“Ultimate fighting as part of the so-called mixed martial arts is not a sport. It fundamentally contradicts the general sports ethos and the sport definition of the DOSB.”
This statement by the German Olympic Sports Confederation, DOSB for short, from 2009 makes it clear what reservations the authoritative authority for organized sport in Germany had or has towards MMA. But how is a sport defined? And why is MMA not yet recognized as a sport by the DOSB? That’s exactly what we’ll clarify in the third part of the MMA UNFOLDED Basics.