Who is an athlete?

Sitting here at work last week and talking about sports. Turned into if NASCAR drivers are athletes. Almost everyone said no way and I tend to agree.  Then went to golfing and bowling. Most here say no way are you and athlete to drive a car, bowl, or golf as you dont need to be in shape just mental tough. My favorite line was if your heart doenst elevate then its not an athlete? Most thought bowlers were no athletes nor were golfers. Then cyclists were talked about. Question to the board, where is your stance. Most here seem to think if you are hitting someone like football or hockey its a sport. Even heard baseball was not a sport it is a game. My opinion is I am mixed on much of this. I am a hockey fan and played many years, like many other sports and cycle my ass off.  So just wondering some other ideas as I am not too sure on what I heard here? Then also what sport is the best athletes?

bowlers absolutely are athletes!! I'd love to see anyone go out and throw a 16 pound ball 16-23 (ave. on tour) with a very high rev rate for 60 games + a week. I've done it...you need to be in top shape to do it at a serious and consistant level.
Same as everything else...you don't need to be an athlete to play softball or baseball and drink beer between innings....but if you want to do it well and at a high level...then yes you need to be an athlete.

Here is the official definition of an athlete:

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
ath·lete Audio Help [ath-leet] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun

a person trained or gifted in exercises or contests involving physical agility, stamina, or strength; a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill.

Agility, stamina or strenth.

Being a racing fan, I can tell you those guys are tougher then they look. Sitting in a car that is 110 to 125 degrees for hours isn't easy. It's very tough on your body and mind. Most race car drivers, especially Rally racing and NASCAR will tell you how physically exhausting it is. I don't think people realize that. They think it's like driving a car on the highway. Most race cars in any sport have limited to no power steering, which requires alot of physical work on your arms, and the G-force put on your body is also strong.

If you go based on the definition, then those are atheletes. Does car racing require agility? It does on your upper body, absolutely. How about stamina and strength? If you are weak, you are not going to be able to handle a machine going over mud, rock and dirt roads at 100 MPH (rally racing) or handle a Nascar averaging 200 MPH on a turn. It also says participating in a sport that requires physical skill

Now, physical skill doesn't not necessarily mean strength and muscle mass. Skill would dictate coordination. I am not a golf fan, but I like to bowl. I suck at golf, and I'm OK at bowling, but if there was no physical skill required, everybody would be great at it. Bowling is tough. You have to make your body move perfectly in proportion to how that ball is going to act. One little tiny step off, hand twist, etc and that ball is not going where you want it.

Anyway, if people judge being an athlete using only physical strength, then you can say I suppose some sports aren't athletic, but according to the official definition, it kinda shows that there's more then physical strength.

I would define an athelite as someone who has phyisical training and conditioning for any type of competition. I would say all listed in your post are athelites in some form. I could probably not get behind the wheel of a nascar and drive 500 miles in a circle without some type phyicial conditioning. I would probably pass out from holding the steering wheel that tight for so long. As for golf, you have to play golf for four straight days and not be completely exhausted and still be competive, I say that takes phyical training, cause I know I couldn't do it.I couldn't pick up the club after two rounds. Now that I think about, beer drinking takes an athelite, just look at the movie Beerfest, you have to be conditioned for it.
 
Thats my 2 cents.

Anyone that doesn't think Lance Armstrong isn't an athlete is crazy. Sport with the best athletes...that is a tough one...soccer, wrestling ( the real kind )...probably have pretty diverse answers on this question also.

I do have to say that I think the olympic commitee needs to learn what are "sports" and what are not. Sorry but how is someone twirling a flag or pushing a big ole stone across the ice a sport?!?! They are taking Baseball out of the olympics but curling stays...umm...ok. Bowling is not an olympic sport, even though the international bowling tour is HUGE..but yet roller skating is in?
 
sorry this is a bitter area for me

Yeah, I always wondered about that curling thing too

I agree. The IOC removed softball purely because it was clear the American teams were going to dominate. Baseball...we had competition but year in and year out American teams are going to be there. If the Americans hadn't lost the Olympic gold a few games back you can bet the IOC would be looking at removing basketball. I wonder how many millions participate or spectate at curling competitions? It is probably more like thousands.

quote:

ORIGINAL: 3hummers

 I wonder how many millions participate or spectate at curling competitions? It is probably more like thousands.

 
Try again buddy

Hundreds?

Is there such a thing as negative viewership numbers?

I used to watch just in hopes that one of them would fall and impale themselves with the broom...hasn't happened yet damnit!

i always try to watch the curling when i can find it actually being broadcast.  i don't get canadian channels on directv, but if i know it's on at night now i can record it and watch it later.  when i was still playing hockey the rink used to fill gallon milk jugs with water and freeze them - then we'd get to throw the stones.  i doubt it's quite the same, but it was fun anyway.  i'm sure it's big in canada, just like cricket is big in ex british colonial areas (except this great country).  of course, i used to like watching cricket as well, all 3 days of it . . . . .

as for who is and who isn't an athlete, i think those that rag on golfers and bowlers and race car drivers are the people that can't do any of those things.  just because you drive 90 on the freeway and swerve in and out of traffic doesn't mean you could do it on an oval.  now we know another reason why impy has a right forearm that looks like Popeye's . . . .

that's funny...but true. Especially from the way I bowl the kids I coach call me popeye because my right forearm is huge...lol

I doubt that's from bowling

I used to bowl a lot an never got a Popeye arm so I doubt it is from bowling also.

dammit, y'all beat me to it . . . .

but I doubt you threw a ball like this
 
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v63/v10power/?action=view&current=Movie.flv
 
 
I put my finger tips in the ball (16 lb) (no thumb) and let the ball hang..then I flip it up and into my palm. This builds up forearm strength needed to throw the ball as hard and with as many revs as I do. Everyday I d0 50 of these  I do bowl with my thumb..just don't use it for this exersize.

You don't have to explain to us

showoff . . . .
 
and you know the only reason you can do that is because of the other daily exercising you use that arm for . . . . .

I do play a mean game of pocket pool

Maybe he has weight packs strapped onto his arms when he's "bowling" What would enhance your stroke.

Oh wait, that's Golf

we don't want to know how you know it enhances the stroke - just keep that stuff to yourself in the future if you would . . . . .  next we'll have Nancy giving us tips . . . . uh-oh, i just threw up in my mouth on that visual . . . . .