What are the 3 most popular sports in Jamaica?

Jamaica, the island where Bob Marley was born, is famous for its Olympic medals and sprinter Usain Bolt. Numerous championships won by athletes provide the island with an international presence that can be harnessed. 3 sports, in particular, make the Jamaican island famous worldwide. These are cricket, athletics and football.

Jamaican cricket

Cricket in Jamaica is a relic of British colonialism. In the past, it was classified as an elite sport. That is, a British exercise originally played only by the upper classes in Jamaica. Today, technical and social rules of the game still apply: teams are divided into 'gentlemen' and 'players', each with their dressing room. The ancient social distribution of the game demonstrates that etiquette and the appearance of decorum are still a necessity of the game, and cricket, unlike football, is a game that embodies British reserve power.  However, over time, Jamaicans from all walks of life have taken up the sport, and today it is evolving at all socio-economic levels in the Caribbean.

Football in Jamaica

The Jamaican football team is the group of Jamaican footballers who represent the country in international competitions under the Jamaica Football Federation. Its players are called "Reggae Boys". After Jamaica gained independence in 1962, it qualified for the World Cup finals for the first time in 1966. It was not until the 1991 Caribbean Nations Cup that they won their first trophy. In the Intercontinental Championship Gold Cup, the team reached the final of the competition twice in a row in 2015 and 2017, achieving the best results in their history. 

Athletics make Jamaica famous worldwide!

Jamaica is smaller than Fiji and has a smaller population than Mongolia, but it is a sporting powerhouse. Its people can be proud of sixty-four Olympic medals, including 17 gold. Like the Kenyan and Ethiopian runners, who also are well known for their long-distance races, scientists and athletes alike wonder why Jamaicans are so good at this category. It is widely believed that this success is associated with poverty. According to the United Nations, in 2009, about 22.5% of Jamaicans lived below the poverty line. As a result, those who cannot afford a car have to travel almost exclusively on foot, which turns out to be excellent physical training.