Stephen A. Smith has claimed that NASCAR drivers and professional golfers are not athletes.
The ESPN pundit has built his career on controversial hot takes and dividing opinion, and his latest outlandish claim came after discussing LeBron James’ standing on the list of all-time great athletes in terms of longevity on his SiriusXM radio show.
“Come on, man. That don’t count. You driving a car!” Smith said. “I’m being honest, it’s a great sport. But come on, bro. Getting behind the wheel of a car is not the same. You can be behind the wheel of a car in your 60s and 70s for crying out loud.
A golfer is not an athlete. A NASCAR driver is not an athlete. Just because you’ve got to walk the course for 18 holes for four days, that don’t make you an athlete.
“They’re skilled players, they’re elite at what they do. But athletes? Athletes? Are you kidding me?”
Smith did concede that NASCAR drivers and golfers, including Tiger Woods in his prime, can be considered athletes due to their physique and training regimen, but that would be independent from their skills in their respective sports.
People in the worlds of motorsports and professional golf would doubtless disagree with Smith’s assertion. NASCAR drivers require immense strength and endurance to cope with the G-forces experienced in a race, while speed and power have become increasingly essential in pro golf.
With a distinct lack of nuance, Smith continued: “Is walking the latest sport that you want to turn into an Olympic sport? Because I guess that would make them athletic, right? Because they can walk.
“If you’re out there doing stuff that grandmas and grandpas can do, I’m not gonna look at you that way. You’re skilled, you’re phenomenally skilled as a golfer… but that is not an athletic sport. A golfer is not an athlete.
“NASCAR is a sport; are they athletes too because they can get behind the wheel of a car and drive 100 plus miles per hour around the track 500 times? You trying to tell me they’re athletes too?”