Cultural barriers and conflicts can be ignored at least temporarily in the world of sports when soverign states all come together to compete in the Olympics.
What could account for the ability of sporting events to drive nations together? Maybe humans are just by nature competitive, or maybe it is nothing more than the simple fact that your competition can cause you to forget about everything outside of the former.
Humans are a competitive species, and the proof of this can be seen throughout our history, whether in the fierce competition of early cave dwellers for the largest food sources, or in the ancient Greeks and their love of competitive wrestling and racing in the first Olympic games. Paintball Nottingham
Today, there are numerous sports – from basketball to hockey, from skateboarding to canoeing – that provide numerous ways of competing against others.
Self improvement and the drive to better one's self play a major role in competetition.
Often good reading comes from stories about individual competing against themselves, such as the rock climber who needs to beat his personal best or the marksman who wants to place his shots in a tighter group.