Sport in Sydney
Sport is a significant aspect of the Sydney lifestyle. Activities range from the occasional international event, annual competitions, competitive leagues and individual recreational pursuits. Sydney is the base for a number of teams in national competitions including the Sydney Sixers, Sydney Kings and Sydney Swans.
The Sydney City Council caters for sporting activities with a range of facilities. Across the city there are 20 public swimming pools, many kilometres of dedicated bikeways, ovals and other sports venues. Stadium Australia and the Sydney Cricket Ground, are two of the largest venues in the city.
Popular sports
Rugby league is the most popular spectator sport in Sydney. In 2006 565,898 people attended first class rugby league matches at Stadium Australia. Other popular spectator sports include Cricket, Football (soccer), Australian rules football, rugby union and basketball. The martial arts are also popular in Sydney, with the more traditional western combative disciplines and also because of the proximity to Asian countries where the arts are historically based. While participation rates are high it tends not to enjoy the profile of traditional Australia sports, though the olympic sports of boxing, judo and taekwondo are more well known. For the Asian arts there are many places to practice in Sydney.
Teams in national competitions
Venues
Venues in national competitions
Sydney Olympic Park
Sydney Olympic Park is roughly in the geographical centre of Sydney. Created for the 2000 Olympics, it is now a major sporting centre in the city.
Sydney Superdome
Sydney Superdome hosts miscellaneous events as Sydney's premier indoors facility. It has a maximum capacity of 21,000.
Stadium Australia
Stadium Australia, sponsored as ANZ Stadium, is Sydney's largest stadium. Built for the 2000 Olympics, it now hosts big events such as the NRL Grand Final, the rugby league State of Origin and rugby union and soccer internationals.
The venue is the home ground of NRL teams, the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and the South Sydney Rabbitohs and serves as an occasional home ground for the Parramatta Eels. ANZ Stadium also hosts a number of Swans home games and the occasional domestic cricket one-day match.
Other facilities
There are various other sporting and recreational facilities in the centre including another indoor arena, tennis centre, aquatic centre, athletics centre, hockey centre, archery centre, as well as the Sydney Showground. In 2009 the area hosted a motor race in the form of the Sydney 500 motor race to be held on a street circuit within the former Olympic grounds.
Moore Park
Sydney Football Stadium
Sydney Football Stadium was designed for the use of rugby league and is now also used for rugby union and soccer. The Sydney Roosters, the NSW Waratahs and Sydney FC soccer team use it as their home ground. The Wests Tigers use the stadium part-time as a home ground. The ground hosted the 2005–06 A-League grand final won by Sydney FC. The ground also hosted rugby league grand finals from its construction until ANZ Stadium was opened.
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is mainly used for cricket games and Aussie rules matches. It is home to the Sydney Swans and NSW Blues. The ground held over 1000 rugby league first-grade matches in its history but is rarely used anymore.[1]
See also
References
- ↑ "Sydney Cricket & Sports Ground Trust - SCGT". nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 8 January 2017.