What is the Hardest Sport in the World: List of Top 10

What is the hardest sport at the pro level? 

All sports come with their own set of difficulties and challenges, but some demand a special breed of athlete. The competitive nature of athletes makes them compare or compete in various sports to gauge the competition. 

Many athletes argue that their sport is the hardest sport to go pro in. But is it really? 

What is the hardest sport in the world? What are the most difficult and toughest professional sports? In this article, we will try to give a satisfactory answer to these burning questions. 

We’ve also created a list of the top 10 most dangerous sports in the world, do check it out. 

10. Golf

If your question is “What is the hardest sport at the pro level?” then the answer is golf. This might be controversial for me to put golf at number 10, some may want to rank golf higher. In my opinion, golf is exactly at the right spot. 

Golf is on this list because of the swing mechanics involved in the sport. It is one of the hardest things to master in all sports. The players are expected to strike the ball consistently over four hours of play. Players also deal with different types of terrain like sand, water, and tall grass. 

Golf requires a lot of practice and patience, making it a challenging sport for someone not equipped to handle that sort of pressure. 

9. Tennis

In Professional tennis, players are required to display not only exceptional skills, but also physical and mental endurance in matches that can last for hours. It also requires coordination and strategy. 

When on the court, players need to make split-second decisions and change the direction of the ball multiple times in one rally. They need to strategize when placing their shots to best set them up for a win. 

With so many challenges on the field, most players have to take part in a lengthy six months training to perform at a decent level for tennis. 

8. Basketball

One of the hardest sports to play today is basketball. The professional players in the NBA may make jumpers and free throws look easy, but they are far from easy. 

The sports require enormous hand-eye coordination and endurance to keep the opposition to their toes. The most challenging aspect of the sport is that players need to consistently put a ball into a small hoop. 

There is also a height factor in basketball, which makes it harder for smaller players to play it professionally. So, if you want to know “what is the hardest sport to go pro in,” basketball is surely right on the top. The immense talent pool and limited roster also don’t help the cause. 

7. Wrestling

Wrestling is considered one of the oldest sports in the world and dates back to 3000 BCE in Babylonia and Egypt. 

In the modern era, players no longer kill the opponent to claim victory. However, it sometimes feels that players are killing themselves to train as wrestlers. 

In wrestling, athletes require an insane combination of speed, endurance, strength, and discipline. Even though a wrestling match only lasts a few minutes, it takes a lot from the players. In a short span of time, wrestlers are required to play back-to-back matches. 

6. Figure Skating

From the outside sitting in, figure skating might look like an elegant spectacle of bedazzled costumes, graceful movements, and synchronized performance. However, it is anything but easy. 

The sport can be brutal, physically daunting, and even dangerous for players. These players risk a lot when performing in a figure skating event. Skaters need to jump, spin, and fling their bodies in the air while balancing themselves on tiny metal edges. 

To get the perfect scores, many skaters will suffer frequent injuries. That is why it is considered one of the hardest sports to go pro in. 

5. Football

At number five, we have football. To get an idea of how difficult it is, I suggest you talk to people who play football, or watch footage of post touchdown attempts. 

The sport demands peak physicality, lots of strength, and endurance. One of the favorite American sports, football requires players to rely on constant bursts of speed and power to get the ball where it needs to go. 

A typical football match in America lasts around three hours. Timeouts, injuries, halftime shows, replay reviews, and penalties pause the game clock. This is why strength is more important than endurance in this game.  

4. Water Polo

Another sport that demands a ridiculous amount of endurance is water polo. This sport is highly physical as the players need to kick, grab, and throw the ball toward the opposing goal. 

In this game, the players cannot touch the floor of the pool for the entire time they are in the game. Players are required to trade water for 12 minutes straight and simultaneously play a game of handball. Sometimes, players get hit in the face accidentally and that is dangerous. 

Try going for a 30-minute swim session and then imagine playing an intense contact sport at the same time. You will see how water polo can be considered one of the hardest sports. 

3. Gymnastics

Gymnasts are supposed to be as strong, flexible, and as light as possible. Having one of these attributes is hard to get, but gymnasts are required to have all three just to compete in the events. 

This is one of the reasons why gymnasts train for more than 40 hours a week. In gymnastics, players are required a special set of skills in balance, strength, speed, and hand-eye coordination. 

So, if you are asking “What is the hardest sport to go pro in?” gymnastics might be the right answer. 

2. Ice Hockey

In the case of ice hockey, the players must have the ability of an elite skater, jaw-dropping hand-eye coordination, and control of the puck. 

With the physical demands of the sports so high, players practice holding their breath to build up their oxygen intake and increase efficiency. 

Players need to stay in the rink for sixty minutes chasing a puck and trying to hit it with big sticks. The physicality of this sport is obvious, and you can check that out from the videos of big hits. 

Six players from each team play at once, and conflicts among them are well known. Oftentimes, people who do not follow the sport, misinterpret players tussling in the rink to gain control of the puck. 

1. MMA/Boxing

The hardest sport in the world is MMA/boxing. These combat sports test high levels of skill and physical conditioning. 

It is so taxing that the players may need as much endurance as marathon runners. The athletes are required to throw and take hits while keeping their form. MMA also requires their players to be masters of different fighting styles, which they adopt and utilize mid-flight to get the better of their opponent. 

These combat sports are also considered to be the hardest sports because of the time required to prepare for one match. Both sports require months of grueling training and preparation. So, when anybody asks you “What is the hardest sport in the world,” just say MMA or boxing.  

Read Next: Is Chess a Sport? Or Is It Not? Let’s Settle This

Conclusion

All sports have unique aspects and challenges that make them difficult. However, the definition of difficulty and challenging nature of a sport is subjective to the perspective of the individual. You may find one sport hard, but someone may not. 

In this write-up, we’ve tried our best to give you the list of the top 10 hardest sports in the world. We’ve included the sports that challenge the players to perform consistently at the highest levels. 

If you have any questions, do let us know in the comments. 

FAQs