this couldn't be anymore true
would have to assume Jaday is a casual player of the 'game' only
pool (snooker, billiards) are all Olympic worthy imo. the skill level is certainly there. maybe one of these days ...
Billiards is an olympic sport?
- Thread starter Jaday
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this couldn't be anymore true
would have to assume Jaday is a casual player of the 'game' only
pool (snooker, billiards) are all Olympic worthy imo. the skill level is certainly there. maybe one of these days ...
Lets try for a winter game. It is played alot more in my part of the US in the winter. The pool rooms are much more full in the winter.
elvicash suggests that pool is prime for the Winter Olympics.
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Well Elvis, upon further research it seems cue sports, by default, is designated as a summer games sport by the IOC and is probably why the WCBS has been shooting for the summer games. Sports considered for the winter games is relatively narrowly defined in Chapter 1, article 6.2 of the Olympic charter:
This probably explains why the winter games generally are smaller, have fewer disciplines and events, and are not contested by as many countries as the summer games. It is likely also the reason that some sports, even though they traditionally take place in the winter like basketball, are in the summer games.
So because there is still room to add disciplines to the winter games, ice fishing probably has a better chance of getting into the Olympics before cue sports.
Seriously, something like ice yachting (ice boat racing) probably has a chance but I don't know if that sport is organized, with a recognized international governing federation. But it probably explains why snowboarding has made it but surfing has not.Let's lace up the skates and play some pool. :grin:
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Oh, another pool/Olympic thread.
This is not correct. The WCBS was established in order to satisfy all IOC requirements. The sport of biliards is in recongnized as a sport by the IOC. There are however only so many spots available in the olympics for medal sports and exhibitoin sports. Billiards is unfortunately well down on the list.
Billiards is a medal sport in the Asian Games and the World Games.
The Chinese might have tried to get billiards included but the rejection certainly was not because billiards does not qualify under IOC rules.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Confederation_of_Billiards_Sports
Then you had better not lose.
Jaday
Registered
I love how people assume :grin-square:
I agree that champion level pool is a challenging contest that requires skill, dedication, and physical coordination, but it doesn't require much physical exertion. Pool there is no timer, no measurement, or other way to obtain objective results that can be measured. Some Olympic games employ timers and VS games like soccer, water polo, and badminton have actively defended goals making it more likely the better team wins. In pool only one person is actively playing at a time; the other one is sitting.
What kind of records would come from these new "Olympians" I wonder? First Obese Olympian? First Olympian to take a smoke break in the finals? Most drinks served while competing?
Paul, I do not believe this to be true. Please provide a reference for this statement. To even be considered for inclusion in the games a sport must first have recognition by the IOC. So the host country couldn't even request it unless the sport was already recognized. Also, part of that recognition process is there must be a recognized international federation as well as recognized rules and equipment standards.
The WCBS is fully recognized by the IOC. From the IOC website list of recognized Federations:
http://www.olympic.org/content/the-ioc/recognised-sport-federations/federation29/
These excerpts are from the WCBS wikipedia page:
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As soon as darts, fishing, and Scrabble become olympic events, I will start complaining that pool should be included as well. Until then, I am satisfied to call pool a GAME of skill, that I enjoy. Now, if the new BCAPL rules require me to run around the block once per shot and swim one lap prior to sinking the 8-ball, then that becomes another story...
I actually have been thinking about this a lot and have developed a new opinion. I don't think pool or billiards should be an Olympic sport. Well, that also goes for a great deal of other sports that are currently "Olympic". Honestly, I think the Olympics should be about who is the fastest and strongest and should stay away from anything that doesn't display raw athletic ability. I also think the Olympics should be reserved for sports that normally do not get a lot of attention, no team sports like basketball or soccer. This would mean, as much as I enjoy these events, diving and gymnastics SHOULD NOT BE Olympic events. Anything that requires judge-scoring should be done away with.
The Olympics should be about lifting, throwing, running, jumping and swimming.
With that said, I'm not in the business of what's "Olympic". I'm a pool player and I think the Olympics would be great for pool and given all the other events that are hardly Olympic, I see no reason why it isn't.
The Olympics should be about lifting, throwing, running, jumping and swimming.
With that said, I'm not in the business of what's "Olympic". I'm a pool player and I think the Olympics would be great for pool and given all the other events that are hardly Olympic, I see no reason why it isn't.
I love pool but it is a game. A very hard game, but a game none the less.
This is one of the main obstacles the way I see it. The Olympic motto is "Faster, higher, stronger." It's tough to see where billiard sports fits in with this classically. It is with this in mind that table tennis or badminton for instance, has an advantage over pool. At least they satisfy the "faster" part. Pool by comparison is relatively sedentary.
Then again, one could say sitting on a horse is too - it is really the animal that is faster, higher, stronger - not the human. Horse people would argue I'm sure, but let's face - one of the Japanese riders was 71 years old. But from the IOC viewpoint I can see the hesitance because if they bring in darts, chess, bridge, or pool it might open a can of worms for them. A road they might not want to go down.
I'd like to see pool in the Olympics if for no other reason than to see Jay Helfert rocking a tie and an NBC sports coat. :grin-square:
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I think calling pool "a game" is over-simplifying it. Pool is a lot harder than chess. You still have to execute with precision angles, speed and spin. By definition, pool is a sport. It's just not a terribly olympic sport. It's international and it's widely played in many of those nations (which is all that's typically required nowadays). I just think the Olympics should be focusing on more athletic things.
John Madden used to say that if you have to wear sequins in order to compete, it isn't a sport.
So much for Figure Skating and Ice Dancing as well as whatever they were doing yesterday with all the balls and hula hoops.
So much for Figure Skating and Ice Dancing as well as whatever they were doing yesterday with all the balls and hula hoops.
I think the Olympics and pool have a lot in common.
Most notably the organizers make a ton of money and most competitors have trouble feeding their families...lol.
Not to mention that once the Olympics are over you end up with countries and cities with nothing more than billions of dollars of debt, some cities and their taxpayers are still paying for their 2 weeks of Olympic hosting glory 30 years later.
Most notably the organizers make a ton of money and most competitors have trouble feeding their families...lol.
Not to mention that once the Olympics are over you end up with countries and cities with nothing more than billions of dollars of debt, some cities and their taxpayers are still paying for their 2 weeks of Olympic hosting glory 30 years later.