Had a pretty interesting debate with some of my friends the other night. A personal definition of a sport is pretty subjective, so in a way, there is no right or wrong answer. The discussion began when we were talking to a girl who studies kinesiology at Penn State. She said these kind of debates always happen in her classes. The fact that ESPN covers the WSOP made me start this thread.

Discuss. What makes a sport a sport? Are there competitions in life that are generally considered sports but you find that they are not?

you must run at least a mile during live action for it to be considered a sport. This eliminates golf and puts baseball on the fringe

Poker is on ESPN because ESPN is not just a sports channel but entertainment as well. Regardless, I would rather slam my dick in a desk drawer than watch poker on TV.

What if the game involves no "running" at all?

then it's not a sport

Poker is on because of the ratings

I think it can be any activity in which the participants are actively doing some kind of physical skill that is competitive and does not involve judges. If a judge is involved handing out scores that decide the winner it isn't a sport. Having a judge makes it entertainment.

all sports have judges of some sort.

can't say i really agree with this one. Boxing is one of he first things that pops into my head when i hear the word "sport". The judging is shady a lot of the time but it doesn't take away from the "sport" aspect of it.

havent we already had this thread... im sure we had this exact same discussion somewhere in the sports forum... probably more than once... someone will let you know soon enough, im sure

anyway, i think golf and boxing are both sports... competition vs sports... sometimes i believe they are both just the same thing... chess? sport.... poker? sport.... fishing? sport... nascar? sport.... golf? sport... cricket? sport..... nude twister? great sport..... and so forth

Wait...so you do run for a mile in boxing?

I'm confused. I thought the amount of running was the determining factor.

What I believe is that there are three factors in determining whetehr or not an activity is a sport.

A sport must involve:
1) a degree of competition
2) a governed set of rules that require an official to regulate
3) physical activity

Part number 3 is where the discussion gets subjective. If you really want to get technical, the act of using your hand to move a chess piece from one square to another is "physical activity."

To me, the physical aspect of defining a sport might be determined by whether or not the participants actually have to be athletic. I question whether or not pool or darts are sports. The difference, however, between these games and chess is that they do involve muscle memory. But still, the fact they pretty much don't require any remote kind of physical conditioning or reaction to your opponents is what makes them questionable. Pool and darts are more "skills" in the same league as juggling, but I actually think that juggling balls is more demanding.

To the argument that if the event is judged it's not a sport...I fail to see how this factor is relevant. Exactly how does a judge not make the competition a sport? Pretty much all sports involve human officials that more or less do judge. Was it a strike?...a ball? It's up to the umpire, or in this scenario, the judge.

You don't run a mile in wrestling either, but thats a sport without a doubt.

I think that as SC Judge Potter Stewart once said, "I know it when I see it." There's no use in trying to come up with parameters or anything like that, because sports are so different that it makes that impossible. You just "know" that golf is a game, not a sport. You just "know" that boxing is a sport. etc...

you don't necessarily "run", but the amount of movement is as much as any other sport. Plus you need to run about 10 miles a day if you want to be competetive at all. And that's not even counting the punching and getting punched

Ok...I hear ya now.

How about diving and gymnastics?

no and no

I think that your "one miles worth of movement" theory is faulty. For example, if a boxing fight or wrestling match ends in the first round...was it not a sport? Also, you can throw sumo wrestling out the window, because those matches are very short.

I don't think it is the total amount of activity that is the factor, just that the activity is there for a period of time. Gymnasts and divers are very athletic people who have to be in very good shape for their sports. Same goes with curling and competitive cheerleading.

carlin on this matter....

"To be a sport, you have to have a ball, and you have to have the chance to kick the shit out of somebody. Football is the ultimate sport. Hockey almost has it right. You can kick the shit out of somebody, but there's no ball. There's a puck. Women have never seen a puck anyplace else. Men have, in a urinal. Auto racing is not a sport. It's driving. It's turning left. You might as well call driving to work a sport. You might as well call riding the subway a sport. At least on the subway, you have the chance to kick the shit out of somebody!"

also

Soccer is not a sport because the ball has dots on it and anything you can't use your arms for is not a sport. Running - is a way to get somewhere. It's not a sport. It's like sailing. People think sailing is a sport. It's not. It's another way to get somewhere. Swimming is not a sport. Swimming is a way to keep from drowning.