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Competitive eating -- now that's the sport of champions.

Professional Falconry.

Laura wrote:

What do you guys think about cheerleading? The way that they do it now, you need to be good at dancing, gymnastics, etc. A lot more physical than what it was when I was in school. But our sports editor wrote a column a few weeks ago about how cheerleading is not a sport, and the letters from readers starting POURING in, arguing with him. Personally, I can't stand the guy, (he's very judgemental & snide) so I wasn't surprised by these letters.

No no no no no no no!  Cheerleading isn't a sport!  Not a sport!  Not at all!  It's a performance art, like dance or gymnastics.  Things where you are judged on style are performance arts, not sports.  Sports are quantative, performance arts are qualitative.


And about having people compete directly with each other?  That's unnecessary.  There is a mental aspect and stategic aspect to sports where you don't come in contact with the other player that is just as capable of affecting them.

Boxing is not a sport

Robert B. wrote:

it falls within the criteria set by your two other guidelines.

No it doesn't.
I said no judging.

Big Shirtless Ron wrote:

I have 3 requirements for defining sports

1) the outcome of the game cannot be determined by judges, ie Olympic figure skating or diving, gymnastics etc., where the actions are subjectively rated. These ratings would change with different judges. Therefore no true decision can be made

2) 2 (or more) players/teams must compete directly with each other, meaning the actions of one can affect the actions of the other. Golf does not count as a sport under this definition, as it is just guys playing by themeselves. Nothing they can do will affect how well another player plays. Where with football, basketball etc, the players are in direct contact and can change the course of the game.

3) you cannot be sitting down playing a sport.

Under these guidelines car racing, and racing in general, is not a sport (sitting). Even though you can get in the other player's way and affect the outcome, you really are just trying to beat the clock. Bowling is not a sport. Swimming, like racing, is NOT a sport. Weightlifting is not a sport. Most olympic games are just that, games, not sports.

This is not to say these things do not take talent, strength and skill, but they are not sports.

I'd actually say you have games and sports backwards.

I play a game of football, basketball, tennis, etc.  Running, swimming, golf, speed skating are all sports.  They're not games.

Are you kidding? If you can drink beer, and win, during a competition, then that is the Sport of Kings.

I also second the "no judges" philosophy, but exempt boxing, b/c they'll fix it no matter how you compute the score. Ballet is one of the most demanding physical activities, but it is never confused as a sport. I'd lump gymnastics, and DEFINITELY figure skating as performing arts, like dance. Figure skating even has music! Take figure skating off of ESPN and stick it on Bravo or PBS. Seriously.

Big Shirtless Ron wrote:

3) you cannot be sitting down playing a sport.

Under these guidelines car racing, and racing in general, is not a sport (sitting). Even though you can get in the other player's way and affect the outcome, you really are just trying to beat the clock.

So you would say that cycling isn't a sport?  What about kayaking?  Wheelchair racing?  I wouldn't consider any of them to be a 'game' by a long shot.

Each baseball stadium has different dimensions. An infield popout in Dodger Stadium is a two run shot in Fenway.

There is some leeway in the dimensions of most playing fields (especially soccer, where the field can be 50 to 100 yards wide). Weather, acoustics, general fan surliness, and the obnoxiousness of the arena announcer can all affect the outcome of a competition. I guess the only thing left is playing video games while standing up.

sharkeyca wrote:

Each baseball stadium has different dimensions. An infield popout in Dodger Stadium is a two run shot in Fenway.

There is some leeway in the dimensions of most playing fields (especially soccer, where the field can be 50 to 100 yards wide). Weather, acoustics, general fan surliness, and the obnoxiousness of the arena announcer can all affect the outcome of a competition. I guess the only thing left is playing video games while standing up.

OK, baseball is not a sport.

I was just giving that because so many people sem to like baseball.
but if you stand around for 90% of the duration of a sport, it ain't really a sport.

Big Shirtless Ron wrote:

I'd actually say you have games and sports backwards.

I play a game of football, basketball, tennis, etc.  Running, swimming, golf, speed skating are all sports.  They're not games.

hmm... I think maybe YOU have hobbies, activities, and exercise confused with sports...If I jog to get exercise, how is that a sport?

Because there's competition involved.  Jogging with yourself, not so much.  Running in the olympics?  sure.

You know what is a great sport? Troll baiting.

Big Shirtless Ron wrote:

Robert B. wrote:

it falls within the criteria set by your two other guidelines.

No it doesn't.
I said no judging.

What? Yes it does. Is boxing done against a direct competitor? Yes. Is it done sitting down? No. Are you just ignoring what you wrote?

Under your guidelines, fishing qualifies as a sport. But not boxing? You're crazy, man.

Last edited by Robert B. (2006-02-07 5:44 pm)