Participating in some type of organized sports has become a rite of childhood for most children living in the United States. You would be hard pressed to find an American youth not participating in some type of sport. Many of today's youth participate in many different sports and remain active through out the year. What was once considered to be a leisure activity for our boys has now become a vital part of American culture. When did this rite originate? Early in the twentieth century, local businesses and local agencies serving the needs of the society started to sponsor leisure time sporting events for boys. It was initially intended to provide some wholesome leisure time activities that would keep them busy and out of trouble. Schools quickly picked up these activities and began to provide sporting programs, training, and instruction. They provided a new means of controlled, competitive activities for boys to participate in. It began as intramural sporting activities and quickly developed into school competitions. Although many do not agree on the benefits or objectives of the youth programs most recognize the need for wholesome character building activities to occupy the leisure time of America's youth.
             Before 1954, most of the youth sporting programs were hosted by social agencies. The YMCA's in the big cities were leaders in this movement. In 1954, a man named Carl Statz started Little League Baseball with approximately 70,000 boys. This started the great movement of sports by social agencies to sports sponsored by community adults. There are now more than 2.5 million children, aged eight to twelve, playing baseball on more than 42,000 little league teams. That's just baseball. It was the beginning. The tip of the iceberg.
             Did you know that women were not allowed to participate in the first modern day Olympics in 1896? And did you know that in the 1900's the medical field t...