Athlete's? Foo

What defines an athlete? An athlete is a participant in a game of sport to achieve the honors of winning the game. Right off the top of your head you could probably names hundreds of athletes that have stood out in many different sports.

With this in mind, one must ask, "what is a sport?" Sport is a game in which toned bodies and sharp minds compete with others of the same or like capacity. Each different sport requires different physical and mental conditioning. You can clearly see the physical difference between a basketball player and, say a football player. Tall skinny guys (with perhaps a few exceptions) seldom make it big in football. Large brutish looking men who tip the scales at 300 pounds or so wouldn't qualify to play pro level basketball or even tennis for that matter.

There are many organized games which are staged on the commercial and professional level. Football, hockey, tennis, basketball, all the events at a track & field event, and rugby to name a few. But there are some "sports" out there that, in my opinion, are not participated in by individuals who are the true definition of an "athlete".

How about NASCAR? Can you honestly say that these race car drivers are athletes? If you saw a NASCAR driver at WalMart would you be able to say to yourself that yes, he's definitely a race car driver? Nope. You probably wouldn't even know it if he stood in front of you in the check-out line. So what constitutes being a race car driver? Strong upper arms, a death grip on the steering wheel, and the ability to take risks at 200 mph. This is pretty much true in drag racing, Formula 1, Motocross and other motorized sports.

Golfers are not athletes and should quit calling themselves that. Golf is walk outside spoiled by a little white ball, to paraphrase Mark Twain. Where is the physical conditioning? The mind of a golfer is only utilized perhaps for two minutes per swing while he analyzes the immediate topography of the landscape. The rest of the time constitutes walking to where the little white ball went. Hell, they don't even schlep their own clubs around. They ride in electric carts or hire a caddy to carry their clubs for them. Guys like Tiger Woods and the like do well because they have conditioned their bodies' rote movements. Same thing with bowlers.

Body builders. Are these guys athletes in the true sense of the world? I don't think so. Where is the keen mind in lifting weights? Ever seen an instant replay of some grotesquely muscle-bound dude lifting weights? If you did, it's not likely you'll see something you missed in the live act. All successful body builders have fantastic physical conditioning with no thought given to mind in the participation of the contest. The mind's job in this case is to punish the body into betting bigger.

There are more pseudo-athletes out there. Look at the Olympics. Where is the athletic ability of the lugers, water ballerinas, artistic dancers, archers and bobsledders? It's rote muscle or the mind controlling the body to to propel them at high speeds where gravity is the engine.

Are chess players athletes? Is Poker a sport? Is Curling? Forget it. What about baseball players? Hmmm, now they're somewhat akin to the golfers, don't you agree? Nine guys stand around a field, spitting and scratching while one guy tries to hit a ball traveling 90 mph. If he's successful in hitting the ball 33% of the time he's considered a star. Where's the sport in that?
It's more like a slow game of chance.

Hope I gotcha thinkin'.