site event Going for the Gold

[Rainbow Dash 329]

Hey, everypony!

I hope everyone's been having an awesome June and Summer, so far!

With the weather getting much warmer out, it's now time for many fun summer activities!

I'm talking about buckball, Hoofball, Swimming, volleyball, synchronized swimming, water skiing, parkour, tennis and more!

There are even fun sports to play indoors in case it's too hot outside so one can stay cool.

Such as bowling, fencing, karate, wrestling, Roller Derby and many, many more!

 There are so many fun kinds of sports for everypony to watch, take part and enjoy in general!

I know I'm somepony that is pretty good in multiple sports, but even I'll admit that there are one to two sports that are some of my personal favorites.

The same can even be said when it comes to a sport that you might not like or might not have given a chance before and you might end up actually liking.

I can speak from experience when it came to having to coach the School of Friendship's Cheerleading squad.

I wasn't really too keen on Cheerleading at the start. However, after learning a valuable lesson from the students and my friends, I found out that I liked Cheerleading.

Even during our school match against Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. We may have lost the match, but I was truly proud of the School of Friendship's Cheer Squad and everypony had a lot of fun!

That's why I want to issue a challenge to anyone that is reading this!

Whether you have taken part in a team or have watched live in person or at an event. Please share your experience with any sports that are your favorite, sports that you enjoy.

It can even be how you got into sports or even a sport that you might not have liked before or never experienced and how it became your favorite!

Those that post their sports experience shall receive a badge for their participation!

I look forward to reading all of your journeys and experiences in sports, everypony!

Here's to many more fun, awesome, bright and sunny Summer days!

[SidewinderX 77]

First!

 

Okay, now regarding the challenge itself. I'm a fencer. You know, with those really thin swords that look like they'd break every five seconds. I've been doing it for about four or five years now, and I've been to a few tournaments. My skills are probably average, but I have a ton of fun doing it anyway. 

I got into it back when I was a little kid, watching the Olympics with my parents. I thought the people with the swords and gear were the coolest thing ever. I loved it, and I really wanted to do it someday. It was a dream I held onto for a while, and now I get to poke people with (blunt) swords for my personal entertainment. It's perfect!

[ExplosionMare 21,155]

The only sports I did was some soccer when I was a kid. I was reluctant to do it at first but I ended up really enjoying it.  The coolest memory I have is making a goal assist maneuver to help a teammate get a goal since she'd never scored one prior! I eventually got my own goal, too, but it was more neat that I pulled off an assist without any opponents getting in the way!

[Snoopy Fan 7,673]

I used to play soccer as a kid, I was also in a kid’s bowling league.

[Ganondorf8 11,690]

When I was in Junior High, I did take part in a baseball club. However, it only lasted during the month of June, and even then, it took place during the lunch period. I remember one particular moment where I got hit in the knee with a baseball all because someone chose to throw overhand and not underhand. Overhand throws are what they do in MLB. Maybe that's why my left knee has finally begun showing signs of not being as good as it used to be.

[Street Light 597]

Omg hi Rainbow Dash :3

well!!!! I've done quite a bit of cross country and volleyball! im fairly good at and enjoy both ^~^

[ComanderZhabikKlavik 4,393]

My favorite sport is Street Workout (Calisthenics), I started doing it when I was 14 years old. Then I was playing the game Mortal Kombat on my phone and looked at the character Scorpion. I then realized that I wanted to be as strong as him and learn some martial art. I started training, it was hard at first, but after a year or two I developed a habit of doing workout. At that time, I did not yet know the name of what I was doing, but then I learned about the name and started watching videos and reading articles about this sport on the Internet. I learned about different elements of Street Workout (Calisthenics) and now I am learning one of the elements. Here is a video about this sport:

Spoiler

 

 

Spoiler

 

I also do kettlebell training but not very often. Sometimes I do different exercises with a 16 kg (35.274 pounds ) kettlebell. 

I can also probably talk about Quadrobics but I don't know if it can be considered a sport. Quadrobists and Therians call it a sport but not everyone will agree.

Here is the definition of Quadrobics taken from the internet:

Quadrobics, also known as "quads", is a form of physical activity or sport where individuals move on all fours, mimicking animal locomotion. It's a full-body workout that can improve strength, coordination, and balance. While it's a fitness trend and youth subculture, it's not yet officially recognized as a sport by major athletic organizations. 

Here is a video that tells almost everything about Quadrobics:

Spoiler

 

 

I don't do Quadrobics very often because I'm mostly focused on Workout but I like Quadrobics.

I am a fan of sports, it is not for nothing that my favorite superhero is Sportakus from LazyTown. I do my three favorite sports. Of all these three sports that I do, my favorite remains Street Workout (Calisthenics). I am very glad that I started doing sports, thanks to it I began to feel better, I became more confident, my self-esteem increased, the people around me began to treat me better, I became stronger and more enduring. If I had not done sports, I do not know what would have happened to me, but I am sure that nothing good. I am grateful to sports for the better life that it gave me. 

If you haven't been doing sports I suggest you try it it can change your life for the better as it did for me 

 

[Deae Rising Shine~ 57,248]

I was never really a sports pony, the most sport i did was in school XD I also don't really watch or follow any sport..

 

...until you count motorsport. I'm a huge Fan of Formula 1. My father and grandpa used too watch it on TV, but I originally not really cared and bring. However, don't remember why, I started too watch a bit more actively in 2008 and ultimatively watched every race I could on TV since 2009 myself, where, after my father picked me a driver too root for, became a Jenson Button fan and after he retired from F1, I stayed with the team, he last has driven for, McLaren, ever since.

[Iforgotmybrain 6,905]

American football is my favorite sport but I’ve never actually played it properly (only played backyard football basically). So I wouldn’t say I’m proficient at it or anything, at least physically. By the time I actually started to like the sport I was out of high school, and I went to a proper division 1 university so they weren’t exactly looking for walk-ons who had never played football before.

Swimming is the sport I’m most proficient at, though I was never on swim team or anything. I’ve just always liked the water, even floating in it with my head barely above the water is relaxing. Water is kool. Main downside to swimming is you need both a good sized pool to actually do it (most personal outdoor pools are too small) and said pool needs to not be overly busy because you can’t exactly swim when it’s packed with people.

Edited June 16 by Iforgotmybrain
Added more context

[Tao 8,823]

Hmmm the only none work phy/sporty thing I do:

• Camping
• Hiking
• Walking

I work at Home Depot so I do a TON of phy stuff and walk 5-8 miles a day at times with a huge lot of lifting...

 

[Night Sky 848]

I do a lot of walking , and more running. I basically run three miles without stopping. There's a black top surfaced track near my home, about half a Kilo. I run there, do twelve laps, as many pull ups as I can, and then I stagger home. 

I do a lot of push ups and sit ups, I'm always in competition with myself about how many. 

My brother and I will head to the gym. We walk on the track, run some more, there's lifting and then boxing. 

Then kickboxing, Tae Kwon Do. As time goes on, I am doing more watching and less kicking, but that's inevitable. 

I don't like watching belt tests. I actually prefer taking them to watching them.

I can control whether or not I mess up, and if I do, it's my own fault. But I don't like to see any pony not pass a belt test. They're a big deal. 

TKD is a lot of fun. I've also been doing Yoga with a group again recently. You reach an age where gentle cardio and flexibility are what you really need to be focusing on. I am beginning to shift that focus. 

Next winter I will slip yet a little more out of shape and recover yet a little more less of it next summer. There's no stopping that, but as long as you do a little...you can age well or poorly. If you're exercising or doing any sports at all, that's like 20% more Well right there.

[Samurai Equine 54,715]

Sports is a tough subject for me...

In school, I was not good at sports and never chosen for teams. Which is kind of ironic, really.
There were moments where I actually had potential in either Basketball or Baseball. There was even a moment where I could have been a track runner. Even tennis or volleyball could have been an option. I could have been really good. However, no one really took the time to help me improve my skills, to motivate me to improve, to really see the potential I had. Not that it's all their fault. I was a nerdy kid, and sports just didn't excite me. I had no fun associations with sports. As soon the couch said we were dismissed, I was out the door in record time.  Still, there are moments where I wonder what could have been.

To this day, sports remains a mystery to me. I have no idea why people get excited about sports. I have no idea why they tune in to watch or go to sporting events. I can't explain why they get invested in teams, coaches, historic plays, and other such things. I can't explain why some people might get so excited that they riot and loot the streets, regardless of whether their team wins or not. I can't say I enjoy how schools and other parts of society put more importance on sports than education, art, culture, invention, and other things that deserve more attention. And why would anyone want to get action figures of athletes and wrestlers, when they could have greater adventures with fantasy, scifi, video game, or superhero characters? I just genuinely didn't get it. The closest I got to understanding was the original Space Jam movie, but that felt more like a fictional spectacle than something just for sports fans.

But over the years, my stance began to change a little.
Sports is still not quite for me, but I can at least acknowledge and respect the genuine passion other people have. Those feelings are real. Genuine passion for anything should never be denied.  I might not watch sports for myself; but if a friend genuinely loves sports, I might watch it with them. I'd love to hear about their passion; how they got into sports and why they love it. The only condition I have is Good Sportsmanship and A Friendly Atmosphere. You don't have to like the other teams, you can have a favorite, but I don't want to hang out with anyone who has extreme hatred or intolerance for other teams and their fans. Likewise, the ones I hang with need to be welcoming and inviting. Instead of hating you for liking another team, they need to acknowledge that all sports fans are equally valid. Instead of treating you like a loser for not being good at sports, they might invite you to a friendly game where they teach you how to play and always applaud your honest efforts.

Sports can be a good thing that should unite us. And any rivalry we have should be a respectful, friendly rivalry instead of toxic, destructive behavior.  I am not sure if I agree with this comparison, but some have said sports is like a more civilized version of gladiator fights. If that is true, what is the point of making it civilized if we cannot act civilized as well?
Maybe I over generalizing. I hope that I am not offending anyone by posting my thoughts and experiences. You are free to disagree with me as hard as you want. I'd love to hear more about your personal experience as well! Just know that I don't hate sports. It's not for me, but if you love it, more power to you. We all have a passion for something in this life, and even if it's for different things, those passions are equally valid.

[Avery 201]

My little brother played basketball and baseball back in his middle school. His dream was becoming a soccer player. He was a natural when it comes to playing sports, and I would always cheers and rooted for him at the bench. A memory like this tends to make me feel emotional. He’s all grown up and living on his own now, but I can still see him as this little brother who dreamt once to be a soccer player, now someone who will go beyond  to reach his goal no matter what nets he will chasing to.

Edited June 20 by Avvery

[Dynamo Pad 11,676]

I used to be not much of a sports pony. I recall that video games or Esports is a type of sport. I always loved competing in fighting game tournaments, before taking part in Pokemon tournaments for a few years. It's always fun traveling to different states, meeting friends and making new friends and rivals in the tournament. For other sports, I actually got into football back in 2023. I was over at my aunt and uncle's house for Thanksgiving with my sister. Two games were on back to back and I was watching it alongside my other relatives. I had seen a game here and there, but I never really got into it. However, as I watched, I was feeling really invested. After that, I was watching more and more games. During 2024, I was watching some teams for the entire season and was getting more and more invested. Discussing the games and teams with some coworkers, as well as friends that also watched football. 

Two sports I also didn't expect to get into were both wrestling and rugby. I never gave the sports a chance to watch, but it was thanks to my friend, @TheRockARooster that I was able to get into the sports more. He had streamed both wrestling matches and a game and history of rugby for me and other fiends. After that, I always looked forward to seeing either a wrestling match or a rugby game. 

[River Rush 19]

I was big into Football going through school. I also had a small stint in ESports with Halo 3 and RS6, both on stage at some point. I really enjoyed competitive shooting when I was in the Army, it was truly a grand experience and taught me much about discipline and patience.

[Raskolnikov 1,689]

Not much into sports, the massive toxicity of people at school about it once everyone hit puberty put me off of the mainstream sports like football. I do own a recurve bow that is also good for hunting and used to go to an archery club, as well as air rifle shooting. Hoping to buy myself my own air rifle at some point soon :3 I want to get back into archery and try competitions, volunteered for an archery competition once and it seemed really fun and chill (and the club let us use their bows for free aaaaaall day which was a nice volunteer perk!!)

Edited June 30 by Raskolnikov

[Acinonyx 1,970]

11 hours ago, Raskolnikov said:

Not much into sports, the massive toxicity of people at school about it once everyone hit puberty put me off of the mainstream sports like football. I do own a recurve bow that is also good for hunting and used to go to an archery club, as well as air rifle shooting. Hoping to buy myself my own air rifle at some point soon :3 I want to get back into archery and try competitions, volunteered for an archery competition once and it seemed really fun and chill (and the club let us use their bows for free aaaaaall day which was a nice volunteer perk!!)

Similar to this, was never much into sports thanks to a lot a lot of unpleasant meatheady people with bad attitudes. 

I have a compound bow and we used to go to the same club together (which was unfortunately pretty elitist and looked down on people for the type of bow they used ). Competitions would be fun but I'd need to get another bow because my compound is set up more for hunting over sporty use (competitons have strict rules and the kind of sights and arrow rest etc on my compound would be disqualified). One thing I'd love to do is Field Archery where the targets are spread around in a forest and you walk around shooting at them rather than being stuck inside or in some enclosed area. 

Also have an air rifle and air pistol and used to go to a club for those as well (man covid really disrupted all this and haven't been back since) and have also been out hunting with it. People at the club were impressed with my pistol shooting and told me I should join competitions. 

Tried fencing about 10 years ago and that was really cool but unfortunately under circumstances at the time wasn't able to go back more than once.

[Clawdeen 19,917]

Never ended up playing sports. When I was in middle school I was told by my gym leader at the time once I hit high school I should consider trying out for Field Hockey. I thought about it but never did it.

[TheRockARooster 53,860]

I love watching NRL (Rugby League) and AFL (Aussie Rules) along with wrestling and many other sports from all over the world. 

I used toplay soccer as a kid and other sports at school for fun and not serious competition.

[VinylWubs 1,277]

As a kid, I used to be really good at Netball. What is Netball you may ask? Think of Basketball but you can't dribble the ball, run with the ball, you have limited freedom across the entire court and physical contact is also very limited and players have to be a certain distance from the ball. Netball is VERY well known in New Zealand as one of THE biggest sports apart from Rugby, the sport is also praised just as much as Rugby but a lot less. Most people pay attention to the Chiefs or the Crusaders but not the Silver Ferns. But enough about Rugby. I used to play with a team of 7-8 girls from my year (or grade as some countries call it) for at least 2-5 years. We won trophies, got to play against other schools and even get Maccas as a reward if you were player of the game! 

During high school, I kind of stopped playing sport despite how much I loved it. Nowadays, I love going on walks. Whether its a short 8km walk or even around 18km if I feel adventurous, I enjoy them a lot. (Or, for those who use miles, that's around 4 to 11 miles in a day). I'm also getting into Brazilian Jiu Jitsu thanks to my cousin who introduced it to me this year! I already have my first stripe on my white belt!