Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr Winston O Boogie jr
I agree that the artistic component of these types of sports makes them more interesting to watch, but to me when that aspect is emphasized, they cease to be sports. Most sports are very quantifiable. One golfer takes 70 strokes another takes 69. The one that takes 69 wins. It doesn't matter that the one who shot 70 has a prettier swing or hit all of the fairways and greens and that the one who shot 69 scrambled to make pars and chipped in for birdies. Whichever baseball team scores the most runs wins, period. It doesn't matter if one team manufactures runs by bunting, and stealing bases and the other hits big powerful fun to watch home runs. I all sports except figure skating and some gymnastics how you do it makes no difference. If one gets more goals, baskets, runs, touchdowns or points, they win. Style has nothing to do with sports. There's a saying in golf. "There's no place on the scorecard to draw pictures." In other words, a perfect drive, a second shot to two feet and a short putt is three. A drive in the rough, a second shot that misses the green and a chip in is also three.
Also in sports, there is very little judging when it comes to scoring. True, baseball umpires call balls and strikes and whether a runner is safe or out, and football referees call penalties which can have a effect on the eventual outcome of the game, but no one determines at the end of the game that the team with fewer points won because they looked prettier doing it.
That's why personally, I consider figure skating and gymnastics to be quasi sports. They are more show business than sport. Great entertainment and certainly require great physical and athletic ability but so do the performers in Cirque du Soleil.
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I get your point about the sporting ability aspect. figure skating is more of a dance with a sport component, like ballet on ice. I'm glad it's included in the Olympics, and I don't really care who wins. I just like to watch.
In the off-topic department, I like to watch all the winter Olympic sports--even curling!