Many sports in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

are both traditional and modern.

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

, for example, was the first city in West Asia to host the

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...

in 1974, and continues to host and participate in major international sporting events to this day.

Freestyle wrestling Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling originated from Great Britain and the United States. Along with Greco-Roman, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games. American high school and men's college wrestling ...

has been traditionally regarded as Iran's

national sport A national sport is considered to be an intrinsic part of the culture of a nation. Some sports are ''de facto'' (not established by law) national sports, as sumo is in Japan and Gaelic games are in Ireland and field hockey in Pakistan, while oth ...

, however today,

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

is the most popular sport in Iran. Because of economic sanctions, the annual government's budget for sport was about $80 million in 2010 or about $1 per person. Taekwondo at the 2016 Summer Olympics women Kimia Alizadeh

Taekwondo at the 2016 Summer Olympics women Kimia Alizadeh

History

Sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...

and athletic exercises were among the most fundamental daily pursuits of the people in

Ancient Iran The history of Iran is intertwined with the history of a larger region known as Greater Iran, comprising the area from Anatolia in the west to the borders of Ancient India and the Syr Darya in the east, and from the Caucasus and the Eurasian S ...

. The society attached special status to

sportsmen An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-develo ...

who thanks to their physical strength and courage, defended their family and homeland when the need arose. They were welcomed everywhere with much enthusiasm, the people took much pride in their sportsmen and praised and admired them for their courageous deeds. According to their religious teaching, the Iranian Zoroastrians in their prayers sought first the beauties of

heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

and then physical strength and mental power. They believed in a

healthy Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

and powerful body. The ancient Iranians attached spiritual meaning to their spoils activities which they modeled on their weapons. Even the

Mages Mage most commonly refers to: * Mage (paranormal) or magician, a practitioner of magic derived from supernatural or occult sources * Mage (fantasy) or magician, a type of character in mythology, folklore, and fiction *Mage, a character class in s ...

(religious sages) while engaging in prayers in their temples held a mace in their hands, not unlike the British bishops who hung swords on their belts.

Avesta The Avesta () is the primary collection of religious texts of Zoroastrianism, composed in the Avestan language. The Avesta texts fall into several different categories, arranged either by dialect, or by usage. The principal text in the litu ...

, the sacred book of the ancient religions of Iran glorifies the champions and sportsmen as much, if not more than saints and men of God. The older generation made arrangements for the ancient narratives and epics to be read to the young either from books or from those who had learned them from their elders. This tradition has survived until today and outlived the rest of ages. Thus, even today, it can be observed that among the tribes and in the tea houses storytelling is practiced with the same enthusiasm as it was in bygone ages. The extent to which the Iranians were interested in their

hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ...

es and

champions A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the Victory, victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and w ...

is revealed, among other things, by the fact that in the

Persian language Persian (), also known by its endonym Farsi (, ', ), is a Western Iranian language belonging to the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. Persian is a pluricentric language predominantly spoken and ...

there are over 30 words to label the concept of a hero or champion. In

, youths under 24 years of age received thorough training in the sport of their time which included

miming A mime artist, or simply mime (from Greek language, Greek , , "imitator, actor"), is a person who uses ''mime'' (also called ''pantomime'' outside of Britain), the acting out of a story through body motions without the use of speech, as a the ...

, horsemanship,

polo Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit a small hard ...

, dart throwing,

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

, and

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, s ...

. They were taught under conditions of severe hardship so that when the need arose they could endure the adverse conditions of war such as

hunger In politics, humanitarian aid, and the social sciences, hunger is defined as a condition in which a person does not have the physical or financial capability to eat sufficient food to meet basic nutritional needs for a sustained period. In the ...

thirst Thirst is the craving for potable fluids, resulting in the basic instinct of animals to drink. It is an essential mechanism involved in fluid balance. It arises from a lack of fluids or an increase in the concentration of certain osmolites, suc ...

fatigue Fatigue describes a state of tiredness that does not resolve with rest or sleep. In general usage, fatigue is synonymous with extreme tiredness or exhaustion that normally follows prolonged physical or mental activity. When it does not resolve ...

heat In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...

cold Cold is the presence of low temperature, especially in the atmosphere. In common usage, cold is often a subjective perception. A lower bound to temperature is absolute zero, defined as 0.00K on the Kelvin scale, an absolute thermodynamic ...

, etc. As of 2015, only 20 percent of Iranians are physically active while the world average is 60 percent. 30% of Iranian youths never play any sports.

2012 Olympics

Iran achieved a significant victory in the London 2012 Olympics. The Iranian Team has won 13 medals including 7 Gold Medals. This is the best performance of a Middle Eastern country ever in the history of the Summer Olympics.

Sportswomen

Since 1979, women athletes have been subject to strict requirements when competing in Iran or abroad, with the Iranian Olympic Committee stating that "severe punishment will be meted out to those who do not follow Islamic rules during sporting competitions". The committee banned women athletes from competing in Olympic events where a male referee could come into physical contact with them. At the

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

and

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

combined, a total of six women represented Iran. In 2016, Iran made global headlines for the international female community after Iran got its first gold medal achieved by a woman. This also was a record in the MENA region. Women athletes in

enjoy many freedoms.In 1979, there were only 1,000 female athletes in Iran, and now the number of female athletes has reached more than 1.4 million. They are active in various disciplines such as

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

weightlifting Weightlifting generally refers to activities in which people lift Weight training#Equipment, weights, often in the form of dumbbells or barbells. People lift various kinds of weights for a variety of different reasons. These may include various t ...

shooting Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missiles can ...

taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...

, wushu,

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

boating Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether Motorboat, powerboats, Sailing, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sp ...

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competiti ...

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

rock climbing Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...

, and

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...

. Prominent female athletes such as

Zahra Nemati Zahra Nemati ( fa, زهرا نعمتی, born 30 April 1985) is an Iranian Paralympic and Olympic archer. She originally competed in taekwondo before she was paralyzed in a car accident. At the 2012 Summer Paralympics she won two medals, an indiv ...

Hamideh Abbasali Hamideh Abbasali ( fa, حمیده عباسعلی, also Romanized as "Hamīdeh ’Abbās’alī"; born 14 March 1990 in Rey) is an Iranian karateka. She achieved silver medal in final game of world karate championships 2014 held in Bremen, Germa ...

, Nazanin Malai, Farzaneh Fassihi,

Leila Rajabi Leila Rajabi ( fa, لیلا رجبی, born Tatyana Ilyushchanka, russian: Татьяна Илющанка on 18 April 1983 in Vitebsk, Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union) is a Naturalized Iranian shot putter of Belarusian origin. She acquired Iran ...

, Elahe Ahmadi, Nahid Kiani,

Sarasadat Khademalsharieh Sarasadat Khadem al-sharieh ( fa, سارا سادات خادم‌الشریعه; born 10 March 1997), also known as Sara Khadem, is an Iranian chess player who holds the titles of International Master (IM) and Woman Grandmaster (WGM). Early lif ...

are well known among the Iranian people.

Iran sport organization

* 1935: National Sports Association * 1960: Integration into the Education Ministry * 1971: Sports and Recreation Organization * 1977: Dissolution and fusion with the Education Ministry (for the 2nd time) * 1979–present: Independent

Physical Education Organization The Physical Education Organization was an effort by the Government of Iran to promote the development of athletics and sporting activities of Iran. It was dissolved in late 2010 and its responsibilities transferred to the Ministry of Sport and Yo ...

(part of the Government) * 2011: Proposal in Parliament to merge the National Youth Organization with the Physical Education Organization.

Sports categories

* Championship sports: see also:

National Olympic Committee of the Islamic Republic of Iran National Olympic Committee of the Islamic Republic of Iran is a sports governing body situated in Tehran, Iran. It concerns the matters related to the Olympics. The current president of National Olympic Committee of Iran is Mahmoud Khosravivafa, ...

* Sports education: see also:

Education in Iran Education in Iran is centralized and divided into K-12 education plus higher education. Elementary and secondary education is supervised by the Ministry of Education and higher education is under supervision of Ministry of Science, research and Tec ...

* Public sport: see also:

Health in Iran As for many developing countries, health issues in Iran stem from a variety of reasons: namely, water and sanitation, diet and fitness, various addictions, mental fitness, communicable diseases, hygiene and the environment. The Human Rights Me ...

Budget

The annual government's budget for sport was about $80 million in 2010 or about $1 per person.

Traditional sports

Bodybuilding

Bodybuilding Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...

is very popular among the younger generation. Some professional bodybuilders of Iranian descent include Baitollah Abbaspour, Javad Nabavi, Mohamad Farokh, Ali Tabrizi, Hamid Manafi and Zohair Al Karbelaie ("Arnold" of Fallah!)

Wrestling

Wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

has a very long tradition and history in

and often even referred to as its

. There are many styles of folk wrestling, from

Varzesh-e Pahlavani Pahlevani and zourkhaneh rituals is the name inscribed by UNESCO for varzesh-e pahlavāni ( fa, آیین پهلوانی و زورخانه‌ای, "heroic sport") or varzesh-e bāstāni (; , "ancient sport"), a traditional system of athletics a ...

to Zurkhaneh which have similarities with modern

freestyle wrestling Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling originated from Great Britain and the United States. Along with Greco-Roman, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games. American high school and men's college wrestling ...

. Both

freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * ICD Freestyle, a paintball marker * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott La ...

and

Greco-Roman wrestling Greco-Roman (American English), Graeco-Roman (British English), classic wrestling (Euro English) or French wrestling (in Russia until 1948) is a style of wrestling that is practiced worldwide. Greco-Roman wrestling was included in the first mod ...

, particularly freestyle, are popular in Iran. Mazandaran is the main power in the country and wrestling is part of its culture.

Kermanshah Kermanshah ( fa, کرمانشاه, Kermânšâh ), also known as Kermashan (; romanized: Kirmaşan), is the capital of Kermanshah Province, located from Tehran in the western part of Iran. According to the 2016 census, its population is 946,68 ...

Khorasan Khorasan may refer to: * Greater Khorasan, a historical region which lies mostly in modern-day northern/northwestern Afghanistan, northeastern Iran, southern Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan * Khorasan Province, a pre-2004 province of Ira ...

and

Hamedan Hamadan () or Hamedan ( fa, همدان, ''Hamedān'') (Old Persian: Haŋgmetana, Ecbatana) is the capital city of Hamadan Province of Iran. At the 2019 census, its population was 783,300 in 230,775 families. The majority of people living in Ham ...

also produce many talented wrestlers. With a history of great wrestlers, such as

Gholamreza Takhti Gholamreza Takhti ( fa, غلامرضا تختی, August 27, 1930 – January 7, 1968) was an Iranian Olympic Gold-Medalist wrestler and Varzesh-e Bastani (''Persian Traditional Sport'') practitioner.Houchang E. Chehabi, �TAḴTI, Ḡolām-Re ...

(two-time champion at freestyle wrestling World Championships: 1959 and 1961), Iran is considered among the elite nations in this sport.

Polo

It is believed that

Polo Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit a small hard ...

first originated in

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

ages ago. The poet

Firdowsi , image = Statue of Ferdowsi in Tus, Iran 3 (cropped).jpg , image_size = , caption = Statue of Ferdowsi in Tus by Abolhassan Sadighi , birth_date = 940 , birth_place = Tus, Samanid Empire , death_date = 1019 or 1025 (87 years old) , dea ...

described royal polo tournaments in his 9th century epic, the

Shahnameh The ''Shahnameh'' or ''Shahnama'' ( fa, شاهنامه, Šāhnāme, lit=The Book of Kings, ) is a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between c. 977 and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,00 ...

. Polo competitions are the subject of many traditional

paintings Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

in Iran. Despite the emphasis in

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

on learning the

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...

arts, in modern times, especially after the

1979 Iranian revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

, the equestrian sports fell out of favor in Iran, as they were associated with the

aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At t ...

. However, recent signs suggest that it may be witnessing a comeback, with renewed interest in the sport.

Horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

is a very popular sport between

Turkmens Turkmens ( tk, , , , ; historically "the Turkmen"), sometimes referred to as Turkmen Turks ( tk, , ), are a Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia, living mainly in Turkmenistan, northern and northeastern regions of Iran and north-weste ...

of Iran, and there are two great

Gym A gymnasium, also known as a gym, is an indoor location for athletics. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasium". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learning spaces in educational ins ...

nasium of horse racing at Gonbad Kavous and

Bandar Torkaman Bandar Torkaman ( fa, بندرتركمن), formerly known as Bandar Shah ( fa, بَندَرِ شاه), is a city and capital of Torkaman County, Golestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census its population was 45,045, in 9,755 families. Bandar To ...

. Competitions are not international and not broadcast but considerable prizes are given to winners.

Lottery A lottery is a form of gambling that involves the drawing of numbers at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw lotteries, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of ...

only for horse racing (and

) is not prohibited in Islam.

Board games

Chess

The origin of

is a disputed issue, but evidence exists to give credence to the theory that chess originated in India and later it came to Iran.

Popular sports

Atlantis billiard club - near Be'sat sq - Nishapur 09

Association football

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

is the most popular sport in Iran. Iran has been able to qualify for the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

six times (1978, 1998, 2006, 2014, 2018 and 2022), won the

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second oldest cont ...

three times (

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

and

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

), and four times has won gold medal at the

(1974, 1990, 1998 and 2002). Particularly in the past 10 years, with the launch of

Iran's Premier Football League The Persian Gulf Pro League ( fa, لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, ''Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs''), formerly known as the Iran Pro League ( fa, links=no, لیگ برتر ایران, ''Lig-e bartar-e Irân''), is the highest division of profe ...

; considerable progress has been made. Some Iranian players now play in major European leagues, and some Iranian clubs have hired European players or coaches. Iranian clubs ( Esteghlal and Pas) have three times won the

Asian Club Championship The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...

(1970, 1991, 1993); but the last championship of an Iranian team at

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...

dated back to the 1992-1993 season. Like all other sports, adequate football facilities are limited in Iran. Iran's largest football stadium is the

Azadi Stadium The Azadi Stadium ( fa, ورزشگاه آزادی Varzešgâh''-è Âzâdi''), opened as the Aryamehr Stadium ( fa, ورزشگاه آریامهر Varzešgâh-è ''Âryâmehr''), is an all-seater football stadium in Tehran, Iran. The stadium wa ...

, with a

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

of 100,000. Home Stadium of Esteghlal and

Perspolis , native_name_lang = , alternate_name = , image = Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.jpg , image_size = , alt = , caption = Ruins of the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis. , map = , map_type ...

(Most Popular Iranian Clubs) and where that national matches are held.

Basketball

, Iran has a particularly strong

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exam ...

, and a

professional league Professional sports, Professional sports leagues are organized in numerous ways. The two most significant types are one that developed in Europe, characterized by a tiered structure using promotion and relegation in order to determine participati ...

, with competitive players in Asia. The clubs have begun hiring strong foreign players and coaches into their roster. The national team participated in the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

in London, finishing 1-3. They competed in the

in Beijing, thanks to their gold medal in the

2007 FIBA Asia Championship The 2007 FIBA Asia Championship for Men was the qualifying tournament for FIBA Asia at the men's basketball tournament at the 2008 Summer Olympics at Beijing. The tournament was held in Tokushima, Japan from July 28 to August 5, 2007. Particip ...

, their first ever continental crown. The first ever Iranian

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

-player is

Hamed Haddadi Hamed Ehdadi Haddadi ( fa, حامد حدادی, , born May 19, 1985) is an Iranian professional basketball player for Sichuan Blue Whales of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He plays at the center position and is 7'2" (2.18 meters) tall a ...

. Iran have made strides forward to develop their women’s national team program. Women's basketball has seen a lot of improvement.

Weightlifting

Strength sports like

powerlifting Powerlifting is a strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: squat, bench press, and deadlift. As in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, it involves the athlete attempting a maximal weight single-lift effor ...

and

bodybuilding Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...

have always held favor among Iranians and with the recent success of world record-holding super-heavyweight lifter Hossein Reza Zadeh, or

Sydney Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug language, Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport ...

gold medalist, Hossein Tavakoli, the sport has been returned to a rather high status.

Kabbadi

Kabaddi Kabaddi is a contact team sport. Played between two teams of seven players, the objective of the game is for a single player on offence, referred to as a "raider", to run into the opposing team's half of the court, touch out as many of their ...

also popular in Iran. The

Iran national kabaddi team The Iran national kabaddi team represents the Islamic Republic of Iran in international kabaddi. Tournament records :''*Red border indicates that the tournament was hosted on home soil. Gold, silver, bronze backgrounds indicates 1st, 2nd and 3r ...

represents the Iran in The International Kabbadi. Iran become Champions of

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, and two times runner-ups in (2010,2014) and Also in world cup runner-ups in (2004,2007,

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

) Champions of

Asian beach Games The Asian Beach Games, also known as ABG, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games have been organized by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). The Games are described as the second or third largest A ...

in 2012 and 2014. Iran hosted the circle asia cup in 2011.

Skiing

Iran is home to numerous mountainous regions, many of which are suitable for

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...

, and snowboarding and are gaining increasing popularity among foreign visitors. Skiing began in Iran in 1938 through the efforts of two German railway engineers. Today, 13 ski resorts operate in Iran, the most famous being

Tochal Tochal ( fa, توچال ), is a mountain and ski resort located on the Alborz mountain range, adjacent to the metropolitan area of Tehran in northern Iran. It includes a ridge. Its highest peak, also called ''Tochal'', is at an elevation of . A ...

Dizin Dizin ( fa, دیزین) is the largest Iranian ski resort. It is located in the Alborz mountain range, about 70km North from Tehran. It was established during the 1960s under the reign of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Dizin is the first ski and winter ...

, and

Shemshak Shemshak darbandsar ( fa, شمشک دربندسر) is a city in Rudbar-e Qasran District, Shemiranat County, Tehran Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 2,383, in 702 families. A suburb of Tehran, the city of Shemshak darbands ...

. All are within one to three hours traveling time of

. Potentially suitable terrain can also be found in Lorestan, Mazandaran, and other provinces. The

resort is the world's fifth-highest ski resort at over 3,730 m at its highest ''Seventh station''. The resort was completed in 1976 shortly before the overthrow of the Shah. It is only 15 minutes away from Tehran's northern districts, and operates seven months a year. Here, one must first ride the long gondola lift which covers a huge vertical. The Seventh station has three slopes. The resort's longest slope is the south side U shaped slope which goes from the Seventh station to Fifth station. The other two slopes are located on the north side of the Seventh station. Here, there are two parallel chair ski lifts that go up to 3,900 m near Tochal's peak (at 4,000 m), rising higher than the gondola Seventh station stations. This altitude is said to be higher than any of the European resorts. From the Tochal peak, there are views of the

Alborz The Alborz ( fa, البرز) range, also spelled as Alburz, Elburz or Elborz, is a mountain range in northern Iran that stretches from the border of Azerbaijan along the western and entire southern coast of the Caspian Sea and finally runs nort ...

range, including the high

Mount Damavand Mount Damavand ( fa, دماوند ) is a dormant stratovolcano, the highest peak in Iran and Western Asia and the highest volcano in Asia and the 2nd highest volcano in the Eastern Hemisphere (after Mount Kilimanjaro), at an elevation of ...

, a dormant volcano. At the bottom of the lifts in a valley behind the Tochal peak is Tochal hotel, located at 3,500 m altitude. From there a T lift takes skiers up the 3,800 metres of ''Shahneshin'' peak, where the third slope of Tochal is located.

Hiking and climbing sports

Due to the wealth of mountains, climbing sports are widely popular in Iran. Both the

Zagros The Zagros Mountains ( ar, جبال زاغروس, translit=Jibal Zaghrus; fa, کوه‌های زاگرس, Kuh hā-ye Zāgros; ku, چیاکانی زاگرۆس, translit=Çiyakani Zagros; Turkish: ''Zagros Dağları''; Luri: ''Kuh hā-ye Zāgro ...

and

ranges provide plenty of opportunities for the novice and advanced alike.

Hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

and

trekking Backpacking is the outdoor recreation of carrying gear on one's back, while hiking for more than a day. It is often an extended journey, and may involve camping outdoors. In North America tenting is common, where simple shelters and mountain h ...

enthusiasts find opportunities in locations like

Alamut Alamut ( fa, الموت) is a region in Iran including western and eastern parts in the western edge of the Alborz (Elburz) range, between the dry and barren plain of Qazvin in the south and the densely forested slopes of the Mazandaran provinc ...

and

Tangeh Savashi Tang-e Vashi (Persian: تنگ واشی) is a gorge and mountain pass in the Alborz range of Iran (Persia). It is a popular tourist attraction in Tehran Province. Located 15 kilometres west of Firouzkouh, 9 kilometres north of the Firouzkouh-D ...

to enjoy the rustic surroundings, as well as a relatively challenging climb.

Martial arts

Martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

have gained popularity in Iran in the past 20 years.

Kyokushin is a style of karate originating in Japan. It is a style of stand-up fighting and is rooted in a philosophy of self-improvement, discipline, and hard training. Kyokushin Kaikan is the martial arts organization founded in 1964 by Korean-Ja ...

shotokan is a style of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi (1868–1957) and his son Gigo (Yoshitaka) Funakoshi (1906–1945). Gichin Funakoshi was born in Okinawa and is widely credited with popularizing "karate do" throu ...

, wushu, judo, and

are the most popular. Iran competed in the

International Judo Federation The International Judo Federation (IJF) was founded in July 1951. The IJF was originally composed of judo federations from Europe and Argentina. Countries from four continents were affiliated over the next ten years. Today the IJF has 200 National ...

(IJF) until 2019, when it was barred after 2018 world champion Iranian judoka

Saeid Mollaei Saeid Mollaei ( fa, سعید ملایی; mn, Саид Моллай; az, Səid Mollayi) was born on January 5, 1992, in Tehran to ethnic Azerbaijani parents originally from Khoy. In 2001, at the age of 10, he entered the Persian Gulf Judo Scho ...

said he was ordered to throw a match to avoid facing an Israeli judoka. The incident resulted in Mollaei's flight to Germany, after Iran persecuted him and his family in retaliation for the international humiliation.

Volleyball

, Iran has a national team, and a

. The

Iran national volleyball team The Iran Men's National Volleyball Team is the official national men's volleyball team of Iran. It is governed by the Islamic Republic of Iran Volleyball Federation (I.R.I.V.F.) and takes part in internation ...

is among the strongest teams in the world, and the Iranian Youth and Junior (Under-19 and Under-21) national teams are among the top three strongest teams in the world, winning medals in

Boys' U19 Volleyball World Championship The FIVB Volleyball Boys' U19 World Championship, called the FIVB Volleyball Boys' Youth World Championship between 2007 and 2011, is the world championship of volleyball for male players under the age of 19 organized by ''Fédération Internatio ...

and Men's U21 Volleyball World Championship in recent years. In the 2007 Men's U21 Volleyball World Championship, the Iranians were successful at earning a bronze medal. Also, in late August 2007, the Iran national under-19 volleyball team surprised many by winning the gold medal in the Volleyball World Championship in Mexico, after beating France and China in the semi-finals and finals respectively and marking the first such international gold medal for an Iranian team sport. Iran featured a men's national team in

beach volleyball Beach volleyball is a team sport played by two teams of two or more players on a sand court divided by a net. Similar to indoor volleyball, the objective of the game is to send the ball over the net and to ground it on the opponent's side of the ...

that competed at the

2018–2020 AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup The 2018–2020 AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup was a beach volleyball double-gender event for teams representing Asian countries. The winners of the event qualified for the Volleyball at the 2020 Summer Olympics, 2020 Summer Olympics. Men Pr ...

Futsal

Futsal Futsal is a football-based game played on a hardcourt, hard court smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football and Indoor soccer, indoor football. Futsal is played between two teams of five players ...

is practiced both at the amateur and professional levels. As of January 2019, Iran's men's national futsal team ranks 6th in world rankings after

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, and

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Iran has won the

AFC Futsal Championship The AFC Futsal Asian Cup, previously the AFC Futsal Championship, is the premier international futsal competition for the Asian Football Confederation national teams. It was first held in 1999 and was played annually until 2008; since then it has ...

nine times out of ten and reached the

FIFA Futsal World Cup The FIFA Futsal World Cup is an international futsal competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the member associations of FIFA, the sport's global governing body. Since the first edition that took place in 1989 in the Netherlan ...

finals five times. Iran also has a nationwide Futsal Super League.

Tennis

The tennis entertainer

Mansour Bahrami Mansour Bahrami ( fa, منصور بهرامی; born 26 April 1956) is a former professional tennis player. He is Iranian with dual French nationality since 1989. While only moderately successful on the ATP Tour, his showmanship has made him a lo ...

is Iranian, as well as his tennis partner Ramin Raziyani.

Other sports

Another popular sport in Iran is

rallying Rally is a wide-ranging form of motorsport with various competitive motoring elements such as speed tests (often called ''rally racing),'' navigation tests, or the ability to reach waypoints or a destination at a prescribed time or average speed. ...

. Female drivers have been allowed to participate in national rally tournaments, including Iran's successful female driver

Laleh Seddigh Laleh Seddigh ( fa, لاله صدیق; born 1977 in Tehran) is an Iranian racing driver. She has been described as 'one of the most celebrated sportswomen in Iran'. Biography Early life Seddigh started driving at the age of 13, taught by her fath ...

Attendance at sporting events

Since the

, though never explicitly declared in the law,

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or Adolescence, adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female hum ...

were barred from attending men's

, swimming and wrestling competitions. In April 2006, President

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ( fa, محمود احمدی‌نژاد, Mahmūd Ahmadīnežād ), born Mahmoud Sabbaghian ( fa, محمود صباغیان, Mahmoud Sabbāghyān, 28 October 1956),

speculated about allowing women back into the stadiums. It is uncertain if this measure would gain approval, since many hard-line clerics have voiced their opposition.Frances Harrison
BBC: Iran clergy angry over women fans
26 April 2006 However, women are generally free to attend indoor sports events.

References

External links

Ministry of Sport and Youth Of Iran official website
{{Sport in Asia

History

2012 Olympics

Sportswomen

Iran sport organization

Sports categories

Budget

Traditional sports

Bodybuilding

Wrestling

Polo

Board games

Chess

Popular sports

Association football

Basketball

Weightlifting

Kabbadi

Skiing

Hiking and climbing sports

Martial arts

Volleyball

Futsal

Tennis

Other sports

Attendance at sporting events

See also

References

External links