Far be it from me to say that gymnasts, divers, or even to a lesser degree, MMA fighters aren’t involved in a true sport, but I have to be honest.
Keep in mind that according to purists, the difference between a sport and an athletic event is that a sport involves a real, measurable outcome between the winner and the loser. From what I’ve gathered, purists have the two divided the two into objective and subjective categories.
The golfer with the lowest number of strokes is the winner. The baseball team with the greater number of runs is the winner. The marathoner who completes the course in the fastest time is the winner. That’s how it’s supposed to work, right?
On the other side of the coin, we have the pommel horse, synchronized 10 meter platform, and MMA fights that don’t end in a tap-out, TKO or a KO (that’s why I wish UFC would get rid of judges. Let ’em duke it out until one guy quits or is rendered incapable of fighting any further).
Don’t get me wrong. Gymnasts, divers, and especially MMA fighters are all possessing more athletic ability in their collective pinkies than I will ever have, currently or will ever have.
With all that aside, I’m not exactly shocked to find out that Little League Baseball and Pee Wee football are all dying out. Yes, I understand that Professional European Kickball (AKA: “Soccer“) is technically a sport… but, c’mon. We’re talking ’bout soccer.
Anyhow, we all realize that PTS (Participation Trophy Syndrome) really is a thing. But at least during the height of PTS, there was such a thing as winners and losers.
Taking it one step further, Youth Soccer is known to have matches where scores aren’t kept. In other words, this latest batch of kids have little to no idea of the elation of victory or the character-building feeling of defeat.
Is it any wonder that so many high school and college students have no idea of obvious moral absolutes? Life is so much easier when 2+2=orange triangle or that carving the heads off of little babies is acceptable when the teacher agrees that 2+2=orange triangle or the professor demands that you agree with carving the heads off of little babies is acceptable… or else.
But in all fairness, at least the kids out of the soccer pitch are running, sharpening their own particular athletic abilities, and know what a sweat is.