Hardest things to do in sports, thoughts?

[dillingerescaped]

what about Winning 8 olympic gold medals in one olympiad? (Talking about Michael Phelps) When will that happen again (its never happened before)

[BLacktocomm]

Well I am going to throw my thoughts in on this one.

I think people are arguing that hitting a fastball is harder than the TDF or a Marathon, but what nobody has thought about is that hitting a fastball is competing at a pro level.

So if we are to compare hitting a fastball to any of those sports lets quantify it that you have to compete with the pros in each of those sports.

This in turn would say that you would have to be in the top 200 cyclists in the world to be competitive in the Tour de France. Lance Armstrong often would spend 10-12 hours a day biking!

Running a marathon? So a pro marathon? I don't think people understand how fast these racers are running. you have to be able to run a sub 5 mile for 26 miles straight. Ryan hall does 4:46 miles.. for 26.2 miles straight. The Half marathon pace? 4:26 per mile.

What hasn't been discussed is the Ironman race. Competing with the pro's in an Ironman means that you would have to open water swim 2.4 miles in about 50 minutes. Next you bike 112 miles, without drafting in about 4.5 hours. Most pros will average about 25 miles per hour for the 4.5 hour ride, and then they will run a marathon in under 3 hours. Some of them well under the 3 hour mark.

Someone mentioned rock climbing, and I would probably argue this over hitting a fastball. Climbing a 5.14. To climb at a professional level you have to be part stupid and spend your entire life climbing.

How about a sub 10.0 100 meter? What about running a mile under 3:50?

I don't know what is the most difficult, but if we are going to judge hitting a fastball from a professional pitcher we have to judge every activity as competing in the professional arena. I believe that many more people can hit a fastball than can run a mile in less than 3:50 seconds.

[PhishinPole]

Originally Posted by overunderdrive

but hitting MLB pitching is a skill that is very nearly impossible. as has been pointed out, a 30% success rate is considered astonishingly good.

I think the sheer number of MLB players in a given year compared to the number of TdF participants speaks volumes to the degrees of difficulty.

Hitting a baseball is hard, but there are about 1200 members in the MLB Players Association every year. (40 man roster * 30 teams)

There were 219 participants in the 2010 TdF.

[Bankston]

If you fell off your bike 7 out of 10 times you tried to ride it, then you can say that riding a bicycle is a more difficult skill than getting a base hit.

Too many people are comparing apples to oranges. Endurance and skill are two totally different concepts.

[overunderdrive]

I find it interesting that the two sports we're discussing--baseball and cycling--have both been tainted nearly beyond repair by 'doping', which is really just a euphemism for 'cheating'...

[jzgtrguy]

Originally Posted by overunderdrive

I find it interesting that the two sports we're discussing--baseball and cycling--have both been tainted nearly beyond repair by 'doping', which is really just a euphemism for 'cheating'...

All sports have been tainted by drugs and they have for decades. There were Olympians disqualified not just for drugs and blood doping but sex change!

I think it might be a good idea to define what a great feat is? Is it and endurance feat? A technical feat?

[art_z]

the thing is, put me in front of a pro-pitcher, and given enough swings, I'll hit the ball eventually, it's all a matter of probability. I'm never winning the 100m gold medal, even if I tried every day my entire life.

it really is an apples and oranges comparison. just like who the "best guitar player is". no matter who is judged "best", there is someone out there that can do something the "best" can't.

[John Hurtt]

From a skill level...I can't imagine anything more difficult than hitting a round ball with a round bat...

...squarely...

[bigdaddy]

Originally Posted by John Hurtt

From a skill level...I can't imagine anything more difficult than hitting a round ball with a round bat...

...squarely...

Try balancing your entire weight on two 1/4" wide, 6. long pieces of steel, on ice. Now sprint.

[SPSurgeon]

Hands down, the hardest thing to do in all sports - Win a MotoGP race.

[mslugano]

Originally Posted by SPSurgeon

Hands down, the hardest thing to do in all sports - Win a MotoGP race.

I'm with you.