First Canadian Lacrosse Champion Is Declared
The first Canadian lacrosse championship was awarded to the Montreal Lacrosse Club on October 27, 1867, marking a significant moment in the sport’s history. This championship was organized by the National Lacrosse Association, which was established that same year to formalize the rules and governance of the game. Lacrosse, recognized as Canada's national sport, has its origins as a traditional game played by Indigenous peoples, dating back to the 15th century. Historically, it served various purposes, including combat training and conflict resolution, involving large teams and extended playing fields.
European settlers were introduced to lacrosse in the 17th century, with French missionary Jean de Brébeuf providing one of the earliest accounts of the game. The term "lacrosse" evolved from the French word "crosse," inspired by the resemblance of the playing stick to a bishop's staff. Over time, the game transitioned into a more organized sport, with the establishment of the National Lacrosse Association leading to a structured format that reduced team sizes and game duration. Today, lacrosse enjoys popularity in various countries, including the United States, Great Britain, and Australia, while continuing to honor its rich cultural heritage.
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First Canadian Lacrosse Champion Is Declared
First Canadian Lacrosse Champion Is Declared
The first Canadian lacrosse championship was awarded to the Montreal Lacrosse Club on October 27, 1867, by the newly formed National Lacrosse Association. The National Lacrosse Association, later renamed the Canadian Lacrosse Association and still active as of the writing of this book, was formed that same year in order to supervise the sport and systematize the rules of play and conduct.
Lacrosse, the national sport of Canada (a fact that might surprise many Canadian hockey fans), was originally an American Indian sport. It was played by the tribes as early as the 15th century, although the exact date of its origin is uncertain. The game served as a form of combat training for male warriors, as entertainment, and sometimes as a form of relatively peaceful conflict resolution, for certain disputes. It was played with long sticks curved at the end to catch and throw a ball, like today's game, and the contestants similarly attempted to score by sending the ball between the enemy's goal posts. A team often consisted of hundreds of players, and game fields could be miles in length. Matches could last for days, with the contests beginning at dawn and not ending until dusk.
The first French explorers, fur trappers, and settlers were exposed to lacrosse when they began to arrive in the region now known as Quebec. It is believed that the first to see a game was the missionary Jean de Brébeuf, who observed it being played by members of the Huron tribe. In his description of the event he used the word crosier to describe the playing stick, as the stick reminded him of the crosier, or curved staff, commonly carried by Christian bishops at certain religious events. In time crosier became the crosse in la crosse, as the French called the game. Eventually, it was contracted into the single word lacrosse, now used by English and French speakers alike. The original native word was probably something like baggataway.
As mentioned above, the game began to take its modern form with the establishment of the National Lacrosse Association in 1867. It had already become a much smaller event than the original American Indian format, using far fewer players and much shorter fields. Today there are 10 members on each team (12 on female teams), they play for a few hours at most, and the amount of violence has been greatly reduced from previous centuries. Victory is determined by which team puts the ball between the enemy's goal posts the greatest number of times. Lacrosse is popular not just in Canada but in many other nations around the world, including the United States, Great Britain, and Australia.