Sports and Physical Fitness: Introduction
Days and years have passed where one considered sports as just a recreation
activity or hobby. In the present scenario, sports industry has emerged
as one of the most lucrative options in India as well as outside. Sports
industry is so vast than one could imagine, with a plethora of opportunities.
It encompasses not only cricket, football, hockey etc but it is a sum
up of all sport, as well as physical fitness and medicine. A career in
sports and physical fitness is a unique occupation. It is a profession
by which a student can earn a substantial amount of money and at the same
time stay fit. Apart from being a profession, sports has the potential
to build character- concepts such as self discipline, teamwork, sacrifice
and fair play can be learned and enhanced through athletic competition.
Sports Industry is interdisciplinary and can be divided into many segments
like Sports Media, Sports Team Administration, Sports Medicine and Sports
Management. Sports media include Marketing, Broadcasting, Sport Writing,
Public Relations, Photography etc. Team Administration includes postings
such as Coach, Instructor, Referee, Athletic Director, Physical Trainer
(PT) etc. in high schools, colleges, universities and for professional
teams. Medicine include Sports Rehabilitation & Orthopedics, Athletic
Training, Sports Nutrition, Sports Psychologist etc. Sports Management
include Management and Finance, Organising leagues etc. as team manager.
One of the largest sports job sectors is health and fitness. There are
plenty of opportunities for health and fitness jobs where professional
sportsmen and women, as well as amateur athletes require training and
conditioning. In fact, wherever you have sports and people that play sports,
even on a hobby level, there will be the need for sports injury therapists,
personal trainers for various sporting disciplines, health and fitness
professionals, strength and conditioning coaches, and more. Those working
in the health and fitness business lead and teach individuals, teams,
and/or groups of people through cardiovascular exercises, strength training
regimens, and stretching to improve flexibility. Fitness is not merely
a sports man's pursuit. The fitness mantra seems to be catching up as
young people and even senior citizens are realizing the need to maintain
good health with a regular fitness regimen.
Today, there are several academies and institutes dedicated to impart
training in different types of sporting activities. In India, the Sports
Authority of India (SAI) is the apex body that is bestowed with the responsibility
of encouraging young talent to develop interest in sports and excel in
their chosen sporting activities. MRF has been promoting and training
cricketers through its Pace Foundation in Chennai. The Tata Football Academy,
Kolkata, trains young soccer players, many of whom are now in the big
league teams of Mohan Bagan and East Bengal. UK is a great sporting nation
with a thriving and passionate sporting culture which provide opportunity
to participate in a wide range of sports and to attend great sporting
events like Manchester United football match, St. Andrew’s golf
tournament, the London Marathon etc.
There are also various scholarships provided for those interested in
sports in order to sharpen their talents. Netaji Subhas National Institute
of Sports (NSNIS), located at Patiala an academic wing of the Sports Authority
of India (SAI) is one among them which offer scholarships in India. SAI
has several schemes for a variety of sports. Recently, SAI has also set
up six Centres of Excellence at Banglaore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Delhi, Gandhinagar
and Imphal, where sportspersons who have qualified at the national level
up to the 6th position, are trained and promoted.
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