Support My Sport: Dance should receive more recognition as an official sport due to the time and effort it takes

It was the first day of fourth grade. My teacher passed out worksheets containing the classic get-to-know-you survey: full name, favorite food, best summer memory. “What’s your favorite sport?” is the one that stuck out to me. 

Back then, I kicked soccer balls, dribbled basketballs and attended dance classes all at once. Contemplating the toughest decision a fourth grader can make, I scribbled “dance” in squiggly, crooked handwriting.

I hesitated before reading my response out loud, already imagining my classmates’ laughter. After all, the question “should dance be considered a sport” was a hot topic in grade school. But even today, I’m never surprised by the classic response:

“Pfft, dance isn’t a sport!”

After making the varsity dance team this year, the families of each dancer were invited to the fall sports parent meeting… for the first time ever. Is this a sign that East finally considers dance a sport? Were they right to extend the invitation, or should dance remain exclusively an art form?

Let’s break down the meaning of a “sport.” Dictionary.com defines a sport as “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.”

Just looking at a dancer’s schedule is a physical exertion. Here’s mine for reference:

On Monday, I have dance team from 1:50-3:30 p.m, plus studio dance from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesday is studio dance from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, I have dance team from 1:05-3:30 p.m. and studio dance again from 6:30-9:30 p.m. Thursday is dance team from 6 to 9 p.m. And so on.

In total, I dance 21 hours and 40 minutes a week; 13 at my studio and 8 hours and 40 minutes for the dance team at East, plus four all-day competitions a year. If over 21 hours of commitment to one sport isn’t physical exertion and skill, I don’t know what is. 

Based on these facts alone, competition dance and dance team easily fall under the category of a sport. It should be considered a sport at East.

According to the Kansas State High School Activities handbook, in order for a student to participate in a sport, they have to undergo a physical examination and be under 19 years old, in no “club” or sport competition team outside of school and be a bona fide student. Football, cross country and five other sports have guidelines including a maximum of three-hour practices five days a week.

When you flip the handbook to the “Spirit Groups” page, the only rules listed are the tumbling restrictions. Dance is seen as more of a “gray area” to KSHAA.

KSHAA’s rules for sports would completely alter the functions of a dance team. The rule stating that students can’t participate in club sports or competition teams outside of school would mean that dancers couldn’t attend their own personal studio classes, according to dance team coach Alexis “Bubba” Close. Dancers couldn’t get the appropriate training they need to succeed.

KSHAA’s interpretation of a sport warps the actual definition with many layers of unnecessary rules. The rules concerning sports mention strength and conditions during practice, while dance just has a list of illegal tricks. These new rules that separate dance from every other sport have helped contribute to the comments I’ve heard throughout my dancing career.

Every negative comment I’ve heard about dance has originated from this popular mis-definition of a sport: a game with a ball and a way to score points.

So, is dance a sport? If you’re talking about the definition stated in a dictionary then yes, but KSHAA’s interpretation of a “sport” would disagree. Dancers need the recognition that we deserve, but KSHAA is preventing that. Dance will always be deemed a “spirit group” as long as the “gray area” remains.

This doesn’t mean we can’t increase student excitement about the dance team. Dancers cheer at football games and basketball games. We perform at their halftimes. We help promote games by wearing uniforms to school. So, return the favor by at the very least recognizing our team’s work as a sport.