Maybe they should make the chesspieces heavier ( eg. embed some lead into them etc. ) to generate more fatigue while playing. Perhaps then chess has a bigger chance to be recognized as a sport by the majority. :-)
I once saw two players playing blitz with a huge garden chess set ( the "board" was integrated into the floor with big chesspieces; you needed both hands to move them around). The players ran after every move from the board to the chessclock and backwards. Looked funny ... and without any doubt, this was sport. :-)
Perhaps if the Knights were forced to wear heavy metal fighting suits as in centuries past,the Bishops loaded down with the usual heavy gold chains,the rooks made of old solid stone,and the Kings and Queens with heavy golden crowns,it is possible that the word' sport 'may be taken more seriously by some chess players than at present. Naturally the pawns will be sent out'over the top' naked and with nothing more than a hopeless battle plan. Does this sound more like a 'sport' now,or is it even less sporting than before??
I believe chess is a sport, and for a few reasons
1) There is no element of chance (other than who has white or black, but this is negligible)
2) It is played competitively
3) It requires a great deal of skill to become good at it
4) If Americans watch poker on ESPN (poker is not a sport) and NASCAR, which involves no more physical activity then pressing a pedal and turning a wheel, then why not chess?
Originally posted by passedpawn22Thats a harsh generalization of saying chess is more of a sport than poker. Thats like saying football is more of a sport than tennis because there is more contact. I don't consider chess a sport, but it has competition just like many other "hobbies" if you will, such as, poker, dominoes, scrabble, spelling B's. All of which are on espn. I'm not sure if you know this or not, but poker was displayed when kasparov was playing in the 70's on the sports channel, but was too boring for the masses to watch. Poker is a faster paced game that has more excitement than in chess in all reality. How can you market a 3-5 hour game that turns out to be a draw half of the time? I love the game of chess, but there are many reasons that it isn't aired on tv. Is competative gaming a sport? Its on espn. ;-)
Absolutely. It is way more a sport than poker, which is on ESPN (sports channel) quite a bit. "Sport" does have a broad meaning. Americans tend to only attribute pure physical games to sports; I think in other countries where competitive chess is more popular recognize the sport value in Chess.
I've said before that there is a physical element t ...[text shortened]... well, such as: preparation, determination, skill, talent, competition, fighting spirit, etc.