by Alan Kandel
In case you haven’t already noticed, martial arts have appeal. Ever wonder why that is? I don’t think people give this a whole lot of thought primarily because it probably isn’t all that important as far as what people tend to think about. Even so, there is no denying martial-arts appeal is real.
In case you haven’t already noticed, martial arts have appeal. Ever wonder why that is? I don’t think people give this a whole lot of thought primarily because it probably isn’t all that important as far as what people tend to think about. Even so, there is no denying martial-arts appeal is real.
The
appeal is two-pronged. What I mean by this is there is participant (or practitioner)
appeal and there is also spectator (or fan) appeal. Some invariably relish
participating in addition to watching the action from the sidelines.
Unlike
in most other sports, in competitive martial arts, participants are allowed to
bash each other’s faces in – to a certain extent, that is. I mean where else is
this even permitted? Of course, rules must be strictly adhered to otherwise
things can get pretty ugly rather quickly without such. From some fans’
perspective, the more pounding taking place inside the ring or, in other words,
the more of a beating one contestant takes, the better.
So,
I must ask a question right here and right now: Would competitors still compete
if:
1)
there were no prize money attached (professional), and/or
2)
there was no fan draw (be it on an amateur or professional level)? For that
matter, I wonder if competitive sports would exist at all if not for the fans.
Did
I answer my own question?
I
believe I did.
Correct
me if I’m wrong, but I believe as humans we have an innate need to be entertained.
So, building on that, as far as sports competitions go, what makes martial arts
so appealing to so many is due to the entertainment value that martial arts
possesses. In fact, as far as
competitive sports appeal goes, it ranks high on the interest scale. Is there
is really anything else like it anywhere? Some diehard baseball, football,
boxing, basketball, professional wrestling, etc. fans might disagree. No
consensus? No problem. Having a favorite, having an opinion – it is part of
what fandom is and that there is the name of the game.
So,
as long as there is an audience to observe, competitive martial arts will go the
distance. If there is ever a doubt, regardless of reason, always remember: Hand-in-hand
go sports and fans.
Copyright
Alan Kandel. September 18, 2012.
