The definition of the word “sport” is highly controversial and varies from person to person. To me, in order for an activity to qualify as a sport it must meet a few criteria. A sport is a, activity that involves physical exertion, skill, and competition. Sports do not need to entail rigorous physical activity, but do need to involve some form of exercise or burning of calories. This would disqualify activities such as competitive eating which although may be considered “physical exertion,” does not entail exercise. Sports are not for leisure, rather for competition. Competition for sports is important and without competition, there is no sport. Sports can be either team or individual competitions, as long as there is going to be some sort of score or winner. Skill is another important definer of a sport because there are some activities that meet the other requirements that are still not sports. Skill can be defined as the ability to do well in something that can be improved with practice and it not dependent on the quality equipment. While equipment is important in a sport, it is not the only factor determining success, as is the case with racecar driving for …show more content…
Fishing and hunting for example do require skill, but are leisurely, not always competitive. They would be considered activities unless it is a competition, at which point they could be considered a sport. Cheerleading would be considered a sport during a cheerleading competition because there is scoring and a winner, but cheerleaders not at a competition, like at a football game are not participating in a sport because there is no competition. This is similar to dance, which is an athletic activity that can be considered a sport when it is a competition. Similarly, if there is a hunting competition it can be considered a sport. Intent for playing is also important; golf is a sport when done as a competition, but when played for leisure it is