Snobs or Philistines, witterings on a snowy afternoon

[Gordon McIvor Wilson]

I may have sounded a bit non-PC - or even undemocratic - in my tetchy comments about Big Brother and Darts. Sportsmen, of course, who bet on these activities are only interested in the wager, the 'sport' itself is irrelevant. Greyhound racing may be in the same mould (Ebony, the Internet greyhound, my beloved 4-legged companion for 12 years) where the sport is probably followed by darts and BB afficionados. So, apologies if I have struck the wrong note.

But Simon Barnes, chief sports writer of The Times, is labouring over a similar dilemma. Is it snobbery to uphold the supremacy of TEST CRICKET over the populist 'entertainments' of 1-day stuff? And is DARTS even a sport**; undoubtedly, there is a snobbish social statement here, a bit akin to snooker, another 'slacks and a belt' pseudo-sport. He goes on with some splendid refs to the physique required for these activities. I leave you to a) imagine the picture and b) saddle up the huskies and moosh your way to the nearest papershop to buy today's Times and read him yourself - or online for nothing, he's a star. He extols the finer points of these non-sports.

He also defines 'philistine'; I'm sure I'm not one, but I admit I dont spend hours watching darts which he thinks I should, for the 'finer' points of the champion's performance. Ah, well; we now know that even Tiger has hidden from us the finer points of his alternative sporting activity (like rifle shooting, a sport conducted lying down); no slacks and a belt for that one though, allegedly.



**I've been on about this before: a 'sport' is not a 'sport' (except in Australia, of course, where we're all 'sports') if the player is wearing a pair of slacks and a belt.