Tank McNamara by Bill Hinds for June 09, 2024

  1. Missing large
    thevideostoreguy  5 months ago

    Making contact, though, would be a challenge.

     •  Reply
  2. Cicada avatar
    Dirty Dragon  5 months ago

    Put a free safety in the Greek chorus.

     •  Reply
  3. 3dflags usaal1 5
    Alabama Al  5 months ago

    Perhaps we can answer the question of “what is an athlete” by looking at the question from two extremes on the sports/athlete spectrum: Chess and Professional Wrestling.

    Is chess a sport? Arguably, it is. Chess is competitive and to play at a championship level requires skills which may be improved through study, practice, and experience. Are chess players, therefore, athletes? I would say “No”. As mentally exhausting as a chess tournament may be for its participants, there are very little of what is regarded as “athletic skills” directly involved.

    Now we come to professional exhibition wrestling (in contrast to Greco-Roman wrestling, which is certainly a sport and the participants are athletes). Are pro-wrestlers athletes? Like the ballet dancer, a pro-wrestler is certainly athletic; a pro-wrestler couldn’t long endure the falls and other exertions inherent in pro-wrestling matches without being in top physical condition. But as usually exhibited, pro-wrestling matches are as choreographed as a ballet. Therefore, pro-wrestling cannot be considered a legitimate sport.

    Consequently, neither the chess player nor the pro-wrestler may be considered as “athletes”. The chess player may participate in a sport, but is not required to demonstrate any physical strength, agility, or stamina; the pro-wrestler may demonstrate substantial physical abilities, but is not participating in a true sport.

     •  Reply
  4. Missing large
    mdcatdad  5 months ago

    I once heard that comment of Edward Villella and asked “What was the score of his last ballet?”

     •  Reply
  5. Coyote
    eromlig  5 months ago

    Hey, Bill — I miss “second Chances” as a stand-alone comic, but I appreciate your keeping the characters alive (so to speak).

     •  Reply
  6. Img 20230511 134023590 portrait 5
    markkahler52  5 months ago

    You can see WWE wrestlers hit each other mid-air during ballet moves

     •  Reply
  7. Test01b
    LawrenceS  5 months ago

    And if you put a 6’ 5" 290 lb defensive end on stage in tights no one would comment on his athletic grace… They’d be too busy laughing.

     •  Reply
  8. Ellis archer profile
    Ellis97  5 months ago

    You know, Nick, some athletes take ballet and dancing lessons to help improve their game and learn new techniques.

     •  Reply
  9. Missing large
    wi3leong Premium Member 5 months ago

    The sports included in the Olympic games are marketing decisions, not a definition of sport.

     •  Reply
  10. Boston
    MS72  5 months ago

    Don’t both wear a cup?

     •  Reply
  11. Img 20220514 wa0005
    grange Premium Member 5 months ago

    Like pro wrestling, it’s athletic performance, rather than competition.

     •  Reply
  12. 000 0001  2
    lee85736  5 months ago

    I think potential violence is also a factor. If the audience knew there would be a benches-clearing brawl in a baseball game, they would be glued to their TVs until it happened. The same applies to crashes in NASCAR races.

    Ballet? I agree with Nick.

     •  Reply
  13. Pirate63
    Linguist  5 months ago

    I would define sport as a competition between individuals or groups. Dancers, particularly male ballet dancers, rely on agility, strength, superb conditioning, and choreographic ability to be successful, but ballet is not a competition, it is performance art!

     •  Reply
  14. Ott logo
    Old Time Tales  5 months ago

    I doubt that defensive end could keep up with the ballet dancer for very long.

     •  Reply
  15. Thrill
    fritzoid Premium Member 5 months ago

    1) Is race horse an athlete? Is a jockey an athlete? Discuss.

    2) Is a race car an athlete? Is its driver an athlete? Discuss.

     •  Reply
  16. Victrola squarred
    Michael Helwig  5 months ago

    Suppose a defensive lineman hit a pitcher during his windup. Does that mean baseball players aren’t athletes?

     •  Reply
  17. 2008happynewyear1024
    TexTech  5 months ago

    There was a pro wrestler back in the early ’60s (before the excesses of WWE) named Ricky Starr. His schtick was that he was trained in ballet. One of the things they put in the script was for him to do a ballet type spin and then stop and smack his opponent up side the head. The guy was solidly built but graceful and fun to watch. I think he won about as much as he lost. He was classed as one of the “good guys.”

     •  Reply
  18. Missing large
    jconnors3954  5 months ago

    A codpiece for sure.

     •  Reply
  19. 100 2451
    RonBerg13 Premium Member 5 months ago

    Can a 6’5”, 290 LB Defensive End do a Standing Middle Split?

     •  Reply
  20. Missing large
    bobbyferrel  5 months ago

    That’s the reason I don’t care for golf. Too much offense. Not enough defense.

     •  Reply
  21. Missing large
    grocks  5 months ago

    Russia has used ballet for hockey training for some time. You can google it.

     •  Reply
  22. Raven1
    amaneaux  5 months ago

    You can make that same argument about almost any sport: baseball, basketball, tennis, running, swimming, etc. None of them would likely do well if tackled full-force by a very large man, yet nobody would argue that they are not athletes. But by the same token, most gridiron football players would have a lot of trouble pulling off a pirouette, hitting a knuckleball, doing the butterfly stroke, etc. You can’t cherry-pick specific abilities to be considered “athletes”. Personally, I would consider dancers, pro wrestlers, and acrobats to be athletes, but not jockeys or race-car drivers. I could go either way for golfers or bowlers.

     •  Reply
  23. Louis2
    PoodleGroomer  5 months ago

    Could a lineman catch a 110 lb dancer flying at him without falling on his backside? How many seasons?

     •  Reply
  24. Bob 1
    moondog42 Premium Member 5 months ago

    The difference is that the ballet dancer can admit to being gay.

     •  Reply
  25. 38096534 2543 4864 8509 d06fceeba3fb
    Brent Rosenthal Premium Member 5 months ago

    I feel the same about golf.

     •  Reply
  26. Avatarmaker
    TekoaMT  5 months ago

    Reminds me of that old golf commercial for…I think it was beer, where they added, like linebackers blitzing the golfers. That might actually get me to see a ballet.

     •  Reply
  27. Doc brown
    Mad Sci  5 months ago

    I’ve angered a number of people online previously with my position that any event that requires judges to determine the winner is not really a sport but a performance. I debates inevitably devolve when people come in who don’t understand the difference between the roles of a judge and a referee.

     •  Reply
  28. Zoot and saxophone
    Boise Ed Premium Member 5 months ago

    Now the Olympics are going to have breakdancing! wi3leong was right.

     •  Reply
  29. Airhornmissc
    Liverlips McCracken Premium Member 5 months ago

    I don’t imagine Simone Biles would fare too well either if hit by a 6’5", 290 lb. DE.

     •  Reply
  30. Missing large
    fourteenpeeves  5 months ago

    Classic episode of THE FLINTSTONES where Fred takes up ballet to g et his bowling form back.

     •  Reply
  31. Swallowed a hockey stick
    Ceeg22 Premium Member 5 months ago

    I bet the ballet dancer could easily leap out of the way

     •  Reply
Sign in to comment

More From Tank McNamara