[OT] Winning Medal Count but losing...

[carpandean]

I know I'll get slammed for this, but I think if the sport doesn't involve man vs. man, a race, a football or hockey game, etc..., man vs. height, a high jump, or a distance, shot put, it's not a sport. Anything where the scoring is PURELY based on someone's opinion is not a sport. Now, YOU DO HAVE TO BE ATHLETIC to compete in gymnastics, diving, etc...I will will not and cannot argue against that. But, I do not think they are sports.

There was a big argument in a thread about Tiger Woods, where golf and running were both described as not "sports". I don't want to dig that back up, but at the time, I said that in my mind, a "sport" involves interacting in such a way that each player's actions directly and actively (to avoid chess = sport argument) affect's its opponents play. Other activities not meeting these criteria are athletic competitions and many require participants to be some of the best athletes in the world (for example, swimming would be an athletic competition, but Phelps is clearly one of the best athletes in the world.) Obviously, there is some gray area in that definition. In running and swimming, there are positional games that are played, in which players' actions do affect each other. However, the main intent is still to cover a distance faster than your opponent can. This level of interaction is hard to compare with that of hockey or football or even baseball. By this definition, few of these opinion-based events would be "sports", though boxing would be.

 

Note: the main problem with this argument is that people who compete in these "athletic competitions" (I have, in both crew and Nordic skiing; I have also played sports such as soccer, baseball, hockey, etc.) feel that not being a "sport" is somehow a negative comment on their activities. This is not true and is simply a word-application argument. I loved rowing and it was probably the most athletically challenging activity that I have ever been involved in (sustained activity, as opposed the burst activity of hockey), but I consider it an athletic competition, not a "sport".

 

Note 2: this is my definition and you are welcome to your own. Some dictionary definitions are looser and, in practice, so are the definitions used in discussions. No big deal; just a personal opinion.

[nobody]

The only meaningful olympic sport is Trampoline.

 

Actually I'm also looking forward to rhythmic gymnastics - can't get enough of ribbon.

[MattPie]

There was a big argument in a thread about Tiger Woods, where golf and running were both described as not "sports". I don't want to dig that back up, but at the time, I said that in my mind, a "sport" involves interacting in such a way that each player's actions directly and actively (to avoid chess = sport argument) affect's its opponents play.

 

How about direct-interaction competitions (tennis, hockey (oooh, on-topic!), baseball, etc.) being 'games', where sports that are timed/measured/races and involve physical output from the athlete (so the morons can't say NASCAR and poker are 'sports' :))?

 

Yeah, it's all nomenclature, but there's nothing else to talk about.

[spndnchz]

Maybe we can just say "Any game, race, etc that you can sit back with a brewski and yell for whatever purpose" counts as a sport.

[Guest Sloth]

Maybe we can just say "Any game, race, etc that you can sit back with a brewski and yell for whatever purpose" counts as a sport.

 

Texas Hold'em is on ESPN. It can be fun to watch, but come on. Texas Hold'em should stay on the other channels that show it.