Goalkeeper

In many team sports that involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting opposing shots on goal.

This is most apparent in sports such as ice hockey and lacrosse, where goalkeepers are required to wear special equipment like heavy pads and a face mask to protect their bodies from the impact of the playing object (e.g., a ball or puck).

In some sport like Cycle ball there is no a designated goalkeeper, however, any player can perform that function in the condition of only one at a time.

The goalkeeper is the only player in the side who may use their hands and arms to catch, throw, and save the ball, but only within their own penalty area.

There are no other specific requirements, but goalkeepers are usually allowed to wear additional protective gear, such as padded clothing.

When the keeper picks up the ball, they are allowed to kick it or throw it, or to place it on the ground and play it with their feet.

He continued to take part until the match finished, but collapsed at home afterwards and died in hospital four days later from diabetes mellitus and heart failure 'accelerated by the rough usage of the opposing team'.

[citation needed] Some of the greatest soccer/ football goalies include Petr Cech, Peter Schmeichel, Manuel Neuer, Oliver Kahn, Edwin van der Sar, Lev Yashin, Gianluigi Buffon, Jean-Marie Pfaff, Ricardo Zamora or Michel Preud'homme.

Unlike in soccer or Gaelic football, the goal-tend/safety does not physically protect the goalposts, as they are elevated above the ground and mostly out of the reach of any player (the National Football League also explicitly outlawed goaltending in 1985; no such rule exists in other levels of the game [citation needed]).

One situation in which a goalkeeper-like responsibility can arise is in Canadian football, where a single point is awarded for a kicked ball that is not returned out of the end zone.

A goalkeeper is allowed to save the ball with all parts of their body, including two hands, trunks, two legs and so on, only within the defending 6-meter zone.

A goalkeeper can participate in offense by long-passing the ball to a teammate in the opposing half court for a fast-break score.

The team might have a reserve goalkeeper, and the two may switch at any time during the game, without the need to notify the referee.

There is no time-out in bandy, but an exception is sometimes made when the goalkeeper is hurt, especially if they don't have a designated reserve keeper.

The role of the goalie or goaltender in Broomball is to prevent the ball from entering the net using their broom and body.

Most goaltender privileges only apply when inside the goal area, for example being allowed to close their hand over the ball or send it out of play.

Goaltenders are not sent to the penalty bench for infractions; instead, another team member is nominated to take their place.

[6] In field hockey, the goalkeeper generally wears extensive protective equipment including helmet, face and neck guards, chest and leg padding, arm or elbow protectors, specific gloves (the left glove is designed purely to block the ball, the right glove also has this function but in addition is designed to permit the goalkeeper to hold and use his or her stick), lower leg guards (known as pads) and shoe covers (known as kickers).

The gloves, pads and kickers are almost always made of special high density foam material that both protects the goalkeeper and has excellent rebound qualities.

However, a goalkeeper who has elected to wear only a helmet is permitted to remove it and provided it is not left on the field of play, they may take part in the game in any part of the pitch, and retain their goalkeeping privileges, even if they do not have time to replace the helmet before making a save.

[7][8] In floorball, the goalkeeper defends their team's goal and has specific rules to follow within the game.

Goalkeepers are an essential part of starting plays, as they can throw the ball for a quick offensive chance.

They may also optionally wear other protective equipment, such as knee pads, elbow-guards, shin-guards, jocks and torso armor.

Because of the power of shots, the goaltender wears specific equipment designed to protect the body from direct impact [citation needed].

Most goalkeepers use a specific hurley with a wider bas (flat face) to aid shot-stopping [citation needed].

While inside the crease (nine feet in radius), offensive players may not make contact with the goalie or his stick.

Doing so is declared "goalie interference" and is penalized by a free clear to the half field line.

In netball, the role of the Goal Keeper (denoted GK) is to prevent opposing players from shooting.

However, this does not extend to catching or holding the ball and the legal move is described as a 'slap', and the exception only applies within the ten yard area.

The coin depicts a successful shot by a footballer, shown in the background, with the ball just passing the Austrian goalkeeper, Samuel Ali (still in the air) into the goal.