Research and sourcing
Source hierarchy
- Governing bodies — the current rulebook or law text, published by the body that writes it.
- Official competition records — the organiser's own archive of results, winners and statistics.
- Museums and institutional archives — for historical objects such as trophies, and for dates of origin.
- Peer-reviewed and academic work — for sports history and disputed origins.
- Established reference works and quality media — used for context, not as the final word on a fact.
When sources disagree
Where reputable sources conflict — which is common with the origins of old sports — we say so on the page and give the competing accounts rather than picking whichever is most quotable. An unresolved question is reported as unresolved.
What we do with folklore
A great deal of widely repeated sports history is unsourced. Where a popular story cannot be traced to a contemporary record, the page says the story is commonly told and not documented, instead of repeating it as fact.