A Canadian (James Naismith) invented basketball, using skills learned playing ``duck rock," a game the neighbourhood kids played where he grew up. The Huskies lost to the Knickerbockers that evening and folded at the end of the season. When the ball goes out of bounds it shall be thrown into the field of play by the person first touching it. The inventor of basketball, Dr. James Naismith, stands in a field carrying a ball and a basket. Basketball was not only for the boys, either. Every year, this event attracts hundreds of participants and involves over 20 half-court games along the main street of the town. [22] In 1937, Naismith played a role in the formation of the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball, which later became the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). (Credit: Bettmann/Getty Images), “I called the boys to the gym, divided them up into teams of nine and gave them a little soccer ball,” Naismith recalled in a 1939 radio interview that aired on WOR-AM in New York City. and in schools and clubs. The Canadian men's national basketball team has made nine appearances at the Summer Olympic basketball tournament, winning silver at the 1936 Summer Olympics. It was for personal use, not team use. Even a modified game of football in the gymnasium failed to burn off their excess energy. He wants to "keep Almonte the way is: a nice quiet town where Naismith grew up". The player must throw it from the spot on which he catches it, allowance to be made for man who catches the ball when running, if he tries to stop. He was interred at Memorial Park Cemetery in Lawrence, Kansas. The game quickly became popular, and in 1968 the first Canadian championships were held in Edmonton, The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winner. [11] Naismith was a Presbyterian minister, and was also remembered as a Freemason. James Naismith could not have envisaged the modern game, The first basketball team made their bow in 1891, Dr James Naismith's hometown recognises his genius, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-11348053. [10] Firstly, he analyzed the most popular games of those times (rugby, lacrosse, soccer, football, hockey, and baseball); Naismith noticed the hazards of a ball and concluded that the big, soft soccer ball was safest. By the turn of the century, enough college teams were in the East that the first intercollegiate competitions could be played out. [nb 1], Struggling in school but gifted in farm labour, Naismith spent his days outside playing catch, hide-and-seek, and duck on a rock, a medieval game in which a person guards a large drake stone from opposing players, who try to knock it down by throwing smaller stones at it. "[15] In contrast to modern basketball, the original rules did not include what is known today as the dribble. The game became established fairly quickly and grew very popular as the 20th century progressed, first in America and then in other parts of the world. Many students at the YMCA International Training School in Springfield were Canadian, and these young men (e.g., Lyman Archibald, J. Howard Crocker, William H. Ball) helped establish the new game across the country. The first game - comprising two teams of nine - took place on 21 December 1891. James Naismith was the Canadian physical education instructor who invented basketball in 1891. [8] He never had a middle name and never signed his name with an "A" initial. “I showed them two peach baskets I’d nailed up at each end of the gym, and I told them the idea was to throw the ball into the opposing team’s peach basket. Canada has it's own version of football, but, this would have been influenced by rugby, the same as the US version. Naismith wanted to develop a game that emphasized skill instead of force. (Credit: Bettmann/Getty Images). [22] Although the sport continued to grow, Naismith long regarded the game as a curiosity and preferred gymnastics and wrestling as better forms of physical activity. Smith and Rupp have joined Naismith and Allen as members of the Basketball Hall of Fame. Alberta. [citation needed], Basketball today is played by more than 300 million people worldwide, making it one of the most popular team sports.