So about those cheerleaders.
About a month ago, we posted a piece about the lengths colleges and universities go to so as not to run afoul of Title IX, federal legislation promoting gender equality in higher education. Some colleges, for example, double- or triple-count female athletes for partipating in the same sport for multiple "teams" (e.g., cross-country, and track and field); others have even counted men who participate on women's practice squads as women. All things being equal, then, the movement to have cheerleading recognized as an official NCAA sport, which would immediately go a long way towards addressing gender imbalances, is an improvement.
We have a problem, though, with considering cheerleading--or "competitive cheer" as it is technically known--
(DIGRESSION: Yeah that's MUCH better. "Competitive cheer"? Sounds like an olympic event for depressives: "Come on, Mitch! You can do it! These guys can't cheer up to save their lives! You got 'em Mitch, you got--Oh, no, Mitch! Not the fetal position!" EOD)
--a "sport."
Understand, we emphatically agree that cheerleaders display athleticism. We certainly couldn't do anything close to the flips and flops and twirls these ladies (and a few men) do. But just because something is athletic does not make it a sport.
Sports require winners. And winning must be objective. If winning is based on subjective, aesthetic criteria, then the event in question is not a sport--it's an art. Some will argue with us: "What about figure skating? That's in the Olympics!" It is in the Olympics, but it is not a sport--it's an artistic display. The fact that scandals and controversies frequently erupt over the judging of figure skating only confirms our belief that it is not a true sport.
To put it another way, while judges (or referees or umpires) certainly have an impact on sporting events, they cannot simply declare one individual or team the winner based on personal preference. A football drive starting on the one-yard-line and covering 99 yards will always--and regardless of aesthetic considerations--be worth more points than one that goes 98.
And if the sole criteria for something to be considered a sport is athleticism, why not hold up scorecards during performances of "Swan Lake"?
Solipsistography
"Born on Sideline, Cheering Clamors to Be Sport"
Actually, a football drive starting on the 1 yard line, and going 99 yards for a touchdown will be worth the same amount of points as a touchdown scored by going 98 yards, or 54 yards. A touchdown is a touchdown, and it will always be worth 6 points.
ReplyDeleteYes, but a football drive that starts on the one and goes 98 yeards would be worth nothing. Yeesh!
ReplyDelete