During the winter season (1 April-31 August) of 1972, 2529 sporting injuries were treated in Wellington and Hutt Accident and Emergency Departments. A computerised analysis was made of the answers to a questionnaire filled out by each patient. Over 90 percent occurred playing major team sports, the majority while playing rugby (57 percent). The rate of injuries was found to be independent of the week of the season, socioeconomic status, race or position played, but was related to age, team sport, and grade played. The majority occurred during games in the weekend. Boys under 13 years of age are rarely injured whereas senior and older players are more frequently injured, especially in the second half of play. It is proposed that competition and the velocity of impact are important contributing factors in major sporting injuries.