Ancient Egypt Sports

It is obvious from the scenes depicted on pyramid and temple walls that ancient Egyptians knew how to keep fit; obviously in ancient Egypt sports must have been a part of the daily life and culture. Archeologists and scholars have uncovered interesting bits of information about the ancient Egyptian sports practiced thousands of years ago.

The history on ancient Egypt sports was comprised of a variety of games and sports. Quite surprisingly ancient Egypt games and sport are not that different from the games we practice and enjoy today. Murals and paintings dating back to the days of the ancient Egyptians indicate that the pharaoh and his people enjoyed such activities as wrestling and javelin throwing.

Javelin throwing was most likely associated with hunting for both sport and the provision of food. Likewise, archery was a very popular sports recreation in Egypt; although it seems to have been practiced more by royalty for entertainment purposes than for practical means.
With the fact that Egypt lies on the banks of the Nile River it is quite likely to assume that many of the ancient Egyptian sports were water related. Evidence indicates that Egyptians enjoyed such sporting events as swimming and rowing.

Ball game painting

Judging by drawings and paintings, ancient Egypt sports also included an assortment of ball games. One of the games involving ball play appears to be a version of handball, while other games were played using balls and bats fashioned from palm trees. Though these ball games probably never reached the frenzied state of popularity as they exist in the modern world, ball games appear to have been enjoyed by children and adults alike.
Many of the ancient Egypt sports seem to have been enjoyed for the pure fun of it; while others might have developed into professional spectator sporting events. Certainly the latter would have been attended by the royal family of Egypt as a means of entertainment and diversion.
In addition, ancient Egypt sports included lengthy marathons that were recorded in a number of ancient Egyptian texts. Marathons seem to have even played a part in the coronation festivities of pharaohs throughout most ancient Egyptian history.