Sport conversation questions

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Sport

• Do you like to exercise?
• How often do you exercise? What do you do?
• Do you think fishing is a sport? What about chess or darts?
• Do you prefer playing or watching sports?
• Do you prefer watching sports at the stadium, at home on TV, or in a bar on a giant screen?
• If your boss suggested that your group at work took up a team sport in order to help you work better as a team at work how you react?
• How many hours of sport a week should children do at school?
• Do you think sports stars should be paid such high salaries? What are the arguments for and against?
• Would you like to be a professional sportsman or woman? What would be the advantages or disadvantages?
• An "extreme sport" is a sport which is dangerous (or at least appears dangerous) to the person practising it. What is your opinion of these?
• A "blood sport" is a sport in which an animal is killed or injured. What is your opinion of these. Using the broadest possible definition they include:
  • Fishing. (Perhaps to eat them, perhaps not.)
  • Shooting birds. (Presumably to eat them.)
  • Hunting large animals like deer. (Presumably to eat them.)
  • Fox hunting. (For pleasure?)
  • Bullfighting. (For pleasure.)
  • Dogfighting. (To bet?)
  • Cock-fighting. (to bet?)

Football (soccer)

• A football player has a career of, perhaps, 15 years. With such a short working life, do they deserve high salaries?
• What are the disadvantages of playing soccer for a living?
• Typically the same clubs win every time. Is this fair? How could things be changed?
• Which country has the most enjoyable soccer?
• Should the offside rule be removed?
• Do you ever watch women's football? Why, why not?

The Olympics

• Are you interested in the Olympics? What do you like or dislike about them?
• Which sports interest you most?
• Because competitors are evenly skilled at the world-class level, athletes are often looking for ways to get an advantage over their opponents. There has been lots of talk of athletes using illegal drugs to enhance or improve their performance. Can you think of other things that athletes have used in an effort to enhance their performance?
• Do you believe athletes should be allowed to use new equipment that might give them an advantage over their opponents? Or do you believe everyone should compete using the same type of equipment?
• Do you think people are right to boycott the games over political issues?
• Sometimes athletes disagree with the policies of their home governments – should they be allowed to compete without a flag?
• Do you think that some of the judges in individual competitions may be corrupt?
• Do you think that the games have become too commercialised? How would you change things?
• What effect does drug taking have on the games? Are some sports more prone to this problem than others?
• Is it, in fact, a “problem” - should it be legalised? What would the effect be?
• Here is a quote from the Olympic creed: "The most important thing in the Olympic games is not to win but to take part." Do you think this is a good idea? Why or why not? Do you think it is true for most of the athletes?
• Should all the athletes be required to be amateurs? What are the rules at the moment?
• Why do people want to win gold medals? What advantage do they get out of it?
• Is it true that the only medal that really counts is the gold?
• We always see medals tables during the Olympics showing which country has won the most medals. Inevitably the countries with the largest populations - America, Russia and China do well. Shouldn’t the medal tables we weighted against population so that the “winners” of the games are the countries who have the most medals per head of population?
• What do the Olympic rings signify? How many continents are there?
• Do you think the Olympics are a waste of time and money?
• The Olympics aren't about sport now. They're a competition to see which country has spent the most money on preparing their competitors. Do you agree?
• Athletes aren't thinking about competing for their countries at the Olympics. They're thinking about what sponsorship deals they may win if they are successful. Do you agree?
• Cheating isn't bad. It's just bad if you get caught cheating in a sporting competition. Do you agree?
• Sport can unite countries, even ones with very different political systems or religious traditions. Is this true?
• It's impossible to have an Olympics that is free of politics. Do you agree?

See also

• Animal rights conversation questions