What defines sport?

[pullhard]

Had a great debate with a mate about what sport is, I argued that the snooker was a sport but he dismissed this.

What defines sport? where do you draw the line?

Is fishing a sport? how about a game of football? Poker for money? Is Ran Finnes a sportsman?

[5 Sams]

I heard someone say that if you have to change your shoes to play it then it's a sport.

[AZOffaly]

I think sport involves a combination of, but not necessarily all, the following factors.
Athletic endeavour, technical skill, competition, practice making you better, mental challenge.


Field games and court games fulfill most/all of the above.

Technical sports like darts, snooker etc fulfill probably 3 or 4 of them.


I'm not sure that just because something doesn't have an Athletic element it is not a sport. Although I draw the line at Poker

[seafoid]

I think sport involves a combination of, but not necessarily all, the following factors.
Athletic endeavour, technical skill, competition, practice making you better, mental challenge.


Field games and court games fulfill most/all of the above.

Technical sports like darts, snooker etc fulfill probably 3 or 4 of them.


I'm not sure that just because something doesn't have an Athletic element it is not a sport. Although I draw the line at Poker

If you included poker why would you leave snap and snakes and ladders out ?

[AZOffaly]

I didn't include Poker.

[Tony Baloney]

Related to the Rory thread elsewhere, there was a tweet last night that F1 wasn't a sport. A lot of people use the performance of the car as a stick to beat people with - can you use the same in relation to horse-racing or anything in which it is possible to have better equipment than your rival. What about the soccer team that the money to buy the best players, employ the best coaches etc? Is it only a true sport if it is mano a mano?

I have no answers but if F1 and horse-racing are sports then snooker and darts are.

[rrhf]

Are tomatos a fruit or a veg or a little bit of both?

[Franko]

My take would be that if you could play it with nothing other than your brain it's not a sport.

I.e. this rules out card games/chess/board games etc because you'd still be the same player if you had a proxy moving the pieces/laying the cards out for you.

Everything else qualifies.

My pet hate is those that say darts isn't a sport.  It's throwing an object accurately.  If you remove it then javelin/discus/shot put would all have to go too as they are only throwing a object a long distance.

[Tony Baloney]

Are tomatos a fruit or a veg or a little bit of both?

It depends how you say it.

Or spell it in your case 

[rrhf]

My take would be that if you could play it with nothing other than your brain it's not a sport.

I.e. this rules out card games/chess/board games etc because you'd still be the same player if you had a proxy moving the pieces/laying the cards out for you.

Everything else qualifies.

My pet hate is those that say darts isn't a sport.  It's throwing an object accurately.  If you remove it then javelin/discus/shot put would all have to go too as they are only throwing a object a long distance.

Has the smoking ban had any repercussions for the great sport of darts..?

[Franko]

My take would be that if you could play it with nothing other than your brain it's not a sport.

I.e. this rules out card games/chess/board games etc because you'd still be the same player if you had a proxy moving the pieces/laying the cards out for you.

Everything else qualifies.

My pet hate is those that say darts isn't a sport.  It's throwing an object accurately.  If you remove it then javelin/discus/shot put would all have to go too as they are only throwing a object a long distance.

Has the smoking ban had any repercussions for the great sport of darts..?

No more than it's had on golf.

http://jamieonsport.wordpress.com/2013/07/18/18-photos-of-miguel-angel-jimenez-enjoying-a-cigar/

[Orior]

Sports fulfills our inherent instinct to fight and prove our manhood

[laoislad]

Sports fulfills our inherent instinct to fight and prove our manhood

Especially in camogie.

[muppet]

My take would be that if you could play it with nothing other than your brain it's not a sport.

I.e. this rules out card games/chess/board games etc because you'd still be the same player if you had a proxy moving the pieces/laying the cards out for you.

Everything else qualifies.

My pet hate is those that say darts isn't a sport.  It's throwing an object accurately.  If you remove it then javelin/discus/shot put would all have to go too as they are only throwing a object a long distance.

So something can't be a sport if the action can be done with a proxy?

This would rule in say spitting, but rules out, for example, greyhound racing?

[AZOffaly]

Why would it rule out greyhound racing? The dogs are the ones running.