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What Makes "It" A Sport?

Sector

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So it varies from person to person on who views what is actually a sport. Anything that you've heard people say isn't a sport but you think it is but have disagreements about, please share it here!

Personally, I think as long as you're playing a "real life" game competitively & working out at the same time, that's my view of a sport. Very many people in my neighborhood view sports as a "stick & ball" thing, and yet, they arguably admit that Hockey is a sport. I don't see a ball there?

Then there is racing, aka MotorSPORTS. Wrestling, swimming, cheerleader, even bowling! I don't understand how these things don't match up to those who doesn't view these as a "sport" itself. 1) They play those competitive games. 2) They travel just as much as the other "stick & ball" sports. 3) They all receive some sort of work out playing their selective "activities"

You can watch some of these on ESPN channel as well (or whatever sports channel you may have, empathy on SPORTS channel). But when you are playing a sport, does that mean you are also working out? I've heard from several that GOLF isn't a sport because you're not working out. (Which isn't exactly correct, you're working out your concentration & precision, just like racers do, not to mention baseball players).

So the reason for this thread, is to discuss interesting views about what YOU think is actually a sport. What are the requirements to actually be considered a "sport," rather than just another activity? Have you had good debates in the past about such topic?
 

Dreg

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I would say that anything you put a lot of work into, is considered a Sport, like boxing for example. You move around the ring, whilst dodging and throwing punches. I would say, anything that requires only skill, or no movement, is not considered a sport, like Archery, for example. You aren't really building yourself up for it, really.
 
machomuu

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From my point of view, anything that follows Webster's definition. Why? Because I find it ridiculous that one thing that takes a lot of effort, hardwork, and/or pain can be considered a sport and something else that does the same isn't because "it doesn't involve a ball" or "there's no running." This does include gaming, I simply consider it a relative term, and it covers an incredible array of activities. If children's games, such as some of the world's most popular sports, can be considered "sports" then I don't see any reason others shouldn't be. Nor do I think sports are about building character, such is the reason people say that they do things "for sport", the terms are connected. They're meant to be about fun and have instead been corrupted by macho personalities and capitalization. Seriously, I honestly find the amount athletes get paid and the fact that they have coverage, analysis, radio channels, and complete networks for sports to be rather hilarious, in most cases.
 
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Sydian

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Something you put work and physical effort into and has competition. That's a sport, imo. I get so pissed when people are like "hurrrrr marching band isn't a sport y'all don't do anything" YES. Yes. Please get out on the asphalt in the hot sun with an instrument bigger than you, set drill, march it over and over and over WHILE PLAYING YOUR INSTRUMENT (so yeah you have to use your brain in this cause you gotta memorize dat music) and full run go home. It's harder than it sounds, especially college band. And don't even get me started on corps. Speaking of corps, there's your major competition. And then high school bands also have competitions and they can be pretty damn intense. So yeah. Big sports buffs seem to think anything that doesn't involve men playing with balls isn't a sport. Well...I mean, look at that sentence. Quit playing with your balls! ;P sorry if that offends anyone, lol.
 

outfox

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If it's physical and strategic I'd describe it as a sport. I don't think it has to be competitive, necessarily. -shrug- I've never really put much thought into the term, I thought my definition was pretty much universally agreed upon. I know chess is officially considered a sport, I wouldn't call it one though. Chess, poker, spelling bees...things like that I see strictly as a game or competition. Not that I analyze them to such an extent that I'm bothered that anyone would categorize them as sports, I simply don't associate the term with those things.
 
Nihilego

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If it's competitive and it's physical then I see it as a sport. One of the main points of sport is for it to be a physical thing so I really don't see how people can call stuff like chess a sport because it's... just not, lol. But going by this definition I guess there's a fine line between what's physical and what's not physical - my main issue there being the idea of golf as a sport, which I'm still not sure on.

Then you've got the extreme sports - things like skydiving or mountain biking, for example, which aren't always competitive. I guess that going by my idea, stuff like that's not sport but rather an exercise or a hobby. Sounds kinda odd but meh, works for me.

Cosmotone8 said:
Well it really depends. If there is a lot of competition and requires a reasonable amount of effort, then I guess that is considered a sport.
Click to expand...

Competitive video gaming.
 
droomph

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Competitive. All it has to be. You have to try to win against somebody else, and that's a sport. Yes, even jacks is a sport.

However, there isn't a National Jacks League, so it's not an "official" sport.

And adding onto what Sydian said, we at marching and pep band want more recognition. We use the same field as the football players but everyone seems to brush us off ;; NFL is huge but nobody has heard of the Beat Corps or the Blue Devils or whatever. Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy I really do hate the general public rn.
 
Shining Raichu

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If it's not scripted television and I find it boring, then I consider it a sport.

Yes, that does mean that Keeping Up with the Kardashians is a sport. It even stars former Olympian Bruce Jenner!
 

Sector

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Shining Raichu said:
Keeping Up with the Kardashians is a sport.
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You're joking right? LOL That's a good one x)
Razor Leaf said:
Competitive video gaming.
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Someone once mentioned that MLG was a competitive sport, I was like no. Working out with your thumb on your controllers isn't sports like. Then again, don't they have their own stuff on a certain Sports Channel or something?
Airbourne Bubblun said:
I would say that anything you put a lot of work into, is considered a Sport, like boxing for example. You move around the ring, whilst dodging and throwing punches. I would say, anything that requires only skill, or no movement, is not considered a sport, like Archery, for example. You aren't really building yourself up for it, really.
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Okay so boxing is real, but WWE is like a scripted, false wrestling competition right? So if its fake, does that mean its a complete rip-off in the wrestling/sports industry or no? I mean they make it look competitive, but if they are scripted to do this & do that & is to be fake? Like what Andy said came to my mind:
Shining Raichu said:
If it's not scripted television and I find it boring, then I consider it a sport.
Click to expand...

Also we haven't talked much about cheerleaders(since they are a bit similar), but how about the dancers? I find that they seem to have the most fitting bodies out there. I am 50/50 on this, being a sports thing vs a gymnastic thing. Any opinions?
 
Brendino

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I don't know exactly what I would define as sport, other than it requires some sort of physical exertion, there is a challenge or competition involved, and it is not reliant on a form of power (electricity, gas/motors, etc.). As an example I'll use auto racing. Even though it doesn't seem like it, it does take physical exertion to race competitively, but if it weren't for the motor running the car, you wouldn't be able to race. In my opinion, it's the car pulling the load, not the driver. Compare that to bike racing, where the rider is what makes the "vehicle" move. Using this, I would think that something like professional video gaming, while definitely is a competition, shouldn't be considered a sport either.

But then, using that logic, things like competitive eating might be considered sports, because it's a physically demanding competition. In all honesty, though, I'm kind of glad that there isn't a direct definition of "sport," because it can be openly interpreted by anyone, and if you want to consider something a sport, go right ahead.

Edit: Looking at the professional wrestling argument, as a scripted profession, it is hard to determine whether is should be called a sport or not. With WWE's name being World Wrestling Entertainment, and them actually calling what they do "sports entertainment," I truly think it is that. Another comparison to this could be gymnastics, figure skating, half-pipe, diving, etc. People would usually consider these sports (as far as I'm aware) as they are seen at the Olympics, but they are all focused around scripted routines as well, so does that mean we shouldn't call these sports, too?
 
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Sydian

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And adding onto what Sydian said, we at marching and pep band want more recognition. We use the same field as the football players but everyone seems to brush us off ;; NFL is huge but nobody has heard of the Beat Corps or the Blue Devils or whatever. Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy I really do hate the general public rn.
Click to expand...

Yes. I am very happy I go to a university where the band is heavy influence, recognizable, and the football coach actually helps, and wants to, get us to go to far away games, like Arkansas this week. People go to this school JUST to be in the band. I sure did. Non-band folks come watch us practice. It's awesome. But in high school, you don't get jack squat. You get teenage prick football players like my cousin telling you that you aren't in a sport. Then I just tell them to **** off. :)

Edit: I was on Facebook, and my band director posted this. It's what one of our football players said about us:

"I respect the Marching Southerners because they are the only ones that work as hard as the football team!"

So, like I was saying, I love that I go to a school with such respect for the band. I think it gets better once you're in college I suppose, haha. Cause in middle/high school, people still think it's the 1950's and that everyone in band has braces, large glasses, and suspenders on their pants and make all A's and such. If anyone still believes in the stereotypical band nerd, football player, and cheerleader, quite watching 80's sitcoms and realize it's 2012. lol

Also we haven't talked much about cheerleaders(since they are a bit similar), but how about the dancers? I find that they seem to have the most fitting bodies out there. I am 50/50 on this, being a sports thing vs a gymnastic thing. Any opinions?
Click to expand...

I would call it a sport more than gymnastics, though the latter is still a part of it. ...But isn't gymnastics a sport? lmao...so yeah either way, I think it's a sport. It's competitive, it requires a lot of training that usually starts young, and it's very physical. Ever done a high kick? It hurts. Then dancelines do them like it's nothing. It's a bit of my secret dream to be on danceline but we didn't have the money to put me in dance classes as a child. :(
 
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Mr Cat Dog

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The cheerleading example is a really interesting one. I remember the last time this issue came up in C&M was through the lens of 'is cheerleading a sport?' and it provided some really great discussion. You obviously have your Bring it On-style competitions between teams, but there's this other - non-competitive - part to it. Is cheerleading a sport when it's competitive but a hobby/activity when not? These sorts of questions are really interesting to me, especially because I have no idea of the answers! :D
 
Golurks Were Meant to Fly

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I have a really hard time explaining from my point of view what is or isn't a sport. In my mind, sports just tend to be whatever is accepted by most of the public to be a sport (i.e. football, golf, soccer) and everything else is a game/competition/whatever. So in my mind gymnastics isn't a sport and neither is marching band. THOUGH, (and this is in all-caps because it's incredibly significant) NOT BEING UNDER THE CLASSIFICATION "SPORT" DOES NOT MAKE IT ANY LESS DIFFICULT OR PHYSICALLY EXHAUSTING. NON-SPORTS ARE JUST AS TOUGH. especially marching band


Sydian said:

Cause in middle/high school, people still think it's the 1950's and that everyone in band has braces,
Click to expand...

Check.
Sydian said:

large glasses,
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I have glasses so.. check.
Sydian said:

and suspenders on their pants
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Noncheck
Sydian said:
and make all A's and such
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Check. :P

But yeah, it's really annoying how the band is nothing in the eyes of most people in my school. :(
 
droomph

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I'd say cheerleading is a sport, because from what I can tell, their routines remind me of marching band drill. Personally, I would call everything that needs practice to achieve a sport, because in my mind calling it a "game" is kinda rude to anyone who tries hard to do good, whether it be a football player or poker guy. "Hobby" is minimally better, but "sport" to me signifies dignified fun.
 

Khawill

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Starcraft is most definitely a sport, that game takes a lot of practice to even be an average player. Strategy is involved, and there's also a bit of math that needs to be done. I spent a lot of time working on my micromanaging skills and macro skills and I'm still only able to beat gold players. It is very competitive even for Americans.

Cheerleading is a sport but just barely, its pretty much gymnastics that is on the field and paired with chants, though I'm not sure about marching band (I think that's more for entertainment than competition, like rock bands will have "battle of the bands" but I don't think that qualifies as a sport.). I personally know how hard it is to play a wind instrument and walk, but I don't think difficulty constitutes a sport I think it is more about the reason.
 
Sydian

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Starcraft is most definitely a sport, that game takes a lot of practice to even be an average player. Strategy is involved, and there's also a bit of math that needs to be done. I spent a lot of time working on my micromanaging skills and macro skills and I'm still only able to beat gold players. It is very competitive even for Americans.

Cheerleading is a sport but just barely, its pretty much gymnastics that is on the field and paired with chants, though I'm not sure about marching band (I think that's more for entertainment than competition, like rock bands will have "battle of the bands" but I don't think that qualifies as a sport.). I personally know how hard it is to play a wind instrument and walk, but I don't think difficulty constitutes a sport I think it is more about the reason.
Click to expand...

I hope this post is pure sarcasm, lol. Starcraft? As in the video game? That's a sport? Yeah. Finger strength. So athletic. You can have as much strategy as you want in a game, but does that really make it a sport? You're not exerting your body in anyway. Maybe your fingers, but that just...doesn't count.

And marching =/= walking. We don't walk and play instruments. The only people walking are the people that aren't marching correctly, lol. Just wanted to get that out. There's a difference between walking and marching. Plus, the normal sports are also for entertainment. People watch football, baseball, basketball, and tennis for entertainment. So if it's entertainment, it can't be a sport? And I find it funny you call Starcraft a sport, but then question cheerleading and marching band as one, which are both very physical and tiring. So I can only hope you're joking...lol
 
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