04/25/24
July 25, 2002
Is Lance Armstrong An Athelete?: " If Armstrong is a great athlete, so are marathon runners. Athletes, for my money, must do more with their bodies than pump their legs up and down. If that’s all it took, the Radio City Rockettes would have to be considered the greatest athletes of all time."
Good responses to Borges' patent idiocy can be seen here. Including the key question, found at the bottom, "Is Ron Borges really a sports journalist?" Obviously not.
posted by ahhgrr at 08:49 PM on July 25, 2002
I'll second that, etagloh. An ignorant over-simplification of any sport does not a good argument make. Basketball is just repetitively throwing a ball through a hoop? Soccer (or football, to dodge criticism) is just kicking a ball? Even though I know next to nothing about cycling, I know that there is strategy involved. Plus, some cyclists are in extraordinary health. I read recently that Greg Lemond's resting heart rate at the peak of his career was roughly 18 bpm. The sheer amount of training just to attain that level of health more than makes it an atheletic sport.
posted by ttrendel at 08:56 PM on July 25, 2002
I hear Ron is working on an article about how webloggers aren't really writers. Should create quite a stir.
posted by iconomy at 07:38 AM on July 26, 2002
What a piece of tripe. Dollars to doughnuts written with ass (and head shoved up aformentioned body part) firmly planted in a comfy ergonomic chair. *rant* And as a fomer ballet/modern/jazz dancer, I get really tired of sports/dance comparisions. It's lame; professional dancers push their bodies to the limits, just as athletes do. The subtle undercurrent in these types of comparisons is along the lines of blurting 'pansy' or worse. I'd like to see Borges throw, catch, and spin a 105 lb girl for 10+ hours a day. Or do 100 consecutive high kicks over and over and over because the director isn't satisfied. Dancers are athletes with artistry and interpretation added into the mix. Grr. *end rant* Sorry.
posted by romakimmy at 07:46 AM on July 26, 2002
The best generalisation with respect to such generalisations is that, for the most part, people who ask 'is [x] really a sport?' or 'is [y] really an athlete' are, in fact, saying 'I don't understand [x]', but are too embarrassed to admit it.
posted by etagloh at 10:39 AM on July 26, 2002
It surprises me at the level of intellience (or lack thereof) exhibited by "sport experts/journalists." I am under the impression that sports journalists have dream jobs. How could you not love writing about sports, which presumibly got you into sports writing in the first place? Bill Simmons is a sports journalist that takes his job seriously, but still knows how to have fun. In all the commentary he writes, he never blindly makes statements, or shoots from the hip as Mr. Borges does here. Just by the level of detail he uses, respect is instantly gained. And his 'mailbag' columns show the respect his fans have for him. On another note, I am sick of the constant questioning of the definitions of sports and/or athletes. If you don't play pool, don't question their skills. If you don't swim, run, kick, hit, throw, chop, etc., get the hell out of here, cause we don't like you.
posted by rebeuthl at 01:51 PM on July 26, 2002
Upon further reflection, and the fact that there's a weak "Lance is the best" counterpoint article, I've decided that The Onion's editors have taken over MSNBC Sports, since the comparison between the two articles is much like some classic Onion Point/Counterpoint sections. (Such as Air Conditioning vs. Heater.)
posted by ahhgrr at 01:55 PM on July 26, 2002
people who ask 'is [x] really a sport?' or 'is [y] really an athlete' are, in fact, saying 'I don't understand [x]', but are too embarrassed to admit it. You give them too much credit, methinks -- too often, they are saying, 'I don't understand [x], but I am so smart and knowledgable that my failure to understand [x] could only be on account of [x] not being a sport'.
posted by mattpfeff at 11:41 AM on July 28, 2002
Is Lance Armstrong An Athlete? Is Ron Borges A Troll? (Note that he's a boxing writer. Now, I've seen some pretty fucking unathletic boxers in my time. And even more unathletic boxing writers. Know what I mean, 'Arry?)