Many people hold the idea that sport is a kind of recreation. But in my opinion, it is not appropriate to simply classify sport as a kind of recreation, because there are some significant differences between them.

Firstly, the functions of sport and recreation are different. People participate in sport for a variety of reasons including personal enjoyment, physical health, social contact and emotional satisfaction. The players in competitive sport are pursuing fame and wealth. In all, the functions of sport are complex. However, the function of recreation is simple. The only function of it is to bring fun and amusement to people so that they can relax themselves at their leisure. In this respect, we can not equate sport with recreation.

Secondly, the definitions of the two are different. Sport is defined as an activity with a significant level of physical involvement in which two or more participants compete within accepted rules and procedures, employing tactics and strategies. Then let’s turn to the definition of recreation. Recreation is the fact of people doing things for enjoyment when they are not working. From their definitions we may see that sport usually involves physical movement, competition and skill. People can do sports no matter whether they are working or relaxing. However, recreation is just a way to relax. It may not include physical movement. In spite of different identities, ages and genders, all people do recreations to relax themselves both physically and mentally. Meanwhile, recreation is not available during working hours. These differences in their definitions separate sport from recreation.

Thirdly, the classifications of sport and recreation are different. Sport can be mainly classified into two categories. One is recreational sport, which all people can participate in to enjoy themselves and improve their physical health. The other is competitive sport, in which the participants compete with others for fame and wealth. For example, the World Cup, NBA jerseys and the Olympics. Competitive sport is an elite sport, which highlights the importance of the elite while neglecting the participation of the ordinary people. It is a sport to achieve personal or national pride. Meanwhile, recreation can be divided into two types: physical recreation and mental recreation. Physical recreation includes dancing, travel and recreational sport; mental recreation consists of watching TV, listening to music and chatting. From the classifications we can see that only recreational sport can be considered as a kind of recreation because they are both played for fun and relaxation. Although competitive sport also brings amusement to the spectators, its main purpose is to make commercial profit and gain national glory, which is different from the purpose of recreation.

In a word, we can not simply think of sport as a kind of recreation. They are different in definition, classification, function and some other aspects. A better understanding of sport and recreation will be a great help in distinguishing them.