In certain disciplines, there are specific titles for champions, either descriptive, as the
baspehlivan in Turkish oil wrestling,
yokozuna in Japanese
sumo wrestling; or copied from social hierarchies, such as the
koning and
keizer ('king' and 'emperor') in traditional
archery competitions (not just national, also at lower levels) in the Low Countries. celebrate their first championship in nine years. • In a broader sense, nearly any sort of competition can be considered a championship, and the winner of it a champion. Thus, there are championships for many non-sporting competitions such as
spelling bees or
wargames. In this context, it is used as a noun. • It is also possible to
champion a cause. In an ideological sense, encompassing religion, a champion may be an evangelist, a visionary advocate who clears the field for the triumph of the idea. Or the champion may merely make a strong case for a new corporate division to a resistant board of directors. Such a champion may take on responsibility for publicizing the project and garnering funding. But in this case he or she is beyond a simple promoter. The word is thus used as a verb. • In economic policy, a
national champion is a large company that is dominant in its field and favored by the government of the country in which it is based in the belief that it will be in that country's interests if the company is successful in foreign markets. The practice is controversial, and economists mostly don't believe it's beneficial, but it has long been used in
France and other countries. The original meaning of the word partakes of both these senses: in the
Feudal Era,
knights were expected to be champions and
paragons of both prowess in combat and of causes, the latter most commonly being either patriotic, romantic or religious in nature (thus becoming models of virtue). This reaches its most literal meaning in a
trial by combat, in which each combatant champions the cause of one side of the trial. A "
King's Champion" is appointed for ceremonial purposes at the coronation of an English Monarch, to defeat any challenger to the monarch's right to be crowned.
Champion warfare refers to a type of battle, most commonly found in the
epic poetry and
myth of ancient history, in which the outcome of the conflict is determined by
single combat, an individual
duel between the best soldiers ("champions") from each opposing army. ==World champion==