"It was the winter of 1891-1892. Inside a gymnasium at Springfield College (then known as the International YMCA Training School), located in Springfield, Mass., was a group of restless college students. The young men had to be there; they were required to participate in indoor activities to burn off the energy that had been building up since their football season ended. The gymnasium class offered them activities such as marching, calisthenics, and apparatus work, but these were pale substitutes for the more exciting games of football and lacrosse they played in warmer seasons," the Springfield College says.

"The instructor of this class was James Naismith, a 31-year-old graduate student. After graduating from Presbyterian College in Montreal with a theology degree, Naismith embraced his love of athletics and headed to Springfield to study physical education—at that time, a relatively new and unknown academic discipline—under Luther Halsey Gulick, superintendent of physical education at the College and today renowned as the father of physical education and recreation in the United States.

"Much time and thought went into this new creation. It became an adaptation of many games of its time, including American rugby (passing), English rugby (the jump ball), lacrosse (use of a goal), soccer (the shape and size of the ball), and something called duck on a rock, a game Naismith had played with his childhood friends in Bennie’s Corners, Ontario. Duck on a rock used a ball and a goal that could not be rushed. The goal could not be slammed through, thus necessitating “a goal with a horizontal opening high enough so that the ball would have to be tossed into it, rather than being thrown.”

"On this day in 1891, the first game of basketball was played at what is now Springfield College. The game was invented by a Canadian, Dr. James Naismith, a versatile athlete, theologian, and physical education instructor, who envisioned "the time when Christian people would recognize the true value of athletics," the Mass Moments says.

"He designed basketball to occupy a class of disagreeable male students at the Springfield YMCA, who were bored with the calisthenics and children's games in their gym class. The game attracted players and fans almost immediately.

"By 1936, basketball was included among the sports at the Olympic Games and is now played in 170 countries. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame opened in Springfield in 1968."

"Basketball began with its invention in 1891 in Springfield, Massachusetts, by Canadian physical education instructor James Naismith as a less injury-prone sport than football.

"Naismith was a 31-year-old graduate student when he created the indoor sport to keep athletes indoors during the winters. The game became established fairly quickly and grew very popular as the 20th century progressed, first in America and then in other parts of the world.

"After basketball became established in American colleges, the professional game followed. The American National Basketball Association (NBA), established in 1946, grew to a multibillion-dollar enterprise by the end of the century, and basketball became an integral part of American culture." (Wikipedia)

"On December 21, 1891, Naismith published rules for a new game using five basic ideas and thirteen rules. That day, he asked his class to play a match in the Armory Street court: 9 versus 9, using a soccer ball and two peach baskets. Frank Mahan, one of his students, wasn't so happy.

"He just said: "Harrumph. Another new game". Someone proposed to call it "Naismith Game", but he suggested "We have a ball and a basket: why don’t we call it basketball?" The eighteen players were John G. Thompson, Eugene S. Libby, Edwin P. Ruggles, William R. Chase, T. Duncan Patton, Frank Mahan, Finlay G. MacDonald, William H. Davis and Lyman Archibald, who defeated George Weller, Wilbert Carey, Ernest Hildner, Raymond Kaighn, Genzabaro Ishikawa, Benjamin S. French, Franklin Barnes, George Day and Henry Gelan 1–0. The goal was scored by Chase.

"There were other differences between Naismith's first idea and the game played today. The peach baskets were closed, and balls had to be retrieved manually, until a small hole was put in the bottom of the peach basket to poke the ball out using a stick. Only in 1906 were metal hoops, nets and backboards introduced. In 1894 the soccer ball was replaced by a ball Naismith contacted Spalding to make." (Wikipedia)

"On December 21, 1891, 30-year-old James Naismith introduces the first game of basketball. Based on 13 rules created by Naismith, the game is tested by 18 students at the International Young Men’s Christian Association Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts. Two teams of nine players each compete against each other, with the objective to throw a soccer ball into a peach basket attached to a balcony 10 feet above the floor," the History.com says.

"In the early 1890s, Naismith—who was born in Canada—moved on from his job in Montreal as McGill University's athletic director to become a physical education teacher at the YMCA International Training School. Bored and unruly students needed an activity during difficult New England winters. So, Naismith took up another teacher's challenge to keep students in line.

"“I called the boys to the gym, divided them up into teams of nine and gave them a little soccer ball,” Naismith recalled in a 1939 radio interview that aired on WOR-AM in New York City. “I showed them two peach baskets I’d nailed up at each end of the gym, and I told them the idea was to throw the ball into the opposing team’s peach basket. I blew the whistle, and the first game of basketball began.”

"James Naismith was a 31-year old graduate student teaching physical education at the International YMCA Training School, now known as Springfield College, in Springfield, Massachusetts when students were forced to stay indoors for days due to a New England storm. The usual winter athletic activities were marching, calisthenics, and apparatus work but they weren’t nearly as thrilling as football or lacrosse which were played during the warmer seasons," the National Geographic says.

"Naismith wanted to create a game that would be simple to understand but complex enough to be interesting. The game had to be playable indoors, and it had to accommodate several players at once. The game also needed to provide plenty of exercise for the students, yet without the physicality of football, soccer, or rugby since those would threaten more severe injuries if played in a confined space.

"Naismith approached the school janitor, hoping he could find two square boxes to use for goals. When the janitor came back from his search, he had two peach baskets instead. Naismith nailed the peach baskets to the lower rail of the gymnasium balcony, one on each side. The height of that lower balcony rail happened to be 10 feet. The students would play on teams to try to get the ball into their team’s basket. A person was stationed at each end of the balcony to retrieve the ball from the basket and put it back into play."

"In the winter of 1891, when a 30-year-old physical education instructor from the International YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts invented an indoor game that could be played between football and baseball seasons, basket ball – originally two words – was born. James Naismith wrote and developed the game’s original thirteen rules and, through the YMCA network, quickly spread the news throughout the country," the Basketball Hall Of Fame says.

"As basketball’s popularity grew, Naismith neither sought publicity nor engaged in self-promotion. He was first and foremost an educator, holding posts at the International YMCA Training School and the University of Kansas. He embraced recreational sport but shied away from the glory of competitive athletics.

"Although he never had the opportunity to see basketball become the astonishing success it is today, Naismith’s biggest thrill came when he was sponsored by the National Association of Basketball Coaches to witness basketball become an Olympic sport at the 1936 Games held in Berlin, Germany. Today, basketball has grown into one of the most popular sports in the world."

"On this day, December 21, 1891, 131 years ago, Dr. James Naismith introduced to Springfield and the world, the game of Basketball. Originally from Canada, Dr. Naismith was a 31-year-old physical education teacher at Springfield College (then known as the YMCA Training School), when he presented the new game, which could be played in-doors during winter, to his students. That winter of 1891, he divided his class into teams to play the first ever game of “Basket Ball” right here in Springfield.

"When first introduced, “Basket Ball” was two words, and the first games were played with wooden peach baskets nailed to the wall. The game became a hit and rapidly spread to other schools and organizations. Shortly after, Dr. Naismith’s original 13 rules of Basketball were published in the January 15, 1892 edition of the Springfield College journal, The Triangle. Naismith would go on to see Basketball become an Olympic sport. Dr. Naismith was present at the first-ever Olympic Basketball game held in Berlin, Germany in 1936 and threw out the opening jump ball between France and Estonia. That summer, the United States took home the first gold medal in Basketball, defeating Canada 19-8 in an outdoor match which left players with muddy shoes. The game of Basketball, which started right here in Springfield, has now reached the corners of the globe, becoming one of the world’s most popular sports," the Springfield-MA.gov says.

"The City of Springfield is the proud home of Springfield College, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, the 413 Elite ABA professional basketball club, and many talented basketball players, coaches, trainers, as well avid fans and friends of the game. Springfield is known for its strong history of innovation, and is the home of many “firsts.” The 131-year-old game of Basketball, however, remains among the most prominent and celebrated."

"The first ever basketball game was played on December 21, 1891 at the School for Christian Workers (later the International YMCA Training School, now Springfield College) in Springfield, Massachusetts," the Historic Towns of America says.

"Springfield College describes the game as the first organized game of basketball. The Basketball Hall of Fame recognizes it as the first game of basketball. McGill University defines it as the first formal game of basketball.

"This first basketball game was played in The School for Christian Workers gymnasium with a soccer ball and two peach baskets serving as goals. The objective of the game was to throw the soccer ball into the opposing team's peach basket to score points. The rules of the game were relatively simple compared to modern basketball, with nine players on each team. The final score of that first game was reportedly 1-0, and the only point was scored by a player named William R. Chase."

"It was all started by Dr. James Naismith, the son of two Scottish immigrants to Canada. By 1891, Dr. Naismith was teaching physical education in Springfield, MA at the YMCA International Training School; which today is Springfield College. While there, he was asked by the director of physical education, Dr. Luther Gulick, to come up with a new game students could play indoors during the winter that would help keep track and field runners in shape and would be relatively safe to play - particularly that it would have a small amount of physical contact so that the players would not get injured in this game.



"Dr. Naismith was given two weeks to come up with such a game. What he came up with was inspired by a game he had played as a child, "Duck on a Rock", which is a game that has been played since medieval times. In "Duck on a Rock", a large stone "duck" would be placed on top of an even larger rock or tree stump or the like," the NBA Hoops Online says.

"Rather than using a rock, Dr. Naismith's decided his game would be played with an association football, also known as a soccer ball. The goal of Dr. Naismith's game would be to throw a soccer ball into a peach basket, which would be nailed up high on the wall. He chose the soccer ball as he deemed it to be fairly safe to be thrown around and not likely to cause injury. He decided to put the basket high on the wall because he observed most injuries seemed to happen in sports around the goal zone with both defenders and the offensive side becoming very aggressive in these regions. So he felt by putting it up high, it would prevent some of the potential for injury between offenses and defenses."

 First Minister of Sports to win a Paralympic medal: Carol-Eduard Novak sets world record

First Person to Skydive from 7 Miles high and Dive in a submersible: James C. Wigginton sets world record

First Person to Run Over 100Km While Wearing a 30 Pounds Weight Vest: Dillon Rinn sets world record

Youngest person to back flip a scooter on an X Games ramp: Jamie Russell sets world record

World's first person to 'beat' Tetris, world record set by Willis Gibson

World's first person to maintain less than 4% body fat for 100 days naturally: Guk Young Lee

Fastest time to climb or descend One Million Stairs: James C. Wigginton sets world record