Is Competitive Eating A Sport?

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OK, WP fam. Here is a question that needs to be asked: Is Competitive Eating A Sport?

I've also included a poll, so you can vote.

My answer: Yes. In a way, it is a competition, so that kind of makes it a sport in and of itself, however unconventional it may be.

It's gross.
Do people understand how many pigs died to make those hotdogs?

If it's a sport, I certainly wouldn't pay to watch it.
Watching people eat is disgusting at the best of times.

Sport = an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.

It's gross.

You mean you've never heard of the World Pie Eating Championship?

I absolutely love the "Controversies" section of the Wikipedia page...

It's a race to the bottom.

It is disgusting to me. It hasn't infected NZ culture thank goodness. It seems to be mainly a USA thing, I wonder if it is limited to certain states..

...Yes. Kind of.

oh, definitely. even then it's very much a niche thing. a lot of people here regard it with disgust and a form of morbid curiosity, it's just not a common thing at all.

well actually....now i'm reminded of a pie eating contest my junior high hosted when i was in the seventh grade. staff members were pitted against each other and a sizable crowd gathered to see who could devour the most pumpkin pies....the janitor won. always.



well, that still qualifies it...physical exertion by definition doesn't have to be healthy, i wouldn't mark it as a synonym for exercise per se, and in the event of competitive eating your digestive system is being very much exerted.

i would say it's a sport. just not one that's good for you. don't expect to see it in the olympics.



the same amount that would have died if the hotdogs weren't being used for that particular purpose. they'd just go somewhere else if not wasted altogether.

I heard on an ep of King Of The Hill that skinny Japanese guys tended to win.

Not all competitions are sports

Chess competition

Science fair competition

Maybe. But I find it disturbing the lack of respect towards animals demonstrated by these events. I'm not a vegetarian and I'm OK with the idea of meat in moderation, or even as part of a feast for a special celebration, but when it is wasted just for "sport", the idea turns my stomach. I object on principle.

No it's not a sport. It's a competition. Not all competitions are sports (Chess, Poker, Snooker etc.) and not all sports are competitive (going to the gym).

Usually the winners of those contests are Asian people, who are small of build like marathon runners. One would have to run a marathon to work off all the food these people eat-or play a marathon tennis match.