Chess is a sport

Exercising the brain burns calories, too

SportsOpinionLouis Paillier — Published November 5, 2024 2 minutes

For instance, the International Olympic Committee recognizes chess as a sport, and over 100 countries see it as one. However, the United Kingdom, for example, does not believe it to be a sport. 

The Oxford English Dictionary defines sport as “an activity involving physical exertion and skill.” According to the American National Library of Medicine, physical exertion is the expenditure of energy during physical activity, which means burning calories.

A 2008 study evaluating the physiological effects of playing chess showed that the average chess player would burn just under 1,000 calories over an eight-hour chess game. However, many grandmaster chess players tend to burn more than the average calories when playing long matches. According to American academic and neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky, grandmaster chess players may burn up to 6,000 calories on tournament days due to their high-stress levels.

The difference in calories that one burns in a chess game compared to a baseball game is rather large. Baseball players burn roughly 340 calories per hour, significantly more than the 125 calories an hour that a chess player would.

“The main argument against including chess and mental sports as sports is that it isn’t physical and does not exert any energy, which is not true because chess players at the highest level would play games of six or seven hours, which would take a toll on their body and health,” said Hamed Alhamed, co-president of Concordia’s chess club.

Regardless, chess is extremely demanding on the body, as players must be attentive without breaks for lengthy periods of time.  

Chess meets the two criteria needed for it to be considered a sport. It involves skill, and players burn calories due to an elevated heart rate.

Some players believe that it should be considered a sport, but should not be placed in the same category as more physically demanding sports like hockey, basketball and football. 

Concordia possesses numerous sports-adjacent clubs, such as the chess club, the game development club and the board game club. 

“I think there are three categories [of sport]: you have esports, the physical sports and then you have mental sports, which includes chess and poker,” Alhamed said.

Chess proves that sport isn’t just a matter of speed and strength; it’s a test of brain power, patience and skill.

This article originally appeared in Volume 45, Issue 5, published November 5, 2024.