• Kalkaline @leminal.space
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    27
    arrow-down
    49
    ·
    6 months ago

    Is roller derby a real sport? I always figured it was more performance than sport like pro wrestling.

    • Tujio@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      24
      ·
      6 months ago

      Roller derby in the 70s was likely scripted. Modern roller derby is almost definitely not. Tons of legit athleticism and power out there.

      It’s a little dated by now, but watch Blood on the Flat Track. It’s about the Roller Derby resurgence from 15ish years ago.

      • Vandals_handle@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        7
        ·
        6 months ago

        Even if scripted, roller derby in the 70’s took athleticisms and power. I agree the sport of roller derby is different now, but practitioners of the past deserve respect. The level of training/conditioning in all sports is very different now, does not mean past practitioners were not athletes. Comparisons across eras is difficult because standards change.

    • sebinspace@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      16
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      6 months ago

      Don’t know why you’re being downvoted for asking an honest question. You asked it in good faith.

      Starting to think you people just can’t live without having something to be angry with.

    • dumples@kbin.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      10
      ·
      6 months ago

      Go watch a roller derby event. It’s pretty fun and mostly chaos. But there’s some real skill and strategy involved.

      • Viking_Hippie@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        6 months ago

        Pro soccer Football is more performance entertaining than pro wrestling but we call that it’s still a sport

        There, fixed it for you.

      • thisbenzingring@lemmy.sdf.org
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        12
        arrow-down
        19
        ·
        6 months ago

        tell me you have never watched a professional soccer game without telling me you have never watched a professional soccer game…

        • tal@lemmy.today
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          8
          arrow-down
          3
          ·
          edit-2
          6 months ago

          I assume that he’s disparaging the act that soccer players put on to act like they’re much more seriously injured than they are when fouled.

          I would guess that the reason that some people really don’t like that is that in some other sports, being able to play through the pain may be considered admirable, so culture friction.

          • AbidanYre@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            7
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            6 months ago

            Some sports, sure. But basketball is pretty popular and it seems like a pretty good chunk of the strategy there is drawing fouls.

          • 9point6@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            3
            ·
            edit-2
            6 months ago

            Tbh the penalties for simulation in a lot of leagues have been turning the tides on the egregious theatrics. I’d agree what you were saying was a lot more prevalent, say a decade or so ago.

            You’ll still always be able to cherry pick incidents, and some leagues will be worse than others for it, but the game has moved on a bit, and you do see it way less frequently than we did even just a few years ago.

            Edit: elsewhere in the thread reminded me of the other aspect of this

            There’s also the tactical fouls which are (whether you agree with it or not) part of the modern game. A player can weigh up the risk of getting sent off if they think it might prevent the opposition from otherwise scoring. These kinds of fouls can look pretty cynical to those unfamiliar with it, not least of all because they tend to also be softer than genuine fouls as the players tend to not want to actually injure themselves and others. So just enough of a foul to stop play, but ideally not even pick up a yellow card, and often in this scenario if the victim of the foul clocks what’s going on, they’ll try to hit the ground harder to increase the chances the fouling player gets booked.

            A player (or even team) can probably only get away with this once or twice in a game before they piss off the ref though, and players will start getting sent off. In the same vein teams want to avoid getting a reputation for it too, otherwise they’ll end up facing much closer scrutiny.

          • Viking_Hippie@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            2
            ·
            6 months ago

            the act that soccer players put on to act like they’re much more seriously injured than they are when fouled.

            Far from all players do that and it’s reviled by football (as opposed to handegg) fans too, as well as against the rules of the sport.

        • VaultBoyNewVegas@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          2
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          6 months ago

          Tell me you’ve never seen Neymar roll about on the pitch without telling me you’ve never seen Neymar rolling about on the pitch…

          • Viking_Hippie@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            3
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            6 months ago

            Fun fact: Neymar is an anomaly, not the norm. Pretending otherwise is just prejudice stemming from cherry picking and/or ignorance.

        • bbbbbbbbbbb@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          8
          ·
          6 months ago

          Ive never watched a professional soccer game, Ill just tell you that. But I do watch American football and enjoy playful ribbing more than you.