Why do some people say Running is not a sport?

Pisco Sour

Some people have said to me before that running is not a sport, and merely an activity or ingredient that is used by other sports. That there is zero skill in running and that literally anybody can do it. And that people only do it because they are no good at anything else.

The same people think that ball based sports such as Rugby, Football, Gaelic Football, Hurling etc require lots of skill and talent.

While I agree that these sports have more of a skill element they really are no different to running in the following way:

Can anybody run: Yes
Can anybody run a marathon sub 2:30: Absolutely not!

Can anybody play rugby or football: Yes, absolutely. Anybody can wander out to a local training session and attempt to play. They may suck really bad, get badly injured in the process but anybody can "play" rugby or football. I see somebody playing for the 7ths at a local club as no different to somebody who runs a 5k in 30-40 minutes or whatever!

Can anybody play rugby or football to a very high level: Absolutely not!

Thoughts?

RacoonQueen

Funny time to start this thread as I've just told someone that one of the reasons I run is because I can.

Surely everyone can run as in pick two feet up off the ground in a nature similar to walking, only faster, but, not everyone can run it's a massive physical undertaking and takes incredible mental strength, to say there is no skill in running is just ignorant.

How many times have people said to you;
"I don't know how you do it, I couldn't run 5 metres"
"Do you not get bored"
"How do you do it?"
"You're so dedicated"

etc etc etc
Is pacing correctly not a skill? Is designing an effective training schedule not a skill? Is cutting 5 minutes off a PB not a skill?

cickimc

What i say to them usually GAA idiots is

The olympics is the pinnacle of the world sport! Soccer rugby Athletics are all there is


GAA isn't the there so technically its not a sport
(I know it is a sport needs a good bit of skill but saying it to club level players puts them in their spot that its just a little thing someone made up like tiddliwinks)

Like in all fairness rugby soccer and all that is just things people made up! But athletics running walking javelin all our events have history and where valuble tools for the war these fine athletes! Finely tuned machines

We dont get half enough respect in my opionion by GAA fools

ss43

04072511 wrote: »

Some people have said to me before that running is not a sport, and merely an activity or ingredient that is used by other sports. That there is zero skill in running and that literally anybody can do it. And that people only do it because they are no good at anything else.

The same people think that ball based sports such as Rugby, Football, Gaelic Football, Hurling etc require lots of skill and talent.

While I agree that these sports have more of a skill element they really are no different to running in the following way:

Can anybody run: Yes
Can anybody run a marathon sub 2:30: Absolutely not!

Can anybody play rugby or football: Yes, absolutely. Anybody can wander out to a local training session and attempt to play. They may suck really bad, get badly injured in the process but anybody can "play" rugby or football. I see somebody playing for the 7ths at a local club as no different to somebody who runs a 5k in 30-40 minutes or whatever!

Can anybody play rugby or football to a very high level: Absolutely not!

Thoughts?

Let's all talk about how great we are to run. Who really cares what non-runners think? Do you run for them or do you run for you?

Dont be at yourself

Running by itself is not a sport, it's an activity. A sport is competitive, so while a marathon or the 100 metre sprint may be a sport, running is not.

gerard65

Running's not a sport, its much more than that.

tunney

cickimc wrote: »

What i say to them usually GAA idiots is

The olympics is the pinnacle of the world sport! Soccer rugby Athletics are all there is


GAA isn't the there so technically its not a sport
(I know it is a sport needs a good bit of skill but saying it to club level players puts them in their spot that its just a little thing someone made up like tiddliwinks)

Like in all fairness rugby soccer and all that is just things people made up! But athletics running walking javelin all our events have history and where valuble tools for the war these fine athletes! Finely tuned machines

We dont get half enough respect in my opionion by GAA fools

Where to start?

I won't resort to name calling just yet, but some choice words do come to mind.

Yes field sports players over estimate their aerobic fitness massively, however endurance athletes, and I use that term loosely here I feel, massively underestimate the skills required for alot of field sports and also don't appreciate the demands of the explosive nature of field sports nor the demands of operating as a team.

The reason most field sport athletes dont appreciate endurance sports, and as you've demonstrated quite often vice versa, is their massively blinkered views of sports. Go out, try hurling, try golf, try martial arts, then come back and say that they are easy. Get the field sports athlete to go run a 75 half, tell me that was easy.

Your opinion that the Olympics is the be all and end all is also flawed. Some examples:
-cycling, nope it's the TdF, or the classics
-triathlon, split down the middle, for some it's kona
-soccer, nope it's the world cup
-boxing, nope it's the wbo belts
-the list goes on

stop patting yourself on the back and telling yourself you are fantastic for doing a bit of whatever, appreciate sports of all nature and if someone is lolling down on your sport the invite them to run a 32:30 10km with you or score a point from a sideline cut from the halfway line.
-

myflipflops

Some people say smoking is great.

Basically, 'some people' are idiots.

thirtyfoot

I've never heard anyone say running isn't a sport. Could it be that your mates will know they will get a reaction by saying it to you? Like when I say to people who play golf that it isn't a sport just to get a reaction.

southofnowhere

Smoking isn't great. Eating jaffa cakes is.

Denigrating other sports makes no you no better that thosn who denigrate yours.

The GAA is a fine organisation and I wouldn't agree with the use of the terms 'fools' and 'idiots' in a previous post, which is showing toxic levels of irony.

thirtyfoot

Ah come on horse, you are stretching it there!

cickimc wrote: »

walking

and

cickimc wrote: »

Finely tuned machines

Finely Tuned Machine



Walker

I know which of these lads I want in the trenches with me;)

MrCreosote

Tingle wrote: »

I know which of these lads I want in the trenches with me;)

Personally I wouldn't trust those Cork Hurlers- they'd probably go on strike unless they could choose the generals in charge and what time they attack the enemy....

cickimc

Tingle wrote: »

Ah come on horse, you are stretching it there!



and







Walker

I know which of these lads I want in the trenches with me;)

Find a GAA man tougher then Jamie! Finley tuned machine I think so
[IMG]file:///C:/Users/Cian/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot.png[/IMG][IMG]file:///C:/Users/Cian/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot-1.png[/IMG]

To be honest anyone can run or srpint but racewalking really tests an athlete
You pick a slightly walker there saying he would be useless in war! What good would bekele be in the trenches apart from being able to run away
You picked a stupid point throwing out a walker cause usually there just as fit and much stronger then runners

thirtyfoot

Good point on Cork hurlers, there would be a coup. Bekele would be a serious scout. Could you imagine a charge from a battalion of walkers, half would have a dq before leaving the trench, one foot on the ground all the time would mean landmines going off left, right and centre and it would take the rest an age to reach enemy lines.

Milesandmiles

Tingle wrote: »

Good point on Cork hurlers, there would be a coup. Bekele would be a serious scout. Could you imagine a charge from a battalion of walkers, half would have a dq before leaving the trench, one foot on the ground all the time would mean landmines going off left, right and centre and it would take the rest an age to reach enemy lines.

Methinks somebody is trying to get you going cickmic

TheJones

Why is everyone hell bent on going to war on this thread?

Jip

TheJones wrote: »

Why is everyone hell bent on going to war on this thread?

Exactly, war, huh ? What is it good for.

Pisco Sour

tunney wrote: »

-boxing, nope it's the wbo belts

Actually this is very wrong. The WBA, WBC and IBF belts are much more prestigious. The WBO belts are often fought for by lower quality fighters. The WBO is barely recognised in the USA.

Way off topic I know, but everyone else seems to have done that anyway!

ss43

cickimc wrote: »

Find a GAA man tougher then Jamie! Finley tuned machine I think so
[IMG]file:///C:/Users/Cian/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot.png[/IMG][IMG]file:///C:/Users/Cian/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot-1.png[/IMG]

To be honest anyone can run or srpint but racewalking really tests an athlete
You pick a slightly walker there saying he would be useless in war! What good would bekele be in the trenches apart from being able to run away
You picked a stupid point throwing out a walker cause usually there just as fit and much stronger then runners

Yeah, tests how low they're willing to go to get a cheap national medal/international vest/place in the Olympics etc.

They waste their strength and fitness by moving in a ridiculously inefficient manner.

Just going on pictures, I'd say most GAA players would be tougher than Jamie (and most other walkers and runners).

thirtyfoot

ss43 wrote: »

Just going on pictures, I'd say most GAA players would be tougher than Jamie (and most other walkers and runners).

But in reality when it comes to toughness there won't be anyone tougher than Costin! He'd be the guy carry other injured guys on his back and then going back to carry more, a la Forrest Gump and Bubba.

notsofast

Tingle wrote: »

Like when I say to people who play golf that it isn't a sport just to get a reaction.

Yeah, but we all know the truth!!

W.B. Yeats

cickimc wrote: »

What i say to them usually GAA idiots is

The olympics is the pinnacle of the world sport! Soccer rugby Athletics are all there is


GAA isn't the there so technically its not a sport
(I know it is a sport needs a good bit of skill but saying it to club level players puts them in their spot that its just a little thing someone made up like tiddliwinks)

Like in all fairness rugby soccer and all that is just things people made up! But athletics running walking javelin all our events have history and where valuble tools for the war these fine athletes! Finely tuned machines

We dont get half enough respect in my opionion by GAA fools

Wow

Nomination for worst post of the year.

thirtythirty

04072511 wrote: »

Some people have said to me before that running is not a sport, and merely an activity or ingredient that is used by other sports. That there is zero skill in running and that literally anybody can do it. And that people only do it because they are no good at anything else.

The same people think that ball based sports such as Rugby, Football, Gaelic Football, Hurling etc require lots of skill and talent.

While I agree that these sports have more of a skill element they really are no different to running in the following way:

Can anybody run: Yes
Can anybody run a marathon sub 2:30: Absolutely not!

Well i reckon you could argue semantics about whether being able to run a marathon that fast is due to fitness + skill, or fitness + technique. And i tend to think the latter.

I think to be classified an official "sport", it needs to have an element of skill. And by skill i mean it's something that you have to be taught and learn how to do. Running is instintive - you can do it automatically from the age of 2, from there you just refine your technique to make you better.

Snooker, golf, and darts are classified as sports because they are learned skills. While nobody will argue fitness of a golfer over a runner, being able to run fast/far is more a feat of amazing athleticism rather than being amazing at a sport.

cickimc

W.B. Yeats wrote: »

Wow

Nomination for worst post of the year.

Woooo hold on! This isn't my opionion as such! This is my argument when people argue with me saying o bla bla bla athletics isn't a sport. They use make stupid comments so just argue my points with them.
I enjoy watching gaa and admire county players but when club fools argue with you, they are just my points i throw out at them to make them realise that there sport isn't perfect

To be honest i've had way too many fights in work with people telling me running and athletics isn't a real sport

cickimc

Tingle wrote: »

Good point on Cork hurlers, there would be a coup. Bekele would be a serious scout. Could you imagine a charge from a battalion of walkers, half would have a dq before leaving the trench, one foot on the ground all the time would mean landmines going off left, right and centre and it would take the rest an age to reach enemy lines.

I'm going to to get my own army going. Myself, Jamie Costin, Rob Heffernan, Colin Griffen, Olive and Ray Flynn as commander. We are willing to fight any event 5 on 5 in the middle of the track in Santry
I call on tingle who i think is a hurdler to bring his 5 (jokes jokes)

tunney

spottyelephant wrote: »

Well i reckon you could argue semantics about whether being able to run a marathon that fast is due to fitness + skill, or fitness + technique. And i tend to think the latter.

I think to be classified an official "sport", it needs to have an element of skill. And by skill i mean it's something that you have to be taught and learn how to do. Running is instintive - you can do it automatically from the age of 2, from there you just refine your technique to make you better.

Snooker, golf, and darts are classified as sports because they are learned skills. While nobody will argue fitness of a golfer over a runner, being able to run fast/far is more a feat of amazing athleticism rather than being amazing at a sport.

My daughter is 16 weeks old.
She has a long skinny teddy that she throws in much the same manner as you would throw a dart.
She also a teddy that is roughly spherical - she kicks that if its near her feet.
She also likes swimming (or at least not drowning in a pool but by your logic she just needs to "refine her technique")

Does that mean GAA, soccer, rugby, swimming and darts are not sports too? As if a 16 week old can do its not a sport by your logic.

tunguska

Tingle wrote: »

Good point on Cork hurlers, there would be a coup. Bekele would be a serious scout. Could you imagine a charge from a battalion of walkers, half would have a dq before leaving the trench, one foot on the ground all the time would mean landmines going off left, right and centre and it would take the rest an age to reach enemy lines.

Brilliant stuff Tingle.

Milesandmiles

tunney wrote: »

My daughter is 16 weeks old.
She has a long skinny teddy that she throws in much the same manner as you would throw a dart.
She also a teddy that is roughly spherical - she kicks that if its near her feet.
She also likes swimming (or at least not drowning in a pool but by your logic she just needs to "refine her technique")

Does that mean GAA, soccer, rugby, swimming and darts are not sports too? As if a 16 week old can do its not a sport by your logic.

Wow that's 1 v impressive 16 week old..... If she keeps going you won't need a pension

SUNGOD

To be honest i've had way too many fights in work with people telling me running and athletics isn't a real sport

they just confuse running and competitive athletics, anyone can run but they are not the same thing
there is a difference between someone who runs twice a week to keep the weight down or stay off the fags
or someone who competes in reigonal/national/international championships where tactics/pacing and preparation are vital
if you dont run its easy to knock running
its like if you dont go fly fishing its easy to knock J R hartley*



*if you dont get it your your lucky to be too young to remember the add

michellemuncher

This is the definition of sport from Wikipedia:

"A sport is commonly defined as an organized, competitive, and skillful physical activity requiring commitment and fair play"

Sungod said it well, there is a world of difference between jogging a bit and running at the highest level. It is no different with any other physical or competitive activity, including football. Anyone who says running is not a sport is simply ignorant of the definition of sport and/or of competitive running.

ocnoc

spottyelephant wrote: »

I think to be classified an official "sport", it needs to have an element of skill. And by skill i mean it's something that you have to be taught and learn how to do. Running is instintive - you can do it automatically from the age of 2, from there you just refine your technique to make you better.

...so anyone can run?
What about mountain running? Its just running... but get your fastest track athletic or a 2:30 marathoner and see can they descend down a rocky, muddy vertical incline....
Descending hard is one of the most physical and mentally taxing forms of running