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Canada's northern proximation certainly affects which sports Canadians choose to play or watch. The country has always placed far better in the medal standings of the Winter Olympics than the Summer Olympics . Next to hockey, Curling is quintessentially Canadian, especially in rural areas of the country, though on the whole it is not as popular as hockey or other major North American sports. Canadian national teams win 40 to 60 per cent of international curling competitions. Baseball , Basketball , and American Football and their offshoots are very popular participation and spectator sports. Softball is a popular Recreational Sport , as is three-on-three and other forms of pick-up and street basketball. Canadian Football , with a large domestic fan-base, is the country's own brand of football. Canadian and American football highly resemble each other and share common origins; indeed, both codes can trace their provenance to a series of games between Harvard University ( Cambridge, Massachusetts ) and McGill University ( Montreal, Quebec ) in 1874. However, Canadian football has evolved separately from its American counterpart and retains several key differences. For an in-depth overview, see Comparison Of Canadian And American Football . Lacrosse , with First Nations origins, is Canada's oldest sport and official summer sport (see below), although relatively few Canadians play or follow the sport. Other popular sports in the country include both Open-wheel and Stock Car Auto Racing , Golf , Tennis , Swimming , both on and Off-road Cycling , Skateboarding , Snowboarding , Alpine Skiing , Volleyball , Rugby Union , Professional Wrestling , Horse Racing , Rodeo in western Canada, Figure Skating , Boxing , Triathlon , and Track And Field . The Lou Marsh Trophy recognizes Canada's top athlete; a list of Canada's Athletes Of The 20th Century was published in 1999. OFFICIAL SPORTS Canada is a nation with two official sports. Since its founding, and until 1994, the official sport was Lacrosse , a sport invented by Aboriginal Peoples . In 1994, First Nations groups objected to a government bill that proposed establishing solely ice hockey as Canada's national sport, arguing that it neglected and obliterated recognition of the game of lacrosse, a uniquely Native contribution. In response, the House Of Commons amended the bill "to recognize hockey as Canada's National Winter Sport and lacrosse as Canada's National Summer Sport." On May 12, 1994, in Bill C-212, ice hockey joined lacrosse as official sports of Canada. PROMINENT SPORTS Olympics Canada has competed at every Olympic Games , except for the First Games In 1896 and the Boycotted Games In 1980 . Canada has previously hosted the games twice, at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal and the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary , and Vancouver is scheduled to host the 2010 Winter Olympics . A number of have competed for Canada over the years. At the Summer Games , the majority of Canada's medals come from the sports of Athletics , Aquatics ( Swimming , Synchronized Swimming and Diving ), Rowing and Canoeing / Kayaking . In the post-boycott era (since 1988 ), Canada's medal total ranks 19th, with the highest rank of 11th in 1992 and the lowest of 24th in 2000 . At the Winter Games , Canada is usually one of the top nations in terms of medals won. Canada is traditionally strong in the sports of Ice Hockey , Figure Skating , and Speed Skating (especially the Short Track variation), and every Canadian men's and women's teams have won Curling medals since the sport was added to the Olympic program. Ice hockey The , Ottawa Senators , Toronto Maple Leafs , Calgary Flames , Edmonton Oilers , Vancouver Canucks , Winnipeg Jets (relocated to Phoenix in 1996), Quebec Nordiques (relocated to Denver in 1995). '' Hockey Night In Canada '' is the longtime national Saturday night Television Broadcast Of NHL Games featuring Canadian teams. Hockey Canada is the sports official governing body in Canada and member of the International Ice Hockey Federation . Junior Hockey (age level between 16 and 20 years old) is hugely popular in the country. The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League , Ontario Hockey League , and Western Hockey League form the Canadian Hockey League of top level or 'Major Junior A Tier 1' hockey. Lacrosse The National Lacrosse League , a fledgling Indoor Lacrosse league, is the world's only professional lacrosse league, with franchises in Canada and the United States. The Canadian Lacrosse Association is the sports governing body in Canada. Curling The Canadian Curling Association is the sports's governing body in Canada. The Tim Hortons Brier is the national men's championship. The Scott Tournament Of Hearts is the national women's championship. Canadian football ]] The Canadian Football League is the longtime professional league for Canadian football. Teams compete for the Grey Cup . The Canadian Junior Football League is a Canadian football league for amateur players ages 18 to 22. Baseball ]] The Toronto Blue Jays have been a Major League Baseball club since 1977. From 1969 to 2004 the Montreal Expos were also a Canadian based MLB club. A number of Canadians have played in the major leagues. Canadian Larry Walker was National League MVP for the 1997 season. Jason Bay was the first Canadian to win rookie of the year honors in 2004. Canada participated in the 2006 World Baseball Classic , in which it upset Team USA in first-round play. {Link without Title} Basketball Basketball has become a popular spectator sport in parts of Canada in recent years. The National Basketball Association expanded into Canada in 1995 with the addition of the Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies . The Grizzlies moved to Memphis, Tennessee in 2001 , but the Raptors continue to draw healthy crowds at the Air Canada Centre . 2005 NBA Most Valuable Player Steve Nash is from British Columbia and has played in international competitions for Canada. Also, a less well-known fact is that basketball was invented by a Canadian. James Naismith (born in Almonte, Ontario) was the Canadian physical education instructor who invented basketball in 1891. (Although, the U.S. patent #1,718,305 was granted to G.L. Pierce on June 25, 1929 for the "basketball" used in the game.) Soccer Soccer is one of the country's most played recreational sports, particularly as a school sport. The sport's official governing body in the country is the Canadian Soccer Association . Whereas the National Women's Team is competitive internationally, the National Men's Team struggles. Auto racing The Canadian Grand Prix is Canada's Formula One race. Champcar (which is similar to F1 ) races are also held in the Canadian cities of Toronto , Montreal and Edmonton in 2005. CASCAR is the country's governing body for amateur and professional stock car racing. As there is also some interest in NASCAR , the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) formed NASCAR Canada in partnership with TSN . Canada is NASCAR's largest market outside the US . Golf Tennis
Australian Football Canada is home to the Ontario Australian Football League , one of the largest Australian Rules Football leagues outside of Australia . Canada holds the record for the largest attendance for an AFL /VFL match held outside of Australia (in 1987 32,789 people attended a VFL match held at Vancouver , Canada between Melbourne Demons and Sydney Swans - see Australian Rules Football Attendance Records ). Subsequent Aussie Rules matches in both Vancouver and Toronto have drawn similarly large crowds. Rugby Union
GOVERNANCE Federal and provincial governments are both actively involved in sports; as each has areas of jurisdiction which overlap sports. Sport Canada generally directs (or at least co-ordinates) federal activity in sports. While the federal government generally tries to take a leadership role in areas of international competition (where its jurisdiction is clearest) some provinces, especially Quebec, are actively involved in sports at all levels, even with elite international athletes. Provinces less interested, will often focus on student athletics, as it falls more clearly in an area of provincial jurisdiction (that being education). SEE ALSO
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