The long-time word champion Merriam Webster defines sport as “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or other without reliance on luck.”

Ergo, tennis is a sport because both Roger Federer and Serena Williams exerted time and effort physically, from training to contending, to garner their respective Wimbledon titles. Also, basketball is a sport because Chris Bosh, LeBron James, and Dwayne Wade competed against Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Russell Westbrook for the National Basketball Association Championship. Boxing will never allow Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire to simply be lucky to have unified the super bantamweight titles.

In such definite terms, as also utilized by the de facto representative of international sport SportAccord, there seems to be several sports which appear to be not, after all.


1) Bass Fishing


Physical exertion: casting the fishing line on the water and pulling it back
Skill: endless patience and prompt reflexes to act once there is a nibble
Competition: recreational fishermen who find sitting around and waiting for fish to be relaxing
Luck factor: the venue is not Pasig River


2) Competitive Eating


Physical exertion: putting food in the mouth and directly swallowing, skipping chewing altogether
Skill: hand speed of going from one food to the next and forgetting pride as grease, crumbs, and such stick all over the face and body
Competition: obviously, not-health-conscious people
Luck factor: enough fiber to digest all that will be swallowed
3) Curling


Physical exertion: sweeping the icy floor while skating
Skill: obsession-compulsion in sweeping the floor while gracefully leading the way for the rock to follow its path
Competition: hockey or figure skating rejects and house husbands or wives
Luck factor: years of household chores were already actual training


4) Jai Alai


Physical exertion: catching the pelota from against the wall and throwing it back into the wall
Skill: sharp vision to see the little pelota and sure hand-eye coordination
Competition: hybridists who make sense of mixing squash, lacrosse, and cricket, and the attire of horse jockeys
Luck factor: worst case scenario, the helmet is strong enough to handle the impact of the pelota traveling at 150 mph


5) Professional Wrestling


Physical exertion: running, lifting, throwing, leaping, screaming
Skill: looking good in bright spandex or tights
Competition: scripted by Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) writers
Luck factor: being in the good graces of Vince McMahon and WWE writers

* in all fairness to McMahon and WWE, they have gradually phased out “professional wrestling” as their calling card and have shifted to “sports entertainment”


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6) Rock Paper Scissors


Physical exertion: bouncing one closed hand off the open other
Skill: good form of the hand being rock, paper, or scissors
Competition: The United States of America Rock Paper Scissors League last crowned its champion in 2007
Luck factor: 1 in 3 chance of getting it correct, with no science whatsoever to completely explain it


7) Solar-powered Car Racing


Physical exertion: pushing pedal to the metal and directing the steering wheel
Skill: going around the track while ensuring the solar panel is still able to collect the sunlight
Competition: people who have the need for “speed” but are eco-friendly at the same time
Luck factor: rain, rain, go away and speed, speed, come another day


What other sports do you think are "questionable"?


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