This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34537024
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| High Court rules bridge is not a sport | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Bridge players who wanted the card game recognised as a sport have lost their High Court battle. | |
| The English Bridge Union (EBU) had argued it had health benefits for the mind and should be reclassified. | The English Bridge Union (EBU) had argued it had health benefits for the mind and should be reclassified. |
| But in his ruling, Mr Justice Dove said he agreed with Sport England that sport required "physical activity". | |
| Bridge is played by four players in two partnerships. It uses a standard 52-card deck and involves betting on the number of tricks each side will win. | Bridge is played by four players in two partnerships. It uses a standard 52-card deck and involves betting on the number of tricks each side will win. |
| 'Erred in law' | |
| The union had wanted Sport England to reclassify the game, which would have made it eligible for government and lottery funding. | |
| It had previously claimed the ordinary and natural meaning of "sport" in the 1996 Royal Charter, which established Sport England, was sufficiently broad so as to not necessarily require physical activity. | |
| But the judge said Sport England's current policy defined sport as involving "physical activity" and its move to reject reclassification was in line with legalisation. | |
| He said the issue he had considered was whether Sport England officials had "erred in law" when refusing to classify bridge as a sport, not the "broad, somewhat philosophical question" as to whether or not bridge "is a sport". |