No it’s not the start of a joke, it was actually a fitness challenge hosted by the Royal Winnipeg Ballet this week.
The idea was to show that ballet dancers are indeed elite level athletes, at the same level of fitness as professional sports stars.
the challenge, but Nipp performed very well keeping right up
with the pro-sports athletes. © CBC
Ballet dancer, Eric Nipp, was pitted against National Hockey League player Ryan Garbutt who is a Winnipeger but plays left- wing with the Dallas Stars team, and Pierre-Luc Labbe, a linebacker with the Canadian Football League’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Several fitness and strength exercises were tested at the Richard Burr Fitness centre in Winnipeg.
Eric Nipp says it was a great experience, “”I did way better than I thought I would,” he said. “I don’t think I won any events. But, I came in second place in a bunch of them, and it was really interesting to be able to keep pace with such elite athletes.”
After tallying up the results, the hockey player came out on top.
Garbutt said it was a humbling experience.
“Both guys were awesome. I was really impressed with Eric,” he said. “I thought he did really well. Great athlete. Definitely impressed with his skills from the ballet. Pierre-Luc is strong. He’s a beast.”
Which sport do you think generally requires the greatest overall level of fitness? Some say (Irish) hurling players should be included in any assessment, while motocross riders in past years have been assessed against athletes from demanding sports such as NFL football, professional basketball, track and soccer with results showing that riders, overall, were at a higher level of physical fitness. Your thoughts?
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