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Pitch (sports field)

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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 Shape Field
length		 Total
length		 Width Total
width 		Depth/height Surface
Basque pelota (Jai-Alai) Rectangular cuboid 54.00 m - 10.00 m - 10.00 m
Boccia Rectangular 12.50 m - 6.00 m - - polished concrete, wooden, natural or synthetic rubber.
Dodgeball (WDA) Rectangular 17.00 m - 8.00 m - -
Sepak takraw Rectangular 44 feet (13 m) - 20 feet (6.1 m) -
Aquatics
Swimming (Olympic) Rectangular cuboid 50.00 m - 25.00 m - 2-3 m
Swimming (short course) Rectangular cuboid 25.00 m - 20.00 m - 2-2.5m
Waterpolo Rectangular cuboid 25.00 m - 20.00 m - 1.80 m
Basketball
Basketball (FIBA) Rectangular 28.00 m - 15.00 m -
Basketball (NBA) Rectangular 94 feet (29 m) - 50 feet (15 m) -
Basketball (3x3) Rectangular 11.00 m - 15.00 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
Baseball5 Square 21.00 m - 21.00 m - -
Softball (WBSC)[4] Circle quadrant 220–250 feet (67–76 m) - 220–250 feet (67–76 m) - -
Cricket Oval 130–180 yards (120–160 m) - 130–180 yards (120–160 m) - -
Indoor cricket Rectangular 30.00 m - 12.00 m - -
Pesapallo Irregular hexagon 315 feet (96 m) - 138 feet (42 m) - -
Combat sports
Amateur wrestling Circle 9.00 m - 9.00 m - -
Fencing Rectangular 14.00 m 17–18 m 1.50 m - -
Kickboxing (ring) Rectangular cuboid 5.20 m - 5.20 m - 1.32 m 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 8.00 m - 8.00 m - -
Cycling
Cycle ball (international) Rectangular 14.00 m - 11.00 m - - wood, parquet, chipboard, triplex, synthetic
Football codes
Association football (international) Rectangular 110–120 yards (100–110 m) - 70–80 yards (64–73 m) - grass, artificial
Beach soccer Rectangular 35–37 m - 26–28 m - sand
Futsal (international) Rectangular 38-42 m - 20-25 m - wood, artificial
American football 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 Rectangular 110 yards (100 m) 150 yards (140 m) 65 yards (59 m) - grass, artificial
Rugby union Rectangular 94-100 m 106-144 m 68-70 m - grass, sand, clay, snow, artificial
Rugby league Rectangular 100.00 m 112-122 m 68.00 m - grass
Australian rules football (professional) Oval 135-185 m - 110-155 m - grass
Gaelic football Rectangular 130–145 m - 80–90 m - grass
Handball
Handball Rectangular 40.00 m - 20.00 m -
Beach handball Rectangular 27.00 m - 12.00 m - sand
Hockey
Bandy Rectangular 100-110 m - 60-65 m - ice
Field hockey Rectangular 100 yards (91 m) - 60 yards (55 m) -
Indoor hockey Rectangular 36-44 m - 18-22 m -
Ice hockey (IIHF) Rounded rectangular 61.00 m - 30.00 m - ice
Ice hockey (NHL) Rounded rectangular 200 feet (61 m) - 85 feet (26 m) - ice
Underwater hockey Rectangular cuboid 21-25 m - 12-15 m - 2-3.65 m
Ice speed skating
Short track speed skating Stadium[7] 60.00 m - 30.00 m - - ice
Long track speed skating Stadium 178.00 m - 66.00 m - - ice
Kabbaddi
Kabaddi (standard)[8] Rectangular 13.00 m - 10.00 m - -
Kabaddi (circle-style)[9] Circle 44.00 m - 44.00 m - -
Kho kho
Kho kho Rectangular 27.00 m 30.00 m 16.00 m 19.00 m -
Kho kho (Ultimate Kho Kho)[10] Rectangular 22.00 m 26.00 m 16.00 m 20.00 m -
Lacrosse
Field lacrosse (men) Rectangular 110.00 m - 60.00 m -
Women lacrosse Rectangular 100.00 m - 50-60 m -
Box lacrosse Rounded rectangular 55-61 m - 24-28 m - artificial turf, concrete
Lacrosse sixes Rectangular 70 m - 36.00 m -
Polo
Polo 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) Rectangular 44 feet (13 m) 17.40 m 17 feet (5.2 m) 8.18 m
Badminton (doubles) Rectangular 44 feet (13 m) 17.40 m 20 feet (6.1 m) 9.10 m
Padel Rectangular cuboid 20.00 m - 10.00 m - 4.00 m
Squash (singles) Rectangular cuboid 9.75 m - 6.40 m - 4.57 m
Squash (doubles) Rectangular cuboid 9.75 m - 8.42 m - 4.57 m
Tennis (singles) Rectangular 78 feet (24 m) 37.00 m 27 feet (8.2 m) 18.00 m clay, grass, hard
Tennis (doubles) Rectangular 78 feet (24 m) 37.00 m 36 feet (11 m) 18.00 m clay, grass, hard
Tchoukball
Tchoukball Rectangular 27.00 m - 17.00 m -
Beach tchoukball Rectangular 21-23 m - 11-13 m - sand
Track and field
Track and field (indoor) Stadium 90.03 m - 45.78 m - -
Track and field (outdoor) Stadium 176.91 m - 92.52 m - -
Ultimate
Ultimate Rectangular 64.00 m 100.00 m 37.00 m - -
Beach ultimate Rectangular 49 yards (45 m) 82 yards (75 m) 27 yards (25 m) - - sand
Volleyball
Volleyball Rectangular 18.00 m 24-31 m 9.00 m 15-19 m wooden, synthetic
Beach volleyball Rectangular 16.00 m 20-28m 8.00 m 18-20 m sand
Snow volleyball Rectangular 16.00 m 22.00 m 8.00 m 14.00 m 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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