how can people say cheerleading isnt a sport?

[Delta]

Is synchronised swimming a sport? And if not then why is it at the Olympics?

Listen to Al Bundy:

 

[Archaewok1]

I don't look at cheerleading as a sport. I look at it some guys sitting around a sporting event saying "We got games. We got beer. But something's missing...... BABES!" And thus cheerleading was born.

[Dan]

I don't look at cheerleading as a sport. I look at it some guys sitting around a sporting event saying "We got games. We got beer. But something's missing...... BABES!" And thus cheerleading was born.

No. Not even close.

Cheerleading was a guy activity until there wasn't enough guys to participate in it because too many of them went to war (I think it was WWII but I'm unsure), only then were women accepted. The public liked it better that way and it has been a girl sport ever since.

And being girl only or male only doesn't make something not a sport. Right now, this is one of the most dangerous sports there is and certainly much more dangerous than the game they are cheering on. And it is practiced with equipment that is, safety-wise, terrible. The reason for that is that there's only one company in the game and since it's not officially a sport they aren't mandated to pay any attention to safety at all by the government.

The condescending attitude towards this sport is not only unwarranted, it maims numerous girls every single year.

Just watch the video posted above.

[Dan]

It is a great sport everyone can't do it it takes a great leaval of skill to do it which makes it a sport

Not to mention that it requires great fitness and is a competitive sport.

[AElf]

Is synchronised swimming a sport? And if not then why is it at the Olympics?

Two good questions, to which the answers are "no" and "politics."

Ballroom dancing was at one time an Olympic sport too.

Neither synchronized swimming nor cheerleading are sports.  They are both forms of performance art and both have been arranged so that opposing teams can enter contests to have a group of experts make a choice of which team is the best.  It is like beauty contests in a way.  I have heard beauty contests referred to as a "sport."  What utter nonsense!

[Riot.EXE]

Is synchronised swimming a sport? And if not then why is it at the Olympics?

Two good questions, to which the answers are "no" and "politics."

Ballroom dancing was at one time an Olympic sport too.

Neither synchronized swimming nor cheerleading are sports.  They are both forms of performance art and both have been arranged so that opposing teams can enter contests to have a group of experts make a choice of which team is the best.  It is like beauty contests in a way.  I have heard beauty contests referred to as a "sport."  What utter nonsense!

AElf, this is officially the first time I have ever straight up disagreed with you on anything, ever.  I think I hear thunder...shit, the world is ending.

[Stuart]

AElf, this is officially the first time I have ever straight up disagreed with you on anything, ever.  I think I hear thunder...shit, the world is ending.

That sound you hear, its her. She's coming for you.

Good luck...

[Daft]

Regarding Olympics, I tend to agree with AElf about politics, because only that for example explains why some sports are in the Olympic Games, and others aren't. Like Futsal for example (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Futsal). There are many strong leagues around the world, specially here in South America and Europe. Besides, the World Cups are big events.

I'm sure that, if it were in Olympics, it'd be taken very seriously, much more than soccer itself, which is U-23 (well, kind of), and no country take it for real and rarely send their best players.

[Riot.EXE]

AElf, this is officially the first time I have ever straight up disagreed with you on anything, ever.  I think I hear thunder...shit, the world is ending.

That sound you hear, its her. She's coming for you.

Good luck...

Psh...I can take her.

[Infinity Biscuit]

Defining sports as something that requires competition without a judge seems weird, since that does cut out a lot of very intensely physical sports, from several Olympic events to stuff like cheerleading. If you require that it have an objective metric of competition than I guess no, it's not, but other than that it should count by a lot. It requires a lot of physical discipline and training to do the routines practiced at least nowadays (I'm unfamiliar with the history). My partner used to be a cheerleader and that required her to be in dramatically better shape than the fencing I did, despite the latter being more obviously a sport apparently.

[AElf]

It is like beauty contests in a way.  I have heard beauty contests referred to as a "sport."  What utter nonsense!

AElf, this is officially the first time I have ever straight up disagreed with you on anything, ever.  I think I hear thunder...shit, the world is ending.

Sorry man, I didn't know that you were on the circuit.