MMA(Mixed Martial Arts)is the most complete contact sport in the world today.

I accept thy challenge, and will proceed to surpass your contact sport with another.. after this brief intermission! "That is the difference between normal athletes and fighters, a fighter would never blame anyone else for their loss. You have to have a certain spirit to get into the ring, or octagon, or cage. A warrior spirit won't blame their wife, baby, or injury. That is just ridiculous." Just because someone fights does not mean that they study any codes of chivalry, and it also does not mean they can not be greedy, cowards, or wife-blamers. Just because they are fighters does not set them apart from the fact that they are human. I know in movies these kung-fu masters and wrestlers seem to possess no fear, along with an additional sense of honour that forbids them from doing anything that the audience frowns upon, but this not always apparent in real life. This leads me to your challenge. Let me refresh the memory of our audience before I delve into this exciting provocation. "I challenge you to name a contact sport that requires more athleticism." I will use all of your definitions of athleticism in my response. I believe that sword-fighting is a contact sport that requires more athleticism than mixed martial arts. Let's see why: 1. Conditioning: sword-fighters must be in prime condition to fight their opponents. An unfit sword-fighter is a dead sword-fighter. 2. Strength: A weak sword-fighter lacks the endurance to survive in drawn out battles. 3. Toughness: A wussy fighter will never prevail over those with hearts of steel. Bawling out over simple cuts could get you decapitated in a sword fight. 4. Heart: Sword-fighters need "miles of heart," just as fighters do. However, I believe it much more daunting to take place in a fight to the death then face someone who may render you unconscious at worst. However much heart it requires to fight, you need much more to SWORD-fight. To clinch the matter, I will even provide you with an example: Zorro. Zorro is a revered fencer who deals out doses of hot fiery justice to criminals in many movies, TV shows, and comic books. Not only does his job require healthy doses of 1, 2, 3 and 4, but Zorro includes intellect, honour, and skill in his endeavors against the tyrannies of man. For those of you not familiar with the adventures of Zorro, here are some videos displaying his remarkable athleticism. http://www.youtube.com... http://www.youtube.com... And for those of you who have 20 minutes on their hands, here is a tale of one of Zorro's many triumphs. http://www.youtube.com... http://www.youtube.com... Let's see how Zorro rates against your 4 key elements of athleticism: 1. Conditioning: As you can see, Zorro does not show any signs of weakness or fatigue during the sword fight. This is the result of many hard hours of training. 2. Strength: Zorro has the strength to parry his opponent's many blows, even double-handed ones (part 2 of the 20 minute episode), proving his strong arm. 3. Toughness: As shown in the first video, Zorro can withstand sword cuts, and he claims they make him even stronger. A tough guy if I ever saw one! 4. Heart: Zorro has a heart "both ways." He is a brave man, willing to duel an enemy (part 1 of the 20 minute episode) that he plans to lose against. It takes bravery to put your life in the hands of another. The second way Zorro has heart is that he is in love. This strengthens him and gives him something to live for, thus improving his fighting ability. Zorro displays remarkable skill, while also showing that sword-fighting requires more athleticism than mixed martial arts. If you have watched the videos, you will see that there is more to the arena of sword-fighting than a simple "ring, or octagon, or cage." Many obstacles (i.e. chairs, posts, civilians, etc.) present themselves to you, and a sword-fighter must learn to take advantage of such items. You may argue that fighting can also take place in areas littered with debris, but many more obstructions are available while sword-fighting. For example: in the Zorro videos above, Zorro and his enemies take advantage of curtains and shades while fighting to gain an edge on their opponent. In martial arts, things can not be sliced off and thrown, putting them at a disadvantage. I would like to finish by saying that sword-fighting requires much more athleticism than mixed martial arts, and IS considered a contact sport. I rest my case.