Are you in favour of Yoga becoming an Olympic event? Let us know what you think.
Olympic yoga. Should yoga be an Olympic sport? The jury is out
Words Tabatha Leggett

The 2012 summer Olympic programme features a total of 26 sports. This includes some pretty standard stuff, like swimming and cycling; and some more obscure stuff, like fencing and beach volleyball. But when does an organised activity become an Olympic sport? At what point was it decided that beach volleyball – which I always assumed was only played drunkenly and semi-naked on hot beaches – should be played at a competitive level? With the London Olympics just around the corner, more and more people are starting to ask these sorts of questions. Even yogis.

Now, I always thought that yoga was all about breathing, spiritual wellbeing and general happiness. Apparently not. Gone are the days when part-time hippies practised breathing, stretched a bit at the weekend and called it ‘yoga’. These days, every actress, model and television personality ‘finds’ yoga. And, like everything else that becomes mainstream, they insist on outdoing one another.

So, whilst Sienna Miller credited yoga with helping her through the most difficult years of her marriage and Meg Ryan claimed it changed her life, Madonna became all spiritual: “Yoga is a metaphor for life,” she says. “You have to take it really slowly. You can’t rush. You can’t skip to the next position. You find yourself in very humiliating situations, but you can’t judge yourself. You just have to breathe, and let go.” And, thanks to these stretchy celebrities, it’s almost impossible to avoid seeing yoga DVDs, books, and CDs wherever you go.

Next stop London
And so, it’s hardly surprising that some people want to turn yoga into an Olympic sport. But how do they justify turning a 5,000-year-old spiritual system into a competition on par with ice-skating and gymnastics? Isn’t yoga all about the ancient art of controlling the mind? Quite simply: no. Or, so claims the now legendary Bikram Choudry, founder of Bikram Yoga (www.bikramyoga.com).

This style involves performing 26 hatha yoga postures in a 41°C environment. It’s sweaty. Very sweaty. Initially, Choudry developed his yoga blend to restore his health after a gymnastics accident, but nowadays, it is considered the fastest growing yoga system in the world. And it’s competitive. Practitioners of Bikram Yoga are, some might say, more concerned with being athletes than aesthetes.

And so it would seem reasonable to claim that such a strenuous and physically challenging sport should be practised at Olympic level. After all, it requires the same amount of training as gymnastics and swimming, and is equally physically demanding.

Lifestyle
But not all are happy about this. “I have always viewed yoga as a non-competitive activity,” says Lisa Foden, an instructor from LC Yoga (www.lcyoga.co.uk). “To me, it is no way a competitive sport; it’s an all-encompassing life system in which asana [the physical postures] are such small parts. How then can one part of such a deep, all-encompassing system be judged in such a competitive environment as the Olympics?”

Yet it only takes a look at the huge range of yoga classes that are offered at local gyms up and down the country to realise how far yoga has moved from its original roots. My local gym, for example, offers pretty much everything from ‘yogalates’ (a somewhat cryptic, combination of yoga and pilates) to ‘weightloss yoga’ and ‘disco yoga’. And, whilst this is all well and good, I have to question how much yoga is actually involved. I have a sneaky feeling that most of these classes probably involve very busy rooms full of people contorting their bodies into lots of weird and wonderful positions, and ending their work outs with a bit of random spiritual chanting. And this is great. Contortion is impressive and undoubtedly requires skill and patience, but they could probably do without the chanting and pretence of ‘practising yoga’.

In this sense, yoga has moved on from being a spiritual affair to a gym-class staple. Years ago, yoga used to be about detaching oneself from the material world and finding enlightenment. These days, however, there is a lot of money to be made out of this contorted version of yoga.

Changing times
According to the British Wheel of Yoga, almost half a million people in Britain practise yoga on a regular basis. Furthermore, the number of yoga teachers increases by about 10% each year.

Now, I don’t have an issue with people buying expensive yoga materials and going on pricey yoga retreats. I also don’t have an issue with people practising contortion and gymnastics. I simply think that a line has to be drawn between what is yoga, and what clearly isn’t.

Yoga, in the oldest sense of the word, involves the inquiry and acquisition of wisdom. It requires little more than a mat, a bit of space and an open mind. Newage yoga, however, involves showing off perfectly toned torsos and contorting the body into crazy positions. And, there’s no reason for this not being considered an Olympic sport. But – some might say – it’s not yoga. Until we find a way to distinguish between the two, it may be difficult to introduce it as an Olympic sport.

Yoga has become an umbrella term that encompasses far too much. The Olympics involve young people, in their physical prime, competing at a high level. But, the most respected yogis are old and wise, and certainly no longer in their physical prime. By its very definition, yoga should involve effort but no struggle. And I bet you can’t find a single Olympic sports player who hasn’t struggled to achieve such sporting excellence. So when will yoga make it to the Olympics? Probably not London next year, but who knows, there’s always Rio 2016. The judges are still out on this one.

FOR
Michele Pernetta, Bikram yoga teacher.

Yoga competition is a much-loved Indian tradition and has been for hundreds of years, if not longer. It is commonplace in most Indian ashrams today.

The main yoga competition organisations (and there are a number) are Indian, not Western and several of them are trying to help get yoga shown at the Olympics. The participants only compete as singles (as in a emonstration). They are marked on grace, poise, stillness, breathing, technical ability, and energy projection. It is fascinating and beautiful to watch. I strongly feel that it would be a shame to deny the wider public the opportunity to see it.

We Westerners need to stop being so uptight about yoga. They certainly are not so uptight in India! How else do you get people, especially children, interested in yoga? By letting them see it on television and by giving them a forum on which to practice. What better way to show society what yoga is? Show them how interesting and beautiful it is via global broadcast media and competitions, which provide the perfect showcase.

Critics of yoga competition are not seeing the bigger picture. Competition will not affect your local yoga studio, the classes you attend or the way 99.9% of people practise yoga – just like having figure skating in the Olympics does not affect all the millions of people who enjoy going to their local ice skating rink. But you have to ask would they be whizzing round that rink or teaching their kids figure skating or gymnastics or swimming or even curling if they hadn’t seen it first on TV?

Yoga is now part of Western culture and there is no point in hiding it away. Those who object would do well to weigh their objections against the health benefits to society if more people could take up yoga.

AGAINST
Erin Fleming, yoga instructor at Yogadeva.

Yoga is an ancient, artful life science that is steeped in spirituality. It’s so much more than mere physical expression. It involves skill, beauty, grace and strength. But, yoga is not a competitive sport, despite it being treated as such in India many years ago.

Yoga undoubtedly improves fitness, but it needs to keep its spiritual and somewhat mysterious appeal separate from the requirements of ‘winning’ a competition. Besides, how would yoga be judged? Who would judge it? What tradition would govern the competition? Treating yoga as a competitive sport would probably turn it into a contortion competition where only super-human flexibility, strength and stamina would be measured. These are just a few of the many aspects that define yoga.

I strive to introduce people to yoga so they can connect to a higher aspect of themselves and experience ‘working in’, not ‘working out’. For me, yoga is praying with my body and is intensely personal, humbling and deeply spiritual. Admittedly, yoga is not this meaningful for all people. This is due, at least in part, to body-ism: the huge focus on the physical aspects of yoga.

Yes, people attend yoga classes because they make them feel better, but this ‘feeling better’ is not just because their hamstrings are longer and their groins more open. Yoga classes involve communities, connections to teachers and, as such, people who attend yoga classes enjoy many emotional and mental benefits. How can these benefits be measured in a competition? By their very nature, competitions encourage comparisons. But, when we
compare ourselves to one another, the light goes out on what is truly important: becoming kinder and more compassionate people.

Your comments and views

“Yoga is essentially a healing and a spiritual path.It is also very rare for anyone to understand yoga unless one is involved as it encompasses so many different aspects beyond even the 8 limbs.Hence this public exibition as an olympic sport does not get my vote.” – Baba Mansukhani

“Yoga although not a “competitive” sport is very good for your mind body and spirit and i believe if it is an olympic sport – it would give more people opportunity to see the true nature of yoga. Well practiced yoga is graceful, skilful and an art form. People do judge when they see a teacher or another practitioner about how “good” they are, that is natural and also required if you are assisting a student to understand how their practice is – so making the judging formal should not be such an issue.” – Phillipa Copleston-Warren

“Yes, show the world how good yoga is for your body and mind.” – Ana Bonito

“Apart from being hard to “judge”, more importantly, the whole idea behind yoga is to neither judge (criticize) oneself nor be judged by others.” – Wendy Wright

“Yoga is not a sport, it’s a way of life!! Yoga should never be practised with the EGO!!” – Mina Parmar

“I think anything that can advertise yoga in a positive way and give the younger generation a reason to look into training in any style of yoga can only be a good thing. As a teenager I only did yoga to try and reach some of the impossible-looking poses I had seen in books and magazines. I will admit it was all about ego back then, but the fact is that I am still studying yoga now and the ego has gone – it has become a lifestyle choice for me now and who is to say that I might not have reached where I am now if it wasn’t for those early ego days.” – D. Wilkinson

“I am of the same opinion as Erin Fleming and the author of this article. I don’t quite see HOW yoga could be an olympic sport precisely from the point of view of it being both a physical and spiritual practice. I run at the gym, take aerobics classes for fitness, but I practice yoga for different reasons- okay, flexibility and strength is clearly a part of it but it is a personal practice, you listen to your body more and the spiritual element cannot be ignored. It\’s not about being uptight and not wanting to share yoga with the world as Michelle Pernetta suggests, yoga is hardly hidden away- people come to yoga when they need it and are ready to engage in a practice. Demonstrations of physical prowess in an Olympic forum would convey the wrong message in my opinion- almost a contradiction to what the practice of yoga is all about.” – Emma Turner

“The point I see this controversy centered around is the old conflict between conservation and evolution of the world we live in. Both aspects come with merits, our concept of fairness can hardly be applied when the old becomes displaced by the new, which was made possible only by the former. If the history of my German heritage taught me anything, then that the war my grandparents had lived through is now, two or more generations later, all mine. I’m responsible for it now, I’m in charge and in possession of it when I travel to Moscow, Paris, or London; it became what I and my friends in these cities think of it today, grandpa would seriously disagree.
Whoever has developed the yoga postures I so love to practice may rest assured of my awe and gratitude but shouldn’t have any illusions about whose property they are now. If some-body denied yoga Olympic status on grounds of wanting to preserve the old art, my response would be: We can’t save the ars of yoga from the scientia of it as we couldn’t defend the ars erotica from the scientia sexualis anyways, simply because, despite of all the conservation, we as reflective beings necessarily progress. There is no way back to Eden.
Sports are not competitive because they are Olympic but because we are. Our intelligence, the way we organize our affairs evolved through deception and manipulation, by securing an advantage so to speak. And the sports we enjoy are therefore no surprise.
Making yoga Olympic is in this perspective like the growing up of our little daughter. Every step she takes carries her further away from home but also opens the world a little more to her. And what more could parents wish for then that their kids develop skills enabling them to discover and take possession of their full potential and their future? I’m not even sad that the process is competitive and that it makes me obsolete one day; here I want to lose, namely the world to her.
Don’t try to own yoga by keeping it close to home, share it and trust others with it” – Thomas Gleichmann

“Yoga in the Olympics? Why not? This would put yoga in the spot light. The more people getting inspired to do yoga the better. I am a strong believer in adapting your yoga practice to your lifestyle. It should fit into your everyday life so that it makes sense for you. You should enjoy doing it, enjoy its benefits and forget about the parts of it which you dont like. If you dont like the spiritual side, I dont see any problem with practicing the moves to increase your fitness levels. So long as you practice with one pointed concentration and breathe deeply in each posture you will activate the Parasympathetic Nervous System. To put it simply, this benefits all the systems of the body so that they function well and also improve.
Personally I have adapted my teaching and personal practice for surfing. Each class I teach is for the benefit of those who are infront of me. As I teach for a yoga and surf company I have adapted my practice to suit my clients as well as my personal passion for surfing. Yoga is a challenging beautiful practice which can be adapted to help everyone. Let those who wish to do yoga for the olympics go for it, why should we stop anyone from practicing yoga? I say go for it, for whatever reason and wherever you like! I would love to see it in the olympics!” – Lucie Palmer, Yoga Instructor at Surf Berbere Yoga

“Yes, I am a yoga practitioner myself. I do believe yoga should be part of the olympic. Yoga is a vast system of maintian good holistic health – however some part of it has always been as sporty as it can be. A great part of sportsmanship and fitness decends straight from Yoga itself – which is now incorporated in so many different exercise, dance and sport routines. I am all for it.” – Shirstee

“Yoga as competition seems to me a contradiction. They may have ‘yoga champions’ in India, but to become over-fascinated with the gymnastic aspect of the practice is to miss three quarters of the potential of yoga. After all, out of 196 verses in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, only 5 refer to ‘asana’. Being steady, comfortable and grounded in your body is just the beginning of the stilling of the turmoil of thoughts and feelings that gets faster and faster in this bright nuclear electronic age. I imagine your Olympic yoga champions as those who could sit in the most perfect meditation on the podium.” – Michael Cullingworth

“Yoga is totally non-competitive – it is not about winning or being better than any one else but what each of us experiences inwardly. Yoga as an Olympic sport would just be gymnastics.” – Jay Turl

“Can you measure the amount of self awareness? Can you measure the steadiness of the mind? Yoga is not a sport, you can’t grade a sirsasana. It’s not about how it looks, its about how it feels, and there’s no way you can measure that” – Mafalda Sousa

“I think that it could be an olympic event similar to gymnastics.” – Andrea Detcon

“NO…it is to help the mind, body and soul” – Shailah

“Yoga should not be a competition, it should be a personal practice” – Brittany Wallrath

“I don’t see how a winner could be chosen. For me Yoga is about personal growth and relaxation.” – Robert Hall

“Not an easy question to answer with a simple yes / no. Asanas performed as a sequence of postures could make a very enjoyable event – so I would probably say – yes. However Yoga has many paths with many steps and is so much more than Asanas alone, but I don’t believe that should prevent it from being an event and enjoyed by all” – Andy

“Great article, thank you. Yoga is non-competitive, it is for the individual, whether that person is young , or old, coping with illness,or disability or feeling fine.It can be for everyone. We all take away something different from a class. This offers the practitioner safe and skilled tuition, together with the feeling that the experience is being shared in a supportive way. If we fall when in half-Moon,those next to us do not smirk. A good class allows you to feel safe and amongst friends in times of difficulty. If it becomes an Olympic event it should be called something different, to distinguish it from the traditional Yoga that has dimensions for the individual that fortunately cannot ever be measured by an examiner.” – Gill Meyer

“Absolutely not. Yoga by definition is union with something greater than yourself – which means less ego. I can not imagine more of a degradation to the art of Yoga than to make it an official competition. Yoga asanas are already competitive enough in class… give it a break.” – Heather

“I have spent 27 years of my life competing in Athletics, Cycling and Duathlon, up to national level. I can confirm from experience that any form of competition and Yoga worlds apart. It would destroy the very essence of what Yoga is all about if if were to become a competitive Olympic event! ” – Caroline Wickham

“Yoga is not a sport. Yoga is non competitive.” – Sylvia

“Olympic events are for competitive sports. Yoga is a philosophy and a way of life (or in the words of Max Strom, “a life worth breathing”) not just some eastern form of acrobatics. I think Olympic participation would disastrously undermine the core values of yoga practice. A dreadful idea.” – Stephanie Herbert

“Yoga was never meant to be competitive. The only competition that takes place is within, and there can be no points or medals for that. How else can we get over ourselves?” – Maria Kapetanou

“Yoga is a spiritual holistic practise as well as a physical practise, it is not a sport and has no place at the olympics.” – Michael Pattinson

“I am in favour of yoga becoming an olympic event. My only reservation is that It will only show the young and talented, maybe giving the impression that is what you have to be to practice yoga. There are many more yogi/yoginis out there who are not in the “body beautiful” catagory who practice and enjoy yoga.” – Billy Boyack

“Yoga is a challenge with yourself, is it not a sport to compete with others.” – Jozijn Hogendoorn

“Yoga is not competitive in any way and should not be encouraged as such” – Sally Kennedy

“Quite simply: yoga is non-competitive; the Olympics is.” – Stephen Charles

“Sorry Yoga has nothing to do with competition, if yoga Olympics, we talk about something else, although it might be a worldwide boost to promote yoga allover the world, which would benefit the whole planet… so yes!” – Anne Severyns

“It requires strength and stamina, is beautiful to look at, is incredibly inclusive and has international appeal” – Ridlydidly

“Yoga is not a sport, (physical activity only) – it is a way of life and everyone’s way is different and might be the best or the worst on any level (physical,mental and emotional).However, if this refers to the asana ONLY competition …..but then we might as well watch the performers of Cirque Du Soleil, or gymnastics.” – Hristina Conner

“How could it be ‘yoga’ if in a competitive arena, hardly moving towards samadhi……once there is competition for ‘who is the bendiest’ surely it ceases to be yoga or connection. Will there be prizes for ‘most ahimsa’ and how they might get past aparigraha in an international competition is puzzling……this is just another example of yoga becoming an asana circus and focussing on the body beautiful.” – Charlotte Watts

“Yes, because it benifits everybody and mind and it would give it a world wide profile but its tricky because yoga is non competitive.” – Wayne Chasity

“You could have ashtanga vinyasa yoga in the olympics” – Doug Blane

Let us know what you think. Please complete the form below. A follow up will be published in a future edition of OM using some of your comments.