Tuesday, February 21, 2006

Figure Skating Not A Sport?

That's Dan Wetzel's take. I'm inclined to agree with him, and this really does raise a lot of questions about "competitive activities." Wetzel has some good points, but I took an interest in this bit toward the end of the article:

This creates a bizarre paradox where something like curling is a sport and figure skating isn't, even though to compare the level of necessary athletic ability is comical. But it is what it is. You have to be a stunning athlete to compete in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest but that doesn't make it a sport.
This is where I see a thin line between skill and athleticism. Shouldn't something like bean-bag toss then be considered a sport? If curling is a sport, bowling has a claim too. What about beer pong? The physical demands of that game can drop you to the floor. Dan Wetzel makes a lot of sense, but he's turned my world upside-down. I don't know the classification of anything I'm doing now! Is this website a hobby, leisure-activity, or display of typing prowess? Can it be some of those, but not all? All but not some? Some for all and all for none? All for one and one for all? Sports are becoming an SAT math problem with overlapping circles and Venn diagrams. Nothing in this world can be labeled anymore! I'm going to resign from language for the day. To me, figure skating will be an "ice occurrence" and nothing more.

(Photo: This woman is apparently the Michelle Kwan of figure skating.)
(Caught on the Bound Fact: Michelle Kwan has now become the most frequently mentioned woman on the site.)