Science Says Pro Gamers Aren't Athletes

[TheGameXXVII]

oh, well done Univeristy of Essex!

who was the guy who headed this groundbreaking study, Captain fucking Obvious?

whats next for the people who did this, a study to prove that people who are in England are less likely to play American Football? a study that shows people who who are in wheelchairs are unlikely to play Rugby?

 

[General BrEeZy]

well no kidding. all we do is exercise a machine with our hands. of course we're not "pro athletes" thats why i do stuff in the real world. sure you can strengthen parts of our minds, but those small bits are about it.

 

[Calatar]

And maybe the radio program could pay for a study on cancer instead of a basically throwing all that money away?

Maybe we should be donating the money we spend on gaming to cancer research. Interest programming is rarely very deep, it's meant for entertainment, and in this case light infotainment.

Besides, just because a study confirms your suspicions and makes sense doesn't mean that it was a pointless study. Studies can come up with counter-intuitive results at times, and it's worth studying what we consider to be common knowledge rather than just assuming we're always correct. Scientifically supported data > common personal belief.

 

[Calatar]

I was using that as my own sarcasm to the obviousness of the research. It doesn't take a PHD to realize a person who stays stationary for the most part won't have the same level of functionality as a person who runs around a lot.

Well, now your intuition has been supported with scientific data. Not all studies return results the way you'd expect them to. And it showed just how unhealthy it is, which is not necessarily common knowledge. A pro-gamer has fitness not just below that of athletes, but well below that of average persons. Is that something worth knowing for e-sport fanatics?

 

[Maverick Siragusa]

Although, the lung quality of a 60 year old heavy smoker just screams bullshit to me. You dont get like that from just sitting around.

If not bullshit, then there must be mitigating circumstances which aren't being reported, perhaps chronic childhood asthma which caused this person to stay in and play video games (thus becoming a pro gamer) instead of being an active, sporty child.

I stay in and play video games and I smoke, but at my last medical check up I didn't have the lungs of a 60 year old smoker, in fact they were surprisingly normal for someone my age.

Most people find the notion that pro gamers are athletes pretty laughable, but judging by the lung quality comment, it's seems that this Dr. Dominic Micklewright has a chip on his shoulder and an axe to grind.

exactly, they never said why either of them went into their profession. this seems like a anti gaming research to me.

 

[Rakkana]

I never would have guessed.

 

[Maverick Siragusa]

Wow...
I respect games, but I've never thought gaming could be a sport. It can be a competitive game in the sense that basketball is also a competition and, indeed, a game, but there's a blatant line there, and I don't see why people would find it insulting for video games to not be sports. They're just different.

I don't know. I personally find it amazing that American Football became so very popular, but it's a sport.

I always thought that a "sport" was basicly just an organized comptition. It could be about anything. What makes sports like football and such different is that other people will pay to see the game, make bets on the game, rig the game, etc.

Personally I find some MLG competitions way more interesting to watch then football.

yeah and it seems allot funner to rig a gaming competition to. you could drive over to their house and break their thumbs.

 

[Del-Toro]

Really science? You felt that people needed to be told that people who sit down for a living don't qualify as athletes from a physical perspetive, and that videogames aren't a sport? Wow, do you have Sherlock Holmes on your faculty, because that's some amazing deducing right there.

 

[bismarck55]

I choose to interpret this as there being a market for professional Dance Dance Revolution players.

I'm perfectly willing to step up to the plate.

You know what? I disagree with these "scientists" and everybody here saying "no shit". Why? because of the amount of PHYSICAL CONDITIONING that pro-gamers have to do in order to be competitive. Pro-gamers actually TRAIN for fuck sakes. Developing the muscle memory and manual dexterity to be competitive at any hotkey intensive game (starcraft for example) is in my opinion comparable to learning kata (forms, sets, whatever) in martial arts. and that is just one aspect, it doesn't take into account skillful use of the mouse, reflexes, etc.

And yet, unlike the sports or martial arts training, none of that makes you any healthier.

Did you even read the article? It points out the positive results of game training on physical and mental reflexes.

Why yes I did read the article. But before I continue here's a bit of my post that you missed.

"My point is, that there is an element of physical mastery and skill involved that people don't seem to notice. I'm pretty sure there are professional golfers that actually ARE 60 year old smokers. Endurance isn't required in every sport."

What I'm saying is that Strength and endurance are not the defining aspects sports or athletics, otherwise any form of physical labour would be a sport. Rather, Physical mastery, competition and skill are in my opinion the defining aspects of sport. A Healthy body can be developed and maintained without ever participating in any sports, and is not the goal of athletics. In fact athletes often sacrifice their health (by competing while injured, taking steroids, participating in unhealthy sports such as gymnastics and so on) in pursuit of victory, fame, money or whatever. As such, I do not consider gaming's admittedly unhealthy nature to rule it out as a sport.

 

[PoliceBox63]

Athletes are a type of sportsman. Would you conduct a study to show that pro swimmers don't have the hand-eye co-ordination of pro darts players? No.

 

[Sightless Wisdom]

So professional gamers are not physically in shape where as professional athletes who train physically are...HOLY FUCK! WHO SAW THAT COMING?!

 

[JWW]

It's a wonder they don't call it Doctor Obvious...

 

[holographicman]

Something disturbing: it seems to me that more and more men and women of science are willing to say anything to gain attention.

Am I right Escapists?

 

[ImprovizoR]

And professional karaoke singers aren't athletes either. So what else is new? Gaming is a hobby like karaoke I used as an example. But if someone wants to make a living out of it it's their business. Those quasi scientists should find something better to do with their time.

 

[xavix]

This just in!

Scientists prove genes exist!

and that Darwin was right!

and that religion is the opiate of the masses!

who would've thought....

 

[gigastrike]

Ummm...duh? For something to be athletic, it needs to involve physical ability. Doesn't change that gaming is still a sport, though.

 

[Tom Phoenix]

Even as a fan of e-Sports, I fail to see the point of this "study". Even professional gamers would never claim to be as physically fit as athletes. This has no bearing on the question of whether or not e-Sports qualify as sports.

Also, while excessive gaming is unhealthy for maintaining physical fitness, that is precisely the reason why professional gamers have a habit of doing regular exercise. Just beacuse they are professional gamers does not mean that gaming is all they do as part of their profession. I mean, I am preety sure military pilots have to be physically fit, even though they spend most of their time in a cockpit.

 

[The Ambrosian]

Wait, so playing Xbox doesn't count towards my daily exercise?!

 

[NeutralDrow]

I choose to interpret this as there being a market for professional Dance Dance Revolution players.

I'm perfectly willing to step up to the plate.

You know what? I disagree with these "scientists" and everybody here saying "no shit". Why? because of the amount of PHYSICAL CONDITIONING that pro-gamers have to do in order to be competitive. Pro-gamers actually TRAIN for fuck sakes. Developing the muscle memory and manual dexterity to be competitive at any hotkey intensive game (starcraft for example) is in my opinion comparable to learning kata (forms, sets, whatever) in martial arts. and that is just one aspect, it doesn't take into account skillful use of the mouse, reflexes, etc.

And yet, unlike the sports or martial arts training, none of that makes you any healthier.

Did you even read the article? It points out the positive results of game training on physical and mental reflexes.

Why yes I did read the article. But before I continue here's a bit of my post that you missed.

"My point is, that there is an element of physical mastery and skill involved that people don't seem to notice. I'm pretty sure there are professional golfers that actually ARE 60 year old smokers. Endurance isn't required in every sport."

What I'm saying is that Strength and endurance are not the defining aspects sports or athletics, otherwise any form of physical labour would be a sport. Rather, Physical mastery, competition and skill are in my opinion the defining aspects of sport. A Healthy body can be developed and maintained without ever participating in any sports, and is not the goal of athletics. In fact athletes often sacrifice their health (by competing while injured, taking steroids, participating in unhealthy sports such as gymnastics and so on) in pursuit of victory, fame, money or whatever. As such, I do not consider gaming's admittedly unhealthy nature to rule it out as a sport.

Oh, so in other words, you were contesting the notion that gaming can't be considered a sport (which is the only explanation I can think of for why those examples would be relevant), rather than the notion that the physical conditioning required for gaming isn't as healthy as that required for athletics.

My apologies, I misinterpreted.