Admit it.If you're a guy, you probably think figure skating is about on par with the opera, more suited for women and children than any man with an ounce of testosterone.
I'm right there with you; the only riveting storyline I can remember that's related to figure skating is when Tonya Harding took out Nancy Kerrigan's knee with a sledge hammer.
But let's not allow our biases to get in the way of a healthy discussion on figure skating's merits as a sport.
Why Figure Skating might be considered a sport
While one could argue that figure skating is more of an art form than a sport (see below), you can't tell me that figure skaters don't have to train pretty hard to be able to pull off the moves they do. In fact, I would argue that the better your conditioning -- jumping, endurance, balance, etc. -- the greater your chances of success.
As for competitiveness, figure skating can get pretty intense; just ask Tonya Harding.
Why Figure Skating might not be considered a sport
For most people, Disney on Ice and other ice capade-like performances have helped ruin any notion that figure skating is anything but an art form. The frilly, sequin-heavy outfits that real figure skaters -- male and female alike -- don't do anything to detract from that assumption.
Also, David Arnott (from Sportszillablog) and Chris (from 110%) think that the subjective nature of competitions such as figure skating exclude them from membership in the category of sports. David says "competitions that require subjective judging to directly determine a score are not sports."
Final Ruling: Is a sport. I don't care to watch it, and you may not either, but by my original criteria (requires physical fitness to excel and involves competition), figure skating qualifies.
Certainty: It's a close call, but figure skating makes it -- by an "edge." (Pun intended)
10 comments:
Agreed. They are certainly athletes.
That subjective premise is rubbish. Are you going to say that gymnastics isn't a sport?
On a semi-related tangent, being a straight male figure skater is a gold mine.
Gymnastics isn't a sport. There, I said it.
As I said in my comment on the original post, gymnastics would be a competition. Very athletic, moreso than most sports even. But the subjective nature of determining a winner makes it not a sport.
Same is true for ice skating here.
And about Ty's first sentence: yes, figure skaters are athletes. Figure skating is a comp, not a sport.
Sorry for the delayed response, but Chris, don't you think you're splitting hairs at this point? You can be an athlete without playing a sport? How is THAT possible?
Perhaps I'm splitting hairs. I just see that there are two distinct types of athletic endeavors: sports and competitions. And that isn't intended to be first tier/second tier. It is simply based on the premise that with some endeavors you earn points or keep time or in some way keep track of who's winning, and in other endeavors you rely on someone to judge your performance.
An analogy:
Is there a difference between a cheeseburger and a Coke? They are both consumable, they both provide nourishment for the body (OK, maybe not so much the burger and Coke, but you get the idea), they both taste good.
Ah, but there is a fundamental difference between solid food and liquid drink. I like burgers and I like Coke, and one is not necessarily better than the other, but they are different.
In my opinion, the subjective nature of ice skating, gymnastics, etc is just as fundamentally different. And that is why I think 'sport/not a sport' doesn't cover everything.
I believe you yourself, Kevin, have said that analogies are never perfect, but I hope this helps to explain my reasoning.
After reading this, I'll have to agree with Chris - that figure skating is a competition, not a sport, due to that whole subjective thing.
Many figure skaters are amazing athletes, but unfortunately their training doesn't necessarily control the outcome of their competitions, the judges do.
@Chris - I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. I appreciate the analogy attempt, but it still doesn't do it for me. :-S.
@Littleskatermom - Thanks for the comment, and hope you find your way back to the blog. If a subjectivity is what differentiates between competitions and sports (as Chris says), then yeah, figure skating wouldn't be a sport. But I don't buy that differentiation.
Okay, so if figure skating is a competition, does that make football a competition aswell? Oh and not to mention every other sport out there... Figure skating has a winning pair or single, football has a winning team, as does basketball, baseball, cricket.. Sure, skating is a competition, but that doesn't mean it's not a sport. Skaters work harder than most sportsmen and women so don't say it's not a sport..
Instead of making up your own definition of a sport look at the definition of the word and you will find that Figure Skating is a sport.
http://www.gofigureskating.com/story/fssport.html
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