Is Bridge a sport?

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Mad Doug Biker

Banned from every bar in the Galaxy
Location
Craggy Island
Depends what I'm being compared to...

Don't tempt me!! :laugh:
 
Amusing, entertaining, but 5 pages in, nobody has offered a sensible definition of the difference between a game and a sport!! Such a waste of a cornucopia of brain cells!!
 

IDMark2

Dodgy Aerial
Location
On the Roof
Taking this a stage further, what do you think is the criteria for having any given sport/game in the Olympics?
You must have given Seb Coe an envelope.
 

400bhp

Guru
Taking this a stage further, what do you think is the criteria for having any given sport/game in the Olympics?

If I really cared then probably something like it's played by x% of the world's population (x defined by the IoC dependant upon how many sports they can accomodate), and involves some physical exertion with a world governing body and defined universe rules.

Or, just anything so long as it's not golf.
 

Tin Pot

Guru
Is Bridge a Sport?

sport

noun

1 An activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment:

No. It's missing a bit.

A brilliant rebuttal here (substitute darts for bridge, or whatever):

"I thank my opponent for challenging me to this debate; I hope it will be entertaining for the audience and voters!

I will make my argument as follows:
Darts is a sport because it fits the definition. The definition of sport (when used as a noun) is:
"an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment"[1]
Allow me to break this down.

1. An activity - yes. ("The condition in which things are happening or being done.")[2] Things are indeed being done when one plays darts.
2. Involving physical skill ((I will leave physical exertion until the end as this will doubtless be what most of the argument hinges on)). - yes. ("the ability to do something well; expertise")[3] Clearly, the ability to rack up points consistently from a distance involves skill.
3. An individual or team competes. Absolutely! While normally individual - one can also play as a team of two in some cases.[4]
4. for entertainment. Yes! Entertainment for large audiences, very often broadcast on TV; is entertainment. If you want more; it also fits the definition![5]

5. Involving physical exertion. This is where the heart of the debate will lie. Certainly, from a spectator's point of view; darts may appear to be not physically draining. However, consider this:
While darts matches vary greatly in length, we'll say, for the sake of argument; each game lasts one and a half hours. One and a half hours of throwing a dart might not seem like much. Well, they'll be concentrating hard, often holding the dart in place while one sizes up, you will be doing each dart throw three times, tripling the amount, *and* you will be competing against other person(s). This has a strong psychological effect and will often lead to physical effects, too. My friend, darts involves physical exertion!"

http://www.debate.org/debates/Is-Darts-a-sport/1/
 
A brilliant rebuttal here (substitute darts for bridge, or whatever):

"I thank my opponent for challenging me to this debate; I hope it will be entertaining for the audience and voters!

I will make my argument as follows:
Darts is a sport because it fits the definition. The definition of sport (when used as a noun) is:
"an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment"[1]
Allow me to break this down.

1. An activity - yes. ("The condition in which things are happening or being done.")[2] Things are indeed being done when one plays darts.
2. Involving physical skill ((I will leave physical exertion until the end as this will doubtless be what most of the argument hinges on)). - yes. ("the ability to do something well; expertise")[3] Clearly, the ability to rack up points consistently from a distance involves skill.
3. An individual or team competes. Absolutely! While normally individual - one can also play as a team of two in some cases.[4]
4. for entertainment. Yes! Entertainment for large audiences, very often broadcast on TV; is entertainment. If you want more; it also fits the definition![5]

5. Involving physical exertion. This is where the heart of the debate will lie. Certainly, from a spectator's point of view; darts may appear to be not physically draining. However, consider this:
While darts matches vary greatly in length, we'll say, for the sake of argument; each game lasts one and a half hours. One and a half hours of throwing a dart might not seem like much. Well, they'll be concentrating hard, often holding the dart in place while one sizes up, you will be doing each dart throw three times, tripling the amount, *and* you will be competing against other person(s). This has a strong psychological effect and will often lead to physical effects, too. My friend, darts involves physical exertion!"

http://www.debate.org/debates/Is-Darts-a-sport/1/
Yebbut, can you imagine the stress and strain involved when you've gone for a Grand Slam, you've wagered you're house, and your opponents hold four aces!!
 

IDMark2

Dodgy Aerial
Location
On the Roof
While darts matches vary greatly in length, we'll say, for the sake of argument; each game lasts one and a half hours. One and a half hours of throwing a dart might not seem like much. Well, they'll be concentrating hard, often holding the dart in place while one sizes up, you will be doing each dart throw three times, tripling the amount, *and* you will be competing against other person(s). This has a strong psychological effect and will often lead to physical effects, too. My friend, darts involves physical exertion

I tried replacing darts with Bridge in this bit, it reads as thus:

While bridge matches vary greatly in length, we'll say, for the sake of argument; each game lasts one and a half hours. One and a half hours of throwing a bridge might not seem like much. Well, they'll be concentrating hard, often holding the bridge in place while one sizes up, you will be doing each bridge throw three times, tripling the amount, *and* you will be competing against other person(s). This has a strong psychological effect and will often lead to physical effects, too. My friend, bridge involves physical exertion

In this context it does indeed look like quite hard physical work.
 
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