What are the special sports?

At present, there is no completely unified standard for the definition of special sports in the industry. It is generally recognized that all independent sports with clear competition rules, systematic training methods, and can participate in regular event sequences are considered special. There are familiar popular Olympic sports such as football, basketball, track and field, and swimming, as well as niche sports such as curling, equestrian, and modern pentathlon. Counting non-Olympic sports certified by various international sports federations, the total number is close to 200.

There have always been two voices in the academic community. One believes that only those that have entered the official intercontinental and above event sequence and have an official athlete registration system are considered "regular" special events. The other believes that as long as they meet the two core conditions of independent rules and systematic training, it can be counted. There is no need to meet the event level threshold. In recent years, the identity disputes of many emerging projects basically come from the difference in this judgment standard.

When I helped compile athlete files at the provincial team's youth training camp, I saw more than 30 registered special events. In addition to the regular major events, radio direction finding and orienteering, which few people have heard of, were also listed. In the past two years, I led youth amateur league registrations. Frisbee and flag football have also been included in the special registration catalog. Seven or eight years ago, these two could only be regarded as outdoor recreational activities that everyone played on weekends.

Speaking of this, some people may wonder, does playing badminton in the park downstairs or shooting baskets on the street count as special activities? In fact, the core difference lies in whether it matches the unified rules and promotion path. Take 3v3 basketball as an example. If you play in a regular event sequence certified by FIBA, it is definitely a special event. But if you play casually on the street with no time and no clear foul penalties, it can only be regarded as an ordinary leisure sport.

For example, at the Hangzhou Asian Games that just passed, e-sports and break dancing were listed as official competitions. Ten years ago, who would have thought that playing games and hip-hop dancing could be considered serious sports? Now they not only have a complete national points competition system, athletes can go through the official registration channel, and winning the Asian Games gold medal is still considered a national honor. Breakdancing will become an official Olympic event at the next Paris Olympics.

I was chatting with Lao Zhou, who is responsible for mass sports in the Municipal Sports Bureau, and he said that the boundaries of special sports are actually being expanded. As long as there is a large enough mass base and unified gameplay standards can be formed, they can gradually become more specialized. For example, the municipal games in many cities in the south have now listed dragon boating and paddleboarding as official special events. Even the standards for athlete registration and event judging are exactly the same as those of traditional sports such as track and field and swimming. There is no difference.

It is actually quite difficult to cover all the special sports. After all, every year there are new sports applying to enter the formal competition sequence. Maybe in a few years, the land surfing and Frisbee golf you often play now will become serious special sports.