501 Critical Reading Questions

sport from a leisure activity.
The seemingly simple question of “
what defines a sport?
” has been
the fodder for argument and conversation for years, among profes-
sional  and armchair athletes alike. There seems to be no doubt that
vigorous and highly competitive activities such as baseball, football,
and soccer are truly “sports,” but when the subject of other activi-
ties such as darts, chess, and shuffleboard is broached we find our-
selves at the heart of a controversy.
If say, billiards, is not a sport, then what exactly is it? Those who
would dispute it to be a sport would respond that it is a simple leisure
activity. They would go on to claim a true sport first and foremost
requires some form of physical exertion. More to the point, if a player
does not break a sweat, what he or she plays is not a sport. Beyond
that, more important criteria would be the need for decent hand-eye
coordination, and the ever-present possibility of sustaining injury. Bil-
liards only fits one of those specifications (hand-eye coordination), so
according to the doubters, it is not a real sport.
To help resolve this dispute, the first text to consult would have to
be the dictionary. According to one dictionary, a sport is defined as “a
8
Sports and Leisure
2 1 1
(1)
(5)
(10)
(15)

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diversion” or a “recreation.” Assuming one strictly adheres to the sim-
ple guidelines laid out in that definition, it would seem that almost any
activity that provides enjoyment could be classified as a sport. And if,
according to the dictionary, watching a sport on television is a sport
itself, I guess that would make a couch potato an athlete. Play ball!
400.
The author’s tone in this passage could be described as