When I was growing up I alway heard that baseball was our national sport. Thinking back, I think that was probably true. Every fall, the major topic of conversation when any group got together was the World Series\u2026 today \u2014 not so much. I did some checking, and it turns out that, based on revenue, the top major sports leagues in the US are the National Football league (NFL); Major League Baseball (MLB; the National Basketball Association (NBA); the National Hockey League (NHL); and Major League Soccer (MLS) \u2014 in that order. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But I got to wondering\u2026. what about the states? Sports are an important part of culture in the United States, so I figured since states have state flags, flowers, nicknames, mottos, trees, and some even have state dinosaurs, that the states must all have official sports. But that\u2019s not true \u2014 I think every state has a state bird, and even though sports are very popular in the United States, every state doesn\u2019t have an official sport \u2014 only about 15 do \u2014 and having a state sport is a fairly recent thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So as a public service to you faithful blog readers, here\u2019s what my extensive research turned up:
Maryland became the first state to adopt an official state sport in 1962. The sport? Jousting. In 2004, Maryland also adopted lacrosse as its official team sport. The other states that have adopted official sports (all after 1962) are:
Alaska \u2014 (Dog) Mushing.
Michigan \u2014 Wakeboarding. (A water sport in which the rider, standing on a wakeboard (short board with foot bindings) is towed behind a motorboat across its wake \u2014 a combination of water skiing, snowboarding and surfing.)
Hawaii \u2014 Surfing. (Team sport \u2014 Outrigger Canoe Paddling.)
New Hampshire \u2014 Sking.
Texas \u2014 Rodeo
South Dakota \u2014 Rodeo
Wyoming \u2014 Rodeo
Massachusetts \u2014 Basketball (Team sport \u2014 Volleyball)
Minnesota \u2014 Ice Hockey
Colorado \u2014 Pack Burrow Racing
North Carolina \u2014 Stock Car racing
Delaware \u2014 Bicycling
California \u2014 Surfing
New York \u2014 Baseball<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of these official sports may surprise you \u2014 and \u2014 the fact that so few states have an official sport is surprising in and of itself. But I think Maryland comes out the winner on this list. Their sport of jousting is unique, and pretty cool. In the movie, Wedding Crashers<\/em>, there was a line that said, \u201cCrab cakes and football \u2014 that\u2019s what Maryland does.\u201d Obviously, they also do jousting. When I was growing up I alway heard that baseball was our national sport. Thinking back, I think that was probably true. Every fall, the major topic of conversation when any group got together was the World Series\u2026 today \u2014 … Continue reading
Jousting tournaments have been held in Maryland since early colonial times, and became increasingly popular during the Civil War. Today, in modern-day tournaments, men (referred to as knights) and women (referred to as maids) are dressed in colorful costumes full of regalia and many of the medieval customs and practices are still utilized. The Maryland State Jousting Championship is held annually.
Good for Maryland. I\u2019m going to push for West Virginia to get a state sport, like huntin, fishin, spittin, or scratchin\u2026\u2026
\u2014 30 \u2014<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"