phil taylor a legend

I know I am going to get shot down by the 'darts isn't a sport brigade' but this man's dominance deserves a Sports Personality of the Year award - sadly it will never happen because the PDC has shot its bolt with the BBC forever.

To consistently perform at the highest level, even if it is as some suggest a 'pub game', for so long and against players 20-30 years his junior is an incredible achievement.

I do enjoy watching darts if it happens to come on while I’m sat in front of the TV, not that I get to watch much TV these days. Until I read this thread I have never given it much thought if darts was classed as a sport or not, by virtue of the fact two people are in competition with each other in a game that requires skill, I have always look at darts as a form of sport.

This is what Wikipedia has to say

A sport is commonly defined as an organized, competitive, and skillful physical activity requiring commitment and fair play. It is governed by a set of rules or customs. In a sport the key factors are the physical capabilities and skills of the competitor when determining the outcome (winning or losing). The physical activity involves the movement of people, animals and/or a variety of objects such as balls and machines. In contrast, games such as card games and board games, though these could be called mind sports, require only mental skills. Non-competitive activities such as jogging and rock-climbing, are usually classified as recreations.

Physical events such as scoring goals or crossing a line first often define the result of a sport. However the degree of skill in some sports such as diving, dressage and figure skating is judged according to well-defined criteria. This is in contrast with other judged activities such as beauty pageants and body-building shows, where skill does not have to be shown and the criteria are not as well defined.

Accurate records are kept and updated for most sports at the highest levels, while failures and accomplishments are widely announced in sport news. Sports are most often played just for fun or for the simple fact that people need exercise to stay in good physical condition. However professional sport is a major source of entertainment.

Although they do not always succeed, sports participants are expected to display good sportsmanship, standards of conduct such as being respectful of opponents and officials, and congratulating the winner when losing.

The only thing that darts might fall down on being classed as a sport based on the above is that it is not a physical activity as such, I still believe due to the skill and competivie elements alone, darts should be seen as a sport.