Abstract

Objective: The main objective of this study was to develop sports in rural areas of Kermanshah, with an emphasis on indigenous and local sports.
Methodology: This study is an applied research and considering its method is a qualitative research. In this research, study population consisted of all rural people of Kermanshah. Commensurate with the nature of qualitative research that does not follow statistical sampling, purposeful sampling was used in this study. Stopping criterion of sampling was duplicate data or information saturation and lack of access to more new data.
Results: Findings of this study showed that learning and practicing of various skills, benefits of the diversity of local and indigenous sports, facility of local and indigenous sports, connection with cultural constructions of villages, high compatibility with conditions of today's society, preventing social diversions in youth, and existence of groundwork for holding local and indigenous sports festival are the most important opportunities on local and indigenous sport in rural areas of Kermanshah for the rural sports development.
Conclusion: To develop sport among  different classes of the rural society, due to the high potential of  indigenous and local sports and close relationship with the customs and movement patterns of people in rural areas, it is recommended to identifiy and introduce local and indigenous games and sports and to have a careful planning at the strategic and operational levels to not only revive these sports, but also maintain the originality of Iranian culture  and its continuity in society. An effective step in enriching the leisure time of rural people and their families is to promote physical and mental health of people in rural areas.