Australia Has a Unique Way of Celebrating Sports Through Carnivals

The first thing that comes to peoples minds when someone mentions carnivals is the Rio Carnival. We usually think of many people dancing in the streets, dressed in colourful clothes and wearing funny hats.

However, the definition of a carnival is much broader, and it is every type of annual festival that manages to gather people around. Sure, music and dancing are an inevitable part of it, but is it possible to include sports in them?

Australias sports carnivals

The culture of Australia is young, but it managed to develop into several exciting ways. They try their best to nurture the healthy spirit, and what is a better way to do that than playing sports?

Australian sports carnivals gather many individuals or teams that usually consist of young people from various schools from the land down under. They compete with each other and try their best to win titles and valuable prizes.

Another thing that you might not be familiar with is that Australians are avid punters. They like to place their bets on everything, and sports carnivals are no exception.

Furthermore, they analyze odds and place bets on competitors at sports carnivals. This is pretty much the same as for any other sport.

What sports are included in sports carnivals?

There are no rules about which sports will be included. However, Australians like having some sort of tradition, and thats the main reason why games such as athletics, swimming, and Surf Life Saving are almost always included in the available sports during a carnival.

You are probably wondering what Surf Life Saving may be? In plain language, lifesavers are a big deal in Australia, and they train very hard to compete in this sport. In fact, they are divided into age groups which start as low as under 8. Second group includes children under 14 and 15. Other age group includes veterans (up to 30-years-old). After 30, all groups are divided into five-year spans and go up to 65+.

One of the sports that actually incorporates several disciplines in Australia is called Ironman. The players who decide to take part in Ironman must compete at surfing, board paddling, ski paddling, and running. The premier event for competing in this type of surf lifesaving is called Coolangatta Gold, and it is organised every year by Surf Life Saving Australia.

Are there parades?

Naturally. A carnival without a parade cannot be considered a carnival, can it? Aussies pay a lot of attention to this, and everyone has a good time, parading down the street and dancing to the music. Not only sportspeople are included in it but also others who want to be a part of the parade.

Conclusion

As you can see, Australia has a cool tradition of sports carnivals, and some of them are definitely worth visiting if you go there as a tourist. A word of warning, though! Do not try competing with them unless you are an experienced surfer and lifesaver. The sports related to carnivals can get pretty dangerous, and people competing in them spend a lot of time practicing these sports. On the other hand, you would not be able to compete at all, as mainly schools and Universities are allowed to take part in this type of competition.