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Pitch (sports field)

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(Redirected from Playing field)
Comparison of the playing area for various sports to scale
Size comparison of various football codes playing fields

A pitch or a sports ground is an outdoor playing area for various sports. The term pitch is most commonly used in British English, while the comparable term in Australian, American and Canadian English is playing field or sports field.

For most sports the official term is field of play, although this is not regularly used by those outside refereeing/umpiring circles.[citation needed] The field of play generally includes out-of-bounds areas that a player is likely to enter while playing a match, such as the area beyond the touchlines in association football and rugby or the sidelines in American and Canadian football, or the "foul territory" in baseball.

The surface of a pitch is most commonly composed of sod (grass), but may also be artificial turf, sand, clay, gravel, concrete, or other materials. A playing field on ice may be referred to as a rink, for example an ice hockey rink, although rink may also refer to the entire building or, in the sport of curling, to either the building or a particular team.

In the sport of cricket, the cricket pitch refers not to the entire field of play, but to the section of the field on which batting and bowling take place in the centre of the field. The pitch is prepared differently from the rest of the field, to provide a harder surface for bowling.

A pitch is often a regulation space, as in an association football pitch.

The term level playing field is also used metaphorically to mean fairness in non-sporting human activities such as business where there are notional winners and losers.[1]

Fields of play in various sports

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Pitches

Field sizes

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Sport Regulated by Shape Field
length		 Total
length		 Width Total
width 		Depth/height Surface Diagram
Basque pelota (Jai-Alai) FIPV Rectangular cuboid 54 meters - 10 meters - 10 meters
Bowling IBF Rectangular 754.1875 inches (19.15636 m) 41–42 inches (1.0–1.1 m) wood or synthetic material
Dodgeball WDA Rectangular 17 meters - 8 meters - -
Sepak takraw ISTAF Rectangular 44 feet (13 m) - 20 feet (6.1 m) -
Aquatics
Swimming (Olympic) World Aquatics Rectangular cuboid 50 meters - 25 meters - 2-3 meters
Swimming (short course) Rectangular cuboid 25 meters - 20 meters - 2-2.5 meters
Waterpolo Rectangular cuboid 25 meters - 20 meters - 1.8 meters
Basketball
Basketball FIBA Rectangular 28 meters - 15 meters -
Basketball (3x3) Rectangular 11 meters - 15 meters -
Basketball NBA Rectangular 94 feet (29 m) - 50 feet (15 m) -
Bat and ball sports
Baseball MLB Diamond 250–400 feet (76–122 m)[2] - 446.9–492.9 feet (136.2–150.2 m)[3] - grass
Baseball WBSC Diamond - -
Baseball5 Square 21 meters - 21 meters -
Softball[4] Circle quadrant 220–250 feet (67–76 m) - 220–250 feet (67–76 m) -
Cricket ICC Oval 130–180 yards (120–160 m) - 130–180 yards (120–160 m) - -
Indoor cricket WICF Rectangular 30 meters - 12 meters - -
Pesapallo Irregular hexagon 315 feet (96 m) - 138 feet (42 m) - -
Boules
Boccia BISFed Rectangular 12.5 meters - 6 meters - - polished concrete, wooden, natural or synthetic rubber.
Bocce volo WPBF Rectangular 27.5 meters - 2.5-4 meters -
Petanque Rectangular 15 meters - 4 meters -
Raffa Rectangular 6.5 meters - 4-4.5 meters - natural ground or synthetic material
Combat sports
Amateur wrestling UWW Circle 9 meters - 9 meters - -
Fencing FIE Rectangular 14 meters 17–18 meters 1.5 meters - -
Kickboxing (ring) WAKO Rectangular cuboid 5.2 meters - 5.2 meters - 1.32 meters felt, rubber
Mixed Martial Arts UFC[5] Octagon 30 feet (9.1 m) - 30 feet (9.1 m) - 69 inches (1.8 m)
Taekwondo WT Octagon 8 meters - 8 meters - -
Cycling
Cycle ball (international) UCI Rectangular 14 meters - 11 meters - - wood, parquet, chipboard, triplex, synthetic
Football codes
Association football (international) FIFA Rectangular 110–120 yards (100–110 m) - 70–80 yards (64–73 m) - grass, artificial
Beach soccer Rectangular 35–37 meters - 26–28 meters - sand
Futsal (international) Rectangular 38-42 meters - 20-25 meters - wood, artificial
American football IFAF Rectangular 100 yards (91 m) 120 yards (110 m) 160 feet (49 m) - grass, artificial
Flag football[6] (standard) Rectangular 50 yards (46 m) 70 yards (64 m) 25 yards (23 m) - - solid, sand
Indoor American football Rounded rectangular 50 yards (46 m) 66 yards (60 m) 28 yards (26 m) - artificial
Canadian football Football Canada Rectangular 110 yards (100 m) 150 yards (140 m) 65 yards (59 m) - grass, artificial
Rugby union World Rugby Rectangular 94-100 meters 106-144 meters 68-70 meters - grass, sand, clay, snow, artificial
Rugby league IRL Rectangular 100 meters 112-122 meters 68 meters - grass
Australian rules football (professional) AFL Commission Oval 135-185 meters - 110-155 meters - grass
Gaelic football GAA Rectangular 130–145 meters - 80–90 meters - grass
Handball
Handball IHF Rectangular 40 meters - 20 meters -
Beach handball Rectangular 27 meters - 12 meters - sand
Hockey
Bandy FIB Rectangular 100-110 meters - 60-65 meters - ice
Field hockey FIH Rectangular 100 yards (91 m) - 60 yards (55 m) -
Indoor hockey Rectangular 36-44 meters - 18-22 meters -
Ice hockey IIHF Rounded rectangular 61 meters - 30 meters - ice
Ice hockey NHL Rounded rectangular 200 feet (61 m) - 85 feet (26 m) - ice
Inline hockey World Skate Rounded rectangular 131–197 feet (40–60 m) - 66–98 feet (20–30 m) - sport tile, wood, asphalt or cement
Underwater hockey CMAS Rectangular cuboid 21-25 meters - 12-15 meters - 2-3.65 meters
Ice speed skating
Short track speed skating ISU Stadium[7] 60 meters - 30 meters - - ice
Long track speed skating Stadium 178 meters - 66 meters - - ice
Kabbaddi
Kabaddi (standard)[8] Rectangular 13 meters - 10 meters - -
Kabaddi (circle-style)[9] Circle 44 meters - 44 meters - -
Kho kho
Kho kho Rectangular 27 meters 30 meters 16 meters 19 meters -
Kho kho (Ultimate Kho Kho)[10] Rectangular 22 meters 26 meters 16 meters 20 meters -
Lacrosse
Field lacrosse (men) World Lacrosse Rectangular 110 meters - 60 meters -
Women lacrosse Rectangular 100 meters - 50-60 meters -
Box lacrosse Rounded rectangular 55-61 meters - 24-28 meters - artificial turf, concrete
Lacrosse sixes Rectangular 70 meters - 36 meters -
Polo
Polo FIP Rectangular 250–300 yards (230–270 m) - 160–200 yards (150–180 m) - grass
Snow polo Rectangular 170 yards (160 m) - 80 yards (73 m) - snow
Racquet sports
Badminton (singles) BWF Rectangular 44 feet (13 m) 17.4 meters 17 feet (5.2 m) 8.18 meters
Badminton (doubles) Rectangular 44 feet (13 m) 17.4 meters 20 feet (6.1 m) 9.1 meters
Padel FIP Rectangular cuboid 20 meters - 10 meters - 4 meters
Squash (singles) WSF Rectangular cuboid 9.75 meters - 6.40 meters - 4.57 meters
Squash (doubles) Rectangular cuboid 9.75 meters - 8.42 meters - 4.57 meters
Tennis (singles) ITF Rectangular 78 feet (24 m) 37 meters 27 feet (8.2 m) 18 meters clay, grass, hard
Tennis (doubles) Rectangular 78 feet (24 m) 37 meters 36 feet (11 m) 18 meters clay, grass, hard
Tchoukball
Tchoukball FITB Rectangular 27 meters - 17 meters -
Beach tchoukball Rectangular 21-23 meters - 11-13 m - sand
Track and field
Track and field (indoor) World Athletics Stadium 90.03 meters - 45.78 meters - -
Track and field (outdoor) Stadium 176.91 meters - 92.52 meters - -
Ultimate
Ultimate WFDF Rectangular 64 meters 100 meters 37 meters - -
Beach ultimate Rectangular 49 yards (45 m) 82 yards (75 m) 27 yards (25 m) - - sand
Volleyball
Volleyball FIVB Rectangular 18 meters 24-31 m 9 meters 15-19 meters wooden, synthetic
Beach volleyball Rectangular 16 meters 20-28m 8 meters 18-20 meters sand
Snow volleyball Rectangular 16 meters 22 meters 8 meters 14 meters snow

Game court

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Game court is one of the names for a multi-sport athletic space, typically constructed outdoors, where such games as basketball, volleyball, paddle tennis and other racquet sports, and up to a dozen more games and activities can be played. They are usually smaller than a regulation tennis (120' x 60')or basketball (84'x50')court, although there is no set dimensions or size for a game court. The game-court concept was popularized by Sport Court in the 1970s, and some generic references are made to game courts as 'sport courts', although that is a trademark of Connor Sport Court International, LLC. Game courts are often found in residential backyards, giving families and children opportunities for healthy recreation close to home.

Game courts are usually constructed using a rectangular sub-base made from concrete or asphalt, then covered with an open-grid modular polypropylene (or similar) sports surface to improve safety. Most feature athletic equipment such as basketball goals, net systems for racquet sports, volleyball and badminton, lights for nighttime play, fencing or ball containment netting, hockey/soccer goals, lines or markings for various sports, and practice or training components can also be incorporated into the design.

Surface

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The surface of a game court—as opposed to simply playing on concrete or asphalt—is designed for safe play and to reduce injury. Many people have started to use suspended athletic courts to cover old athletic courts like tennis courts and basketball courts. The surface should provide appropriate traction for various types of sports and activities, as well as shock or force reduction to minimize overuse and stress injuries.

Game courts are typically custom-designed to the interests of the family or organization, and are versatile in enabling a wide variety of sports to be played in a relatively small space. Some activities played on a game court are enjoyable modifications of other sports (such as short-court tennis) that allow for similar skills to be developed as the 'regulation' game, but on a reduced-scale court size. A typical game court of 50 by 30 feet (15.2 m × 9.1 m) might include a basketball key and 3-point line arranged around a hoop, overlaid by short-court tennis or pickleball lines (which can also be used for volleyball or badminton) along the longer dimension.

Ball containment

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Game courts for private use will frequently be built with a high fence surrounding the surface to allow for containment of the ball used in play, and, if required, to prevent people from entering. Any of several materials have been used, including chain-link fencing, welded wire mesh fence, and fabric mesh or netting.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Kapstein, Ethan B (16 Dec 2010). Economic Justice in an Unfair World: Toward a Level Playing Field. Princeton University Press.
  2. ^ "OFFICIAL BASEBALL RULES - 2023 Edition" (PDF).
  3. ^ http://web.mit.edu/~xsdg/Public/papers/himcm-2003.pdf "The width is the distance between foul poles... the Twins’ field width (473.9 ft) and the Braves’ field width (470.2 ft) is not significant. However, the difference between the Rockies’ and Yankees’ field widths (492.9 ft and 446.9 ft, respectively) is very significant."
  4. ^ "Official rules of Softball - Fast pitch" (PDF).
  5. ^ "The Octagon | UFC". www.ufc.com. 2024-05-08. Retrieved 2024-11-21.
  6. ^ "International Flag Football - Rules 2023" (PDF).
  7. ^ Weisstein, Eric W. "Stadium". mathworld.wolfram.com. Retrieved 2024-11-21.
  8. ^ "Kabaddi: Origin, rules and the Pro Kabaddi League". Khel Now. Retrieved 2021-09-27. The dimensions of the playing area vary for men and women. It is 33ft x 43ft for the former
  9. ^ "Standard style and circle style - the two variants of Kabaddi". SportsAdda. 28 November 2019. Retrieved 2021-10-07. In the circle style format, the field is a circle with a radius of 22 meters [i.e. diameter of 44 meters] which is divided into two equal halves by a mid-line.
  10. ^ "rules-season1.pdf". Google Docs. Retrieved 2022-08-14.
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