A shin guard or shin pad is a piece of

equipment Equipment most commonly refers to a set of tool A tool is an Physical object, object that can extend an individual's ability to modify features of the surrounding environment or help them accomplish a particular task. Although many Tool use by ...

worn on the front of an athlete's shin to protect it from injury. These are commonly used in

sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

s including

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

field hockey Field hockey (or simply referred to as hockey in some countries where ice hockey is not popular) is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with 11 players in total, made up of 10 field players and a goalk ...

lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

and mountain bike trials. They are also used in

combat sport A combat sport, or fighting sport, is a contact sport that usually involves one-on-one combat. In many combat sports, a contestant wins by scoring more points than the opponent, submitting the opponent with a hold, disabling the opponent (''knock ...

s and

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

competitions including

kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

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

and

professional wrestling Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to Real life, real- ...

. This is due to either being required by the rules/laws of the sport or worn voluntarily by the participants for protective measures.

Materials

Modern day shin guards are made of many differing synthetic materials, including, but not limited to: *

Fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass c ...

- Stiff, sturdy, and light weight. * Foam rubber - Very light weight, but not as sturdy and solid as fibreglass. *

Polyurethane Polyurethane (; often abbreviated PUR and PU) is a class of polymers composed of organic chemistry, organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethane term ...

- Heavy and sturdy, which offers almost complete protection from most impacts. *

Plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...

- Less protective than any of the other synthetic shin guards. *

Metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

- Highly protective, but very heavy and uncomfortable.

History

The shin guard was inspired by the concept of a

greave A greave (from the Old French ''greve'' "shin, shin armor") or jambeau is a piece of armor that protects the human leg, leg. Description The primary purpose of greaves is to protect the tibia from attack. The tibia, or shinbone, is very close to ...

. A greave is a piece of

armour Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...

used to protect the shin. It is a Middle English term, derived from an Old French word, greve (pronounced gri’v), meaning shin or shin armour. The

etymology Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...

of this word not only describes the use and purpose of shin guards, but also contributes to dating the technology. This technology dates back to

ancient times Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian language, ...

as early as

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

and Roman Republics. Back then, shin guards were viewed as purely protective measures for

warrior A warrior is a guardian specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal society, tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracy, social class, class, or caste. History ...

s in

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

and were made of bronze or other hard, sturdy materials. The earliest known physical proof of the technology appeared when

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

Sir William Temple discovered a pair of bronze greaves with a

Gorgon The Gorgons ( ; ), in Greek mythology, are three monstrous sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa, said to be the daughters of Phorcys and Ceto. They lived near their sisters the Graeae, and were able to turn anyone who looked at them to sto ...

's head design in the relief on each knee capsule. It was estimated that the greaves were made in

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

, a region in Southern Italy, around 550/500 B.C. This area fell under the Roman Empire boundaries and is known as today as the Salento Peninsula; it is more commonly known as the heel of

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. This discovery is not considered the oldest known application of shin guards, but all other references lie in written or pictorial medians. The oldest known reference to shin guards was a written verse in the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

1 Samuel The Book of Samuel () is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings) that constitute a theological ...

17:6 describes

Goliath Goliath ( ) was a Philistines, Philistine giant in the Book of Samuel. Descriptions of Goliath's giant, immense stature vary among biblical sources, with texts describing him as either or tall. According to the text, Goliath issued a challen ...

, a Philistine champion from Gath, who wore a bronze helmet, coat of mail, and bronze leggings. The Book of Samuel is commonly accepted to be written by

Prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divinity, divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings ...

s Samuel, Nathan, and Gad between 960 and 700 B.C. Later, more concrete, examples of the shin guard concept resurfaced in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

. All studies and evidence show greaves were improved to cover the entire lower leg, front and back, from the feet to the knees, and were mostly made of cloth, leather, or iron. As time progressed into the 19th century a major shift in the application of shin guards occurred. The overall purpose of protecting the shin was maintained, but instead of being used for fighting, it became applied to

s. This paradigm shift dominates today's market use of shin guards as they are used mostly in sports. Other applications do exist though for protecting the lower leg in other physical activities such as

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

, and

, but all these activities can also be considered for sport instead of being necessary in battle.

Cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

was the first sport to adopt the use of shin guards. The introduction of this equipment was not motivated by the need for protection, but rather a strategic device to gain an advantage for the batsman. The batsman who wore the leg pads was able to cover the

stumps In cricket, the stumps are the three vertical posts that support the bails and form the wicket. '' Stumping'' or ''being stumped'' is a method of dismissing a batsman. The umpire ''calling stumps'' means the play is over for the day. Part of ...

with his protected legs and prevent the ball from hitting the stumps, instead the ball bowled into the batsman. Thus, the protection provided by the leg pads provided the batsman confidence to play without suffering pain or injury. This resulted in an offensive advantage; instead of hitting the

wicket In the sport of cricket, the term wicket has several meanings: * It is either of the two sets of three Stump (cricket), stumps and two Bail (cricket), bails at each end of the Cricket pitch, pitch. The Fielding (cricket), fielding team's playe ...

s to get the batsman out, the bowler hits the batsman giving him another chance to hit the

ball A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but sometimes ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used for s ...

. This was addressed in 1809 with a rule change called

leg before wicket Leg before wicket (lbw) is one of the ways in which a Batting (cricket), batter can be dismissal (cricket), dismissed in the sport of cricket. Following an Appeal (cricket), appeal by the Fielding (cricket), fielding side, the umpire (cricket), ...

, where the umpire was allowed to deduce whether the ball would have hit the stumps if the batter was not hit first. Leg pads became more popular as protective measures against the impact from the ball and are worn by the

batsman In cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the cricket ball, ball with a cricket bat, bat to score runs (cricket), runs and prevent the dismissal (cricket), loss of one's wicket. Any player who is currently batting is, since Septembe ...

, the

wicket-keeper In cricket, the wicket-keeper is the Cricket player, player on the fielding (cricket), fielding side who stands behind the wicket, ready to stop Delivery (cricket), deliveries that pass the batsman, and take a Caught, catch, Stumped, stump the ...

, and the fielders that are fielding in close to the batsman. Association football was the next major sport to see the introduction of the shin guard. Sam Weller Widdowson is credited for bringing shin guards to the sport in 1874. He played cricket for

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

and football for

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...

, and he got the idea to protect himself based on his cricket experiences. Widdowson cut down a pair of cricket shin pads and strapped them to the outside of his

stocking Stockings (also known as hose, especially in a historical context) are close-fitting, variously elastic garments covering the leg from the foot up to the knee or possibly part or all of the thigh. Stockings vary in color, design, and transpar ...

s using straps of leather. Other players ridiculed him initially, but shin guards eventually caught on as players saw the practical use of protecting their shins. Today, there are a two basic types of shin guards used in association football: slip-in shin guards and ankle shin guards.Soccer Shin GuardsSoccer
, 2013-10-14. Retrieved: 2013-10-14. In baseball, one of the innovators of the modern shin guard, New York Giants catcher Roger Bresnahan, began wearing shin guards in 1907.Appel, Marty. ''A Second Look at Hall of Famer Roger Bresnahan. Memories and Dreams'' (Vol. 33, No. 6; Winter 2011

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

p. 39).

National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United St ...

official magazine. "A pair of his shin guards is ... part of the Hall of Fame's collection ...." Made of leather, the guards were fastened with straps and hooks. Batters began wearing shin guards at the plate in the late 1980s and early 1990s. After the application of shin guards in association football, they quickly spread to other sports and are now considered necessary for most contact sports.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shin Guard Protective gear Sportswear American football equipment Association football equipment Baseball equipment Gaelic football equipment Hurling equipment Ice hockey equipment Rugby league equipment Rugby union equipment

Materials

History

See also

References

External links