In America, almost all schools offer sports programs and teams. These teams are seen as an opportunity to build friendships and gain qualities such as responsibility and time management. While this is an ordinary thing in America, they are not as common in other parts of the world.

Senior Gianna Goldschmid is a foreign exchange student from Switzerland and sports here are very different than her own country. There are many we do not take part in.

“At home, I really enjoyed skiing, but here, that is not really an option.” says Goldschmid, “In Switzerland, American football isn’t really played anywhere, let alone as a school sport. We play soccer a lot more, it is very popular.”

Athletics and school can easily be dictated by climate and scheduling. While a nine-to-five job and schedule is normal in America, it is not as common in other places.

This restriction applies to senior Taiga Koshimizu, from Japan. There, school begins at 8 a.m and ends at 8 p.m. This does not give a lot of time, if any, to participate in extracurricular activities such as clubs and such outside of school. Even though this is true, sports are still a popular activity in Japan, though.

“Sports are like a class in my high school. It can get confusing, though, as some sports do not have a time limit, like baseball.” said Koshimizu, “Both in Japan and America, sports are good overall, like health and keeping busy. In America, competitors are very aggressive with rivalries. It is exciting to watch and play.”

Economics teacher Elizabeth Hoffbauer was born and raised in America, but often visits other countries. She, too, has noted some differences in sports in America and athletics around the world

“The sport and region that sticks out to me the most is defininantly the United Kingdom.” says Hoffbauer, “There, I saw a rugby match take place, and it was unlike anything I have ever seen before. It was so much more aggressive, and I noticed the lack of player gear, like helmets. Over there, extracurricular activities are a privilege, so the people who play really love it and really want to be there, and I think it definitely shows in their performance as well.”

The desire to be social and build relationships through similar passions can be found within anyone. Sports and customs may differ from country to country, but athletics continue to interest people from all around the world.