I think that a lot of us folks in our thirties and above will always remember weekends for ABC's "Wide World of Sports" with the late Jim McKay narrating the famous introduction including the legendary line "The thrill of victory ... and the agony of defeat". Of course, all that was accompanied by the dramatic fanfare by American composer Charles Fox who I was surprised to find out came up with some of the most famous TV themes in the United States such as for "Happy Days", "The Love Boat", and "Wonder Woman".
Japanese television, specifically NHK, also had its sports programming scored by a famous theme that is still used even today. In fact, I heard "Sports Show Koushinkyoku" (The Sports Show March) just earlier this afternoon when I was watching the rugby match between Waseda and Keio Universities. It may not be as dramatic as the "Wide World of Sports" theme, but it can sure rouse a crowd into a good sporting mood.
Created in 1949 by famed composer Yuuji Koseki（古関裕而）, who had also made another legendary sports-based tune several years before, I think that the brassy and jaunty "Sports Show Koushinkyoku" has probably been used for pretty much any type of sports event in Japan outside of the Olympics coverage and sumo. I've usually associated the theme with baseball, including the national high school championships.
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