Author(s): Umesh P Kamble

Abstract:
Sports can be very simply defined as any kind of organised indoor or outdoor activity which people creation and physical fitness. Adventure on the other hand is generally an outdoor activity of sport which involves an element of daring and risk. The physical fitness is generally a precondition to participate in adventure activities. Adventure and sports have always been an integral part of tourism. Throughout history, it has been common for persons having a spirit of adventure to travel great distances for satisfying their hunger for new challenges. In fact, it was the early adventurers who explored most of the new world and opened its gates to people of other civilisations. Again people have been known throughout history to travel to distant lands to pursue their interests in sports whether it was for participating in Olympics in Ancient Rome or for game hunting in the African Continent. In modern times, technological advancement has reduced distances considerably and the growing affluence has made it easier for people to afford travelling. People have also started looking for better quality of life and taking a recreational holiday for pursuing interests in adventure and sports. In countries having a marked degree of affluence, many centres of tourism owe their existence to the facilities and infrastructure offered for adventure and sports. Today centres like Chamonix, Zermatt and Leys in the European Alps are household names for the adventure lovers due to their being great places for mountaineering and skiing. Similarly administrators in places like Colorado (USA) and Nepal have laid great accent on adventure activities to promote tourism in their areas. Facilities for golf and tennis have always been a tourist attraction in most of the Western countries. In spite of these activities having existed for a long time, India has only recently initiated efforts to use them as tourist attractions.

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