Is chess a sport or not?

[Thalas]

mahjong - pieces underneath of others means you dont know what they are and your picks reveal random pieces, so it is luck, the skill portion is finding the matches

draughts - you cant say if one board game is a sport then every other one is too, checkers does not require the same level of mental discipline, so it really is not physically exerting, and matches don't take hours like chess.  That is because checkers is a very simple game, with the only moves being diagonally.  checkers is akin to tic tac toe

halma - if it is popular in your country, good for you, if the world does not recognize the name of the game, chances are it will never be a sport

urban rivals - i was not referring to theme, if any ccg were to be a sport it would be mtg, but since card games rely mostly on luck, they are ruled out

Okay, I understand POPULARITY = SPORT
MAJORITY RULES

I give up

[agentflare]

draughts - you cant say if one board game is a sport then every other one is too, checkers does not require the same level of mental discipline, so it really is not physically exerting, and matches don't take hours like chess.  That is because checkers is a very simple game, with the only moves being diagonally.  checkers is akin to tic tac toe

Why is Chess "special"? Checkers can be extremely mentally exerting. There are even Checkers tournaments.

halma - if it is popular in your country, good for you, if the world does not recognize the name of the game, chances are it will never be a sport

Just because it's not popular, doesn't mean that it's not a sport. Do you participate in/heard of  Biribol (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biribol). No? It's a sport.

urban rivals - i was not referring to theme, if any ccg were to be a sport it would be mtg, but since card games rely mostly on luck, they are ruled out

Can't argue that one...

[Thalas]

Just a one extra post.


GO (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Go_%28game%29) is the best. It should be recognised as sport if chess is.

[Belthus]

Online Etymology Dictionary entry for sport (http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=sport):

sport (v.)
    c.1400, "to take pleasure, to amuse oneself," from Anglo-Fr. disport, from O.Fr. desport "pastime, recreation, pleasure," from desporter "to divert, amuse, please, play" (see disport). Sense of "to amuse oneself by active exercise in open air or taking part in some game" is from late 15c. Meaning "to wear" is from 1778.

sport (n.)
    mid-15c., "pleasant passtime," from sport (v.). Meaning "game involving physical exercise" first recorded 1520s. Original sense preserved in phrases such as in sport "in jest" (mid-15c.). Sense of "stylish man" is from 1861, Amer.Eng., probably because they lived by gambling and betting on races. Meaning "good fellow" is attested from 1881 (e.g. be a sport, 1913). The sport of kings was originally (1660s) war-making. Sportswear is from 1912. Sports car first attested 1928. Sportscast first recorded 1938. Sportsman first recorded 1706. Sporting "characterized by conduct constant with that of a sportsman" is attested from 1799 (e.g. sporting chance, 1897).

In the oldest sense of the word, chess is a sport because it is a pastime, a way to amuse oneself. That's not to say that other ways to use the word are wrong. If we have to prioritize aspects of a definition, the amusement part is more central than the "active exercise in open air" part. There is a contrast between an activity that is necessary (e.g., hunting for food) and an activity that is for leisure (e.g., hunting for sport).

[CPU24/7]

I think chess is a mind sport.

[Cel]

I think chess is a mind sport.

^That^ is kind of an oxymoron, because it uses your mind is why it isn't a sport.
  From my dictionary: "Any athletic activity that uses physical skills, often competitive." So unless your getting exercise by moving around those 1-2 ounce figures, I don't really think Chess is a sport.

[Artois]

I think chess is a mind sport.

^That^ is kind of an oxymoron, because it uses your mind is why it isn't a sport.
  From my dictionary: "Any athletic activity that uses physical skills, often competitive." So unless your getting exercise by moving around those 1-2 ounce figures, I don't really think Chess is a sport.

I spend many hours, early in the morning, building up my wrist action, for the purpose of athletically moving my pawn to E6... your move

[Cel]

I spend many hours, early in the morning, building up my wrist action, for the purpose of athletically moving my pawn to E6... your move

lol, very well then, I guess now whether or not chess is a sport depends on if you're being lazy while playing or not.

[Smoke]

Personally I don't think it's a sport..

Sport =Physical
Chess = Headache(not physical)

[sprtstr14]

I dunno. As long as we all agree that cheerleading is not a sport then I'm good for anything else being a sport .

[Saphien]

There was NINE dang pages to read so I'm just throwing my $0.2 in.

it has strategies, opponents, tournaments. What else would it be classified as, if not a sport? A game?  Seems like a lot of attention, emphasis worldwide, and energy to just simply be a game.

P.S. We also use the word game in regards to things that I'm sure we would ALL agree are sports. Football, baseball, etc...  8)

[johannhowitzer]

Izaya with the touchdown - the key word here is athletic.  Hunting is also a sport by that definition, but chess, checkers, backgammon, and go are not.  They are games - more specifically, board games.  Games can have tournaments too, so this isn't a demotion.  Basketball may take some of the player's mind, but not nearly as much as chess; sports generally require more physical strength and prowess, and less mental exertion.  What mental involvement there is is usually fast-paced and built on trained reactions, not in-depth analysis, since analysis on the level of chess strategy is impractical when under such pressure and physical distraction.  If there is analysis and strategy involved, it is generally a bit looser and far more psychological than chess-level strategy, and is usually performed by someone outside of the physical activity (such as a coach).

You wouldn't bring Shaq to a chess tournament, and you wouldn't bring Vladimir Kramnik to the NBA Finals.