Russians as a population are very keen in sports and also have excelled in a variety of sporting activities. The nation has become a regular feature at the Olympics games procuring higher rankings in a very wide number of games. Though as USSR the nation was at its peak within the Olympics, even after the division Russia has been able to maintain its position that the Soviets had created.
The Russians have been in the sports news because of their participation in many games such as football, basketball, tennis, ice hockey, weightlifting, boxing, gymnastics, skiing, figure skating and volleyball along with a host of other sports.
Basketball developed in the country in the Soviet era. The Russian team proceeded to win several Olympic medals because of their performance in this game. They are also the present winners in the Eurobasket World Championships having defeated Spain in the final game. They have already been champions of a number of other European championships such as the Euroleague and also the ULEB Cup. They likewise have a player within the Utah Jazz that is a NBA team.
Ice hockey is yet another successful sport of the Russians. They have about 30 players that are presently part of the NHL. The players today continue to be maintaining the tradition built in the Soviet era.
The Russians have carried forth their winning streak by being in news reports because of their success in the field of ice skating. Having been a part of the winner team in the Winter Olympics, they have excelled in ice dancing and pair skating.
Football was probably the most successful sports during the Soviet era. With the division of USSR came the division of the national football teams and clubs. The most important amongst those was the crumbling of the Russian Premier League as it lost a lot of its players. However, the game recovered its lost glory and presently has six Premier League teams apart from it now strong national team.
Ever since the end of the Soviet regime, Russia is continuing to grow as a powerhouse in the sport of tennis. A great number of the most successful women tennis players hail from this country together with some formidable men tennis players too. These strong Russians have been around in the news because of their success inside the Olympics, Wimbledon, Fed Cup, Davis Cup and several such premier matches.
Chess is another sport which Russians have dominated for a long time having produced several world champions and Grand Masters. Another of Russias popular sports would be the Rugby League. The Russians rank 13th amongst all the teams based on the Rugby League International Federation sports news. Rugby Union is another sport that is fast gaining popularity among the Russian masses, with the country ranking 17th based on the International Rugby Board.
One of many sports that Russia has won several accolades for is Rhythmic Gymnastics. Together with being probably the most popular sports forms in the nation, it has highlighted Russia in the world of sports news for having the worlds best rhythmic gymnasts.