all this study suggests that it is the foreign TV that sets the agenda in our country. Sports fans in our country rely on foreign TV(most sport fans prefer TV highly for sports). The agenda set by this foreign media is not on the MTN elite I championship, it is rather on the various major European championships like the Spanish, English, French leagues etc

Challenges of Sports Journalism

In Cameroon, sports journalism and writing is now seen as a key element of the wider branding of most newspapers as they reposition their appeal in an effort to attract new readers. But there are still a lot of challenges well known by sport reporters themselves.

According to CRTV Buea sports journalist, Samuel Moto Bokuba, there is only one regular and exclusive sports newspaper in Cameroon at the moment, Ndamba, which is a weekly in French published by Emmanuel Gustave Samnick. Another All-sports newspaper is, This Is Sports, This Is Football, not very regular, and it is edited by Franklin Sone Mbayen.

Mr. Bokuba, who is also the Deputy Station Manager, CRTV Buea notes that others like Global Foot of Emile Ndonkeng, Stades that was a break away of Global Foot, Post Sports published in Yaoundé by Julius Wame, George Fontamo`s Association Sports Magazine that saw the release of only two issues and Cameroon Football Elite ( published in the 80`s by Jean Pierre Betfiang) emerged and after a few publications disappeared.

Local sports reporter, Innocent Mbunwe of The Post newspaper thinks that lack of financial resources has been the biggest problem of Cameroonian sports journalist. To him, the absence of money prevents the reporters from even given an ample coverage of the regional football championship it seems increasingly difficult to send reporters to far away areas like Ekondo Titi, Mundemba, Mamfe etc.

CRTV`s Matute Menyoli noted that the greatest threat to sports reporting is the scandalous collection of brown envelopes by some sport reporters who go ahead to sing the song of team presidents and sometimes football administrators. Many, according to Matute Menyoli practice “hilton journalism“going to fill their stomachs in the name of covering events.

Veteran journalist, Njomo Kevin, one time sports reporter with the Cameroon Radio Television and Radio Calabar also believes strongly that sports reporting in Cameroon is experiencing falling standard. To Mr. Njomo, the present day sport reporters in Cameroon are different from those in the past as they are so much interested in money, they collect “gombo“ and ignore the fact that they can make it truly only if they put love for their profession, before money.

Njomo Kevin notes that sports journalists in the past in this country had the responsibility of bringing spectators to the playgrounds and he pontificates that it was because of the intimate information that the “excellent sports reporters” in the past provided that matches that pitted Canon against Tonerre Yaounde and local derbies between Prisons of Buea and PWD Kumba in the 1960s and 1970s produced fireworks.

In spite of the problems, Njomo believes that Cameroon has witnessed some high points in sports journalism and to him, Zachary Nkwo and Peter Essoka are the two mentors who have left an indelible mark in the discipline.

Sports reporter, Simon Lyonga believes that sports journalism is experiencing dwindling fortunes because it is not treated as a course on its own in most Journalism institutions in Cameroon e.g Department of Journalism and Mass Communication in the University of Buea.

Also, Simon Lyonga of the National radio lampoons at some sports reporters who drink alot.  He believes that beer tasting makes reporters irresponsible as they appear negatively in the eyes of the public.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

With the major findings of this study as a back up and point of  reference, the following recommendations should be applied to get sports reporting back on the rails.

The government that runs the national radio and TV and other  regional stations should readily provide finance of the purchase of light weight portable and outside broadcast equipment that will enable CRTV give an elaborate coverage of events. CRTV has a lot of money (receiving handouts from the government, licence fee, advertisement), and they should invest greatly in machines and manpower that will facilitate its coverage of sports.

Private individuals and companies or the government should consider creating specialised sports media outlets. To Samuel Bokuba, this will greatly be helpful, though attempts at creating a specialised radio, TV or newspaper are mostly stifled by lack of resources, absence of advertisers, low readership and the limited number of sport competitions in the country.

For sports reporting to thrive, Njomo Kevin believes strongly that the cub sports reporters have to be passionate about reporting sports itself. He feels that love of the profession can make one highly efficient. To him, most of those who get into sports reporting now, do it because they want money from club presidents and this is what is destroying the fine corners of the discipline.

For sports reporting to flourish, those practising it in our country should try to avoid doing the wrong things like drinking excessively. They should rather spend time in gainful research about teams and players since they cannot afford to have limited knowledge.

In a bid to limit professional inadequacy, journalists who want to report sports should go to school. Professional courses in sports journalism are beginning to enter the curriculum of some journalism schools like ASMAC. The training should extend even after school with constant participation in workshops for sports reporters etc. If possible, sports reporters should specify in specific disciplines to have mastery so that their style and skill of reporting will be highly appreciated.

It is not enough for female journalists to sit and be complaining that they have little or no place in sports reportage. What they need to do, above all is to prove their worth. Magdalene Soppi Kotto is doing quite well at CRTV and other media houses should involve female spot reporters on their payroll.

Also, though football is the king sports, other sporting disciplines should be covered as well. Media coverage of boxing bouts, handball matches, athletics etc can help to popularise these hitherto relegated sport disciplines.

Moreover, media houses should avoid sexist presentation of athletes. Female athletes who excel should be treated as conquerors. The media for example presents the Indomitable Lions as superior beings and the Lionesses are not given the same treatment and attention.

Advertisers most know that during important sport competitions like the World Cup and African Nations Cup, they can patronise and sponsor sports programmes because most of them have high listenership and viewership during such periods.

Just like Njomo Kevin puts it, sports reporters have a great role, to make our sports grow and they have the propensity to bring supporters to sport venues.

References

BOOKS:

Acharya (1998), Sports Press in Nepal: A Survey of Sports Pages of the Daily Newspapers, post-graduation thesis

Ingham, R. et al., (1978) Football Hooliganism: The Wider Context, London: Inter-Action Inprint

Stott, C and Pearson, G. (2007) ‘Football Hooliganism: Policing and the War on the English Disease,’ London: Pennant Books

Andrew Baker,(2004), Where am I and Who’s Winning, Yellow Jersey Press, ISBN-13: 978-0224072731, 256 pages

Boyle, Raymond  and Haynes, Richard (2004) Football in the New Media Age, Routledge;  first edition, ISBN-10: 0415317908

Inabinett, Mark:  Grantland Rice and His Heroes: The Sportswriter as Mythmaker in the 1920s. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1994

Pirkko Markula, (July 2009), Olympic Women and the Media,International Perspectives, Palgrave, Macmillan, , ISBN10: 0-230-22284-6, 272 pages

Tanjong,E.  (2006), Africa in International Communication, Limbe, Design House

Andrew Boyd (2001, 25) ,Broadcast Journalism, Techniques of Radio and Television News, 5th edition

Articles

David Gallagher (Spring 1991), Public and Private Press in Cameroon, Changing Roles in the New Pluralism

Assala , Boyomo, (1998), Sports Journalism, Specialised Journalism (translated from French) paper presented during a seminar with sport reporters in Yaoundé, unpublished document

Jerry Azar, 1999, The Business of Sports Reporting

Beverley Sinclair, 2010, An open letter to Michael Bascombe, Poor state of Sports reporting in Grenada

Juliana Koranteng 1998  European sports TV channels: Opportunities in the Digital Age

George Gerbner(1956) Gerbner, G., & Gross, L. (1976). Living with television: The violence profile. Journal of Communication