Things That Make You Go "Hmmm" (Or: More Olympics).

This article is v. interesting. A compelling argument, but I don't know if it's convinced me. Mostly because when people say "Such-and-such isn't a sport," they don't exactly have his criteria in mind. If his was the definitive definition of "sport," then, yeah, I'd get on board.

Why figure skating is not a sport by Dan Wetzel.

But figure skating is a competition, not a sport, and it has nothing to do with how difficult or entertaining it is. It is simply a matter of how the winner is determined. It is the same for gymnastics, diving, beauty pageants or anything that chooses a champion solely by human judging.

A sport needs to have a quantifiable way to determine a winner and a loser. There can be no debate about the scoring system. A ball must go into a goal or through a hoop; a runner must reach home or finish before the others. The winners run faster, jump higher, score more.