Why do we exercise? In the West, a cultural emphasis on fitness derives from a desire for military preparedness.
Strabo notes that the Romans had a field dedicated to Mars, the god of war, outside of the city where men engaged "ball-playing, hoop-trundling, and wrestling." An apocryphal statement by Wellington asserts that "The Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton." It is an invented quote, but became a popular attribution because the sentiment is true: sports prepare young people for war.
Which brings us to cornhole.
This is a martial sport popular in the United States, especially at outdoor social gatherings. It consists of throwing beanbags precisely into holes cut into an inclined board. Cornhole requires precision, focus, and courage--martial qualities.
So it is good that Winthrop University in South Carolina is offering scholarships to Gavin Hamann and Jaxson Remmick, who are two young men with prodigious talents in cornhole. The New York Post informs us that they are the first such scholarship recipients in the United States.
-via Dave Barry | Photo: Tony Alter