# Is figure skating a sport? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 30, 2007, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147 "2007-01-30T18:51:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/1 "2007-01-30T18:51:32Z")
My boyfriend says that at best it’s a competition, because of the judging aspect. I think it’s a sport, but I can’t seem to come up with a reason why beyond “it just is!” I believe that a better reason exists, though, so I turn to the Dope. 🙂 Do you think that figure skating is a sport? Why/why not? (FWIW: I did a search for this topic, and the closest I came up with was [this post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=7121906&postcount=77) by **GingerOfTheNorth** in [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=358427) of **twickster** ’s last year. If I’ve missed something more pertinent, please let me know!) ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/2 "2007-01-30T19:00:15Z")
It isn’t a sport because there isn’t any objective criteria for winning. You don’t score runs, or goals, or whatever. The final ranking is purely subjective. Therefore it is a competition, not a sport. IMO. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Caridwen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c89c15/32.png) [@Caridwen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caridwen)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/3 "2007-01-30T19:01:53Z")
Couldn’t you say the same thing about diving? ---
**Author:** ![ASAKMOTSD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@ASAKMOTSD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASAKMOTSD)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/4 "2007-01-30T19:03:25Z")
[QUOTE=Caridwen] Couldn’t you say the same thing about diving? [/QUOTE] I would say that diving qualifies as a competition - unless the objective is the number of times one hits the pool. Then, it is a sport - not a great one, but still a sport. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/5 "2007-01-30T19:03:47Z")
If the judging aspect means it’s not a sport, then what about gymnastics, freestyle skiing, snowboarding, diving, etc.? What about boxing? I think figure skating is a sport. I’m not so sure about ice dancing and rhythmic gymnastics. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/6 "2007-01-30T19:07:05Z")
[QUOTE=h.sapiens] If the judging aspect means it’s not a sport, then what about gymnastics, freestyle skiing, snowboarding, diving, etc.? What about boxing? [/QUOTE] All competitions, in his book. Can anyone think of a reason why it _is_ a sport? I mean, by strict dictionary definition terms it is, but he thinks that something has to be won or lost objectively in order to really be a sport. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/7 "2007-01-30T19:07:45Z")
If hunting, fishing and boxing are sports, then fiigure skating totally gets to be a sport too. There are objective mesures of performance in figure skating (eg, number of quads performed, number of tripples, spins, etc) along with the subjective “foo-foo” measures. Totally a sport. ---
**Author:** ![justqwerty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/59ef9b/32.png) [@justqwerty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/justqwerty)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/8 "2007-01-30T19:09:41Z")
> [@](#): > > It isn’t a sport because there isn’t any objective criteria for winning. what about chess, bridge they do have objective criteria for winning, but can we really consider them sports ? I guess we have to define “sport” somehow. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/9 "2007-01-30T19:11:50Z")
In my humble opinion, if the only way to win is for somebody to tell you that you do “it” better than other people, then “it” isn’t a sport. Now that doesn’t mean figure skaters, dancers, gymnasts, divers, synchronized swimmers, etc. aren’t athletes; because it is also my opinion that you don’t have to play a “sport” to be an athlete. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/10 "2007-01-30T19:12:57Z")
I love figure skating, but I think the manner in which it is judged makes it hard to qualify it as a sport, mainly because of the artistic element. I don’t think “judged” sports all fall under this category. For gymnastics, for instance, the analogy I like to use is that the judge is similar to a referee in football. That is, there is a specific goal that is being attempted, and the judge/referee uses a professionally trained eye to determine if it was accomplished in a manner that is within the guidelines of the sport. The easiest apparatus to illustrate this with is the vault. Each potential vault is worth X number of points, which is pre-determined. The judge merely watches to see if the vault is completed correctly, and deducting points for various parts of it that weren’t done quite right. Just as in football, a touchdown is worth 6 points, and the referee determines that the offensive players have not committed any violations during the play that would cause the touchdown not to be valid. In football, they might take away the entire touchdown, and use loss of yards as the penalty rather than taking away _part_ of the 6 points, but the general idea is the same…the referee has to determine if the game is being played “within the rules.” The reason I see a sport like gymnastics being different from figure skating is because of the fact that each trick is worth X number of points, and each fault is worth X number of point deduction, and all this is determined in advance by a governing body. Technically speaking, it’s not “subjective” as many people claim. Judging artistic merit, on the other hand, much more subjective…and makes it much harder to prove bias on the part of judges. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/11 "2007-01-30T19:21:59Z")
[QUOTE=Sarahfeena] The reason I see a sport like gymnastics being different from figure skating is because of the fact that each trick is worth X number of points, and each fault is worth X number of point deduction, and all this is determined in advance by a governing body. Technically speaking, it’s not “subjective” as many people claim. Judging artistic merit, on the other hand, much more subjective…and makes it much harder to prove bias on the part of judges. [/QUOTE] Except women’s floor exercise has an artistic component which is judged - music selection is judged, “dance” is judged. So is all gymnastics sport except for women’s floor exercise? ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/12 "2007-01-30T19:29:02Z")
[QUOTE=justqwerty] what about chess, bridge they do have objective criteria for winning, but can we really consider them sports ? I guess we have to define “sport” somehow. [/QUOTE] Yeah, for the 6 millionth time around here. The difference between chess & bridge is that they’re mental competitions, not physical competitions, and I wouldn’t call them sports. No, moving the pieces doesn’t count as “physical competition”. Beyond that, deciding whether to call figure skating a sport just depends on whether your definition of sport can include a subjective cmoponent. Even then, given the subjective nature of referees, can you include basketball, baseball, or just about anything outside of the high jump? What really gets into fuzzy territory is once you have your definitions down concerning a competition of physical abilities, try to rule out playing video games. Defining “sport” is an exercise in just drawing a line somewhere and recognizing that others draw their line elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/13 "2007-01-30T19:42:50Z")
You know, it allllll went downhill ever since we let “cheerleading” into the pantheon of “sport”. Then the NASCAR fans wanted their crap in (to which I say no. You must turn left AND right for it to be racing.) Boxing is a sport. I suppose figure skating could be a sport because it could possibly construed to be “boxing without punching, but on ice and girly”.\* Idon’tcareit’sstillnotafuckingsport! \*said as obscurely as possible so I can retain my Man Card with no problems. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/14 "2007-01-30T19:49:56Z")
If in doubt I go by the rule “can the competitors wear slacks while performing?” If yes, it’s not a sport (golf, bowling, archery, darts, etc.) ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/15 "2007-01-30T19:52:34Z")
Additionally, I don’t see how boxing CAN’T be a sport. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/16 "2007-01-30T19:53:36Z")
If figure skating can be a sport, then we need competitive sex as an olympic sport. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/17 "2007-01-30T19:53:45Z")
[QUOTE=alice\_in\_wonderland] Except women’s floor exercise has an artistic component which is judged - music selection is judged, “dance” is judged. So is all gymnastics sport except for women’s floor exercise? [/QUOTE] True. I have never quite approved of the artistic element to floor exercise! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/18 "2007-01-30T19:56:21Z")
There has to be defense for it to be a sport. If checking were allowed then figure skating would be a sport. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/19 "2007-01-30T19:59:09Z")
So, under the “sport vs. judged competition” concept, golf is a sport but figure skating isn’t? And only some boxing matches? ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147/20 "2007-01-30T20:00:21Z")
[QUOTE=Least Original User Name Ever] Additionally, I don’t see how boxing CAN’T be a sport. [/QUOTE] The problem is that it has a subjective component to it. It’s judged. So, if you’re going to rule out figure skating because it’s judged, you should rule out boxing, too. For the record, I consider them both sports. I have a pretty broad definition that also includes darts, pool, bowling and golf. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-figure-skating-a-sport/390147.md?page=2)