Defining sports and athletic competition

Sports are athletic events or games with sets of rules. Competition is central to any definition of sports, even when they are played for fun and not business. Sports as business entail economic payouts as well as status. Sports differ widely from one another, but all involve an athletic competition within the rules of game play.

Athletics are integral to sports, and is the key feature distinguishing sports from games. Although some sports involve more physical exertion or require more brute strength than others, all sports must involve some kind of physiological aspect. However, mental skill is as important to sports as it is in any other game. Sports involve both a high degree of mental and physical skills.

The mental skills at play in sports pertain to competition as well. Not all sports are team sports, but all sports involve one side against another. All sports have a winner and a loser at the end. In sporting events in which more than one team or individual compete, an ultimate winner is chosen such as at the Olympic events.

Structure is an essential element of sports, distinguishing them from simple play. A group of people can informally toss a ball around, or practice an athletic drill. However, those activities are not sports. They are exercises. Sports incorporate rules of play, forcing participants to follow the rules or be disqualified. Referees are essential for ensuring that rules are not broken and players are not cheating. The referees must be familiar with all rules of play, and also serve as judges. Many sports involve an apparatus such as a ball, but not all sports involve them. For instance, track and field events pit one athlete against another and the clock; no ball or disk is involved. Geography is essential to sports, as the players as well as their apparati (such as the ball) must stay within a designated play area. Time is used differently in different sports. Some sports depend on the clock, whereas in others, game play can go on indefinitely until some score or scoring situation is achieved.