When a wrestler steps into the ring, they fight with the intensity of an athlete and the drama of an actor. So is professional wrestling a sport, performance or both?
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American wrestling company founded in 1953 known for its unique wrestling competitions like the Royal Rumble and Wrestlemania, as well as the wrestlers themselves.
Since its founding, the WWE has produced scripted shows. The outcome of the match, including winners, losers and specific moves, are all decided before the match begins.
Junior Shawn Retta of Keansburg, a high school wrestler, expressed his opinion on what qualifies as a sport.
“I think anything that involves active movements and a scoring system is a sport,” said Retta.
Since its creation, the WWE has sparked debate amongst sports fans across the globe. While WWE athletes are required to be extremely physically fit to excel in the industry, many believe the WWE should not be considered a ‘real’ sport due its scripted nature and predetermined outcome.
“I think it’s a performance, but that doesn’t take away from the athleticism that it takes,” said Retta.
While being a WWE wrestler requires significant wrestling abilities and athleticism, it demands acting skills too.
Sophomore and recreational actress Sofie Grodman of Sea Bright gave her take on the theatrical aspect of professional wrestling.
“It’s definitely more of a performance,” said Grodman. “It does require some athleticism, but it’s also fake, so it’s basically just acting with flashy costumes and lots of action.”
Freshman Everly Coleman of Middletown, an actress alongside Grodman, also voiced her perspective on the performance part of the WWE.
“I feel like acting as a whole is a sport,” said Coleman. “But with all the costumes and the announcers going crazy, [the WWE] feels like a big performance. But it does take a lot of physical strength, so I’d say it’s more of a sport.”
Professional wrestlers in the WWE commit to kayfabe, the practice of maintaining the illusion that wrestling events, stories and characters are genuine, even outside of the ring. Over time, the practice has changed, but wrestlers still tend to stay in character when not wrestling.
“When I’m acting, I try to take this character and sort of match their physicality and their mindset, and I feel like that’s definitely similar to what goes on with wrestlers,” said Coleman. “When you’re acting, you’re just taking this person and elevating them, and I feel like that’s what [they] do with their own personalities.”
While the debate on what to categorize wrestling as remains unsettled, both sides acknowledge that the WWE blends athleticism and storytelling to create a production that requires showmanship, strength and a lot of skill.
