the world’s most challenging sport.

I’ve been part of this particular debate multiple times now:
What is the most difficult sport to play?

I’m talking overall.
When all things have been factored in, what sport is the most challenging and demanding of its participants?

What would you guess?

I’ve heard a couple different arguments.
Baseball.
Golf.
Soccer.
Rugby.
Football.

The hardest part about baseball is trying to hit the blasted ball.
Have you ever struggled at the batting cages?
I have. I think I was only on the 35 mph setting as well. It’s pretty hard to hit that little bugger.

As far as my golf game is concerned, I’d say that whole game is challenging. But, not very physically demanding.

Soccer always gets my vote. Soccer consists of 2 non-stop 45 minute halves. That is a lot of running. You also have to be mentally sharp in order to read gaps in the defense or protect your own side of the pitch.

Every time I have been part of one of these debates it usually ends with everyone more entrenched in their previous views (pretty much standard for all debates, right?).

Well, Google has made debates like this a little more conclusive. After my latest sports encounter I decided to see if any one has tried comparing sports.

I think ESPN basically has the answers for anything and everything sports related.
This debate is no exception.

They ranked EVERY sport based on the following categories:

ENDURANCE: The ability to continue to perform a skill or action for long periods of time. Example: Lance Armstrong
STRENGTH: The ability to produce force. Example: NFL linebackers.
POWER: The ability to produce strength in the shortest possible time. Example: Barry Bonds.
SPEED: The ability to move quickly. Example: Marion Jones, Maurice Green.
AGILITY: The ability to change direction quickly. Example: Derek Jeter, Mia Hamm.
FLEXIBILITY: The ability to stretch the joints across a large range of motion. Example: Gymnasts, divers.
NERVE: The ability to overcome fear. Example: High-board divers, race-car drivers, ski jumpers.
DURABILITY: The ability to withstand physical punishment over a long period of time. Example: NBA/NHL players.
HAND-EYE COORDINATION: The ability to react quickly to sensory perception. Example: A hitter reacting to a breaking pitch; a drag racer timing acceleration to the green light.
ANALYTIC APTITUDE: The ability to evaluate and react appropriately to strategic situations. Example: Joe Montana reading a defense; basketball point guard on a fast break.

Each sport was given a number ranking from 1-10 based on how demanding the sport was in the particular category. The score were then compiled to give each sport a score out of 100. The sport with the highest overall number is the “world’s toughest sport”.

What sport won?

Boxing.

Boxing? Really?

It only gets more bizarre.
Here are the top ten:

Boxing.
Ice Hockey.
Football.
Basketball.
Wrestling.
Martial Arts.
Tennis.
Gymnastics.
Baseball.
Soccer.

To be fair, I haven’t played all of these sports at a competitive level, so I guess I am in no position to make official judgments.

I was shocked to see Soccer SO far down the list.
Disappointing.

Well, the next time your friends are bantering about how difficult their sport is, just let them know it’s nothing compared to boxing.

I wonder how warfare would rank next to some of these sports.
I mean Ammon single handedly chopped off a crap load of arms and then hit some guys with a sling shot and stones. It would seem that he would probably be ranked near the top of this list, right?
“But Ammon stood forth and began to cast stones at them with his sling…
But behold, every man that lifted his club to smite Ammon, he smote off their arms with his sword; for he did withstand their blows by smiting their arms with the edge of his sword, insomuch that they began to be astonished, and began to flee before him; yea, and they were not few in number; and he caused them to flee by the strength of his arm.” (Alma 17:36-37)

? What do you think is the most demanding sport?