For as long as I have been around sports, the debate has continued over what constitutes a sport.

I think this is one of the most everlasting questions that have yet to get a definitive answer. I mean honestly, it almost comes down to personal interpretation, and I am going to try and shed some light on this issue.

The other day, a fellow editor and I were arguing over whether or not the debate team belonged on the sports page. At first I dismissed this because, let’s face it, it really doesn’t belong on a sports page when you first think about it.

But this editor made a great point to me, it has an offense and a defense, so isn’t it a sport? Yes, I suppose it would be a sport, if that is what you think constitutes one.

I have taken some time on my own to lay out some ground rules as to what exactly a sport needs to be a sport.

First, you need to have a team. It must be one team, trying to beat another team. An organization just doesn’t cut it in my mind. This doesn’t mean that I am excluding sports such as track, swimming, or gymnastics, because all those events have teams, but the individual competes by himself, but he does represent a team.

Secondly, your team must be able to directly affect the outcome of the game. For instance, in football you have a defense that makes it hard on the opposing team’s offense. No matter how hard a cheerleader cheers or how loud the band plays in the stands, it doesn’t change who has possession of the ball.

Thirdly, and most importantly, your sport needs to use physical exertion. For example, in basketball you spend 48 minutes running up and down the court, almost at a sprint.

I think that the problem with the argument of what makes a sport a sport, is that people have misused the word sport, and this allows things that have no business being in the category, that they can somehow mingle their way in.

Too many people believe that they are involved in an activity that should be a sport, I would know, because I was a member of the marching band for four years in high school. So, I know what it is like to see all your work get no respect. You work so hard that you think that it should be considered a sport, because of how hard you are working. I am not downing these sports and I respect everything they do, I just think the word sport is overused.

I think their needs to be a line drawn between sport and a competitive activity that has been lost throughout society.

So, I suppose what I’m trying to say is, let’s make that separation between sport and a competitive activity again so for the love of God we don’t have to suffer through another Winter Olympics of even having the fear of watching curling.