"Conducting fitness camps for cricketers before the start of test matches is beyond comprehension."

It's not really beyond comprehension to me. Teams want to win. In order to win, they want their players to be fit. Consequently, they conduct fitness camps. I'm pretty sure that teams wanted their players to win even when cricket was an amateur sport. Fitness camps may not have been so popular, of course, because the players had to do their day jobs before heading off to play cricket. Yes, there is big money in cricket, but that hasn't always been so; the desire to win, however, has always been there.

Records have been kept for as long as sport has been organised. They are a matter of pride and, perhaps, were even more important before big money came into play. In the time when Olympians were amateurs, all they took home from the Games would be a medal and the pride of saying they were the best in the world. Suggesting that sporting records are an aberration suggests that their efforts are not worthwhile. Certainly running or swimming 100m really fast isn't going to feed the poor, but it boosts morale and pride. I have a friend (well, more of a casual acquaintance) who has held several swimming world records. Has this improved my life? No. But when I see her on the starting blocks, my chest swells with pride, as do the chests of many Australians who don't even know her. What harm is done by recording her achievements?

As for the commodification of records, let's keep in mind:
a) in most cases, records can't be bought or sold. They have to be achieved.
b) the Guinness Book of Records doesn't own, buy or sell records. It simply puts them in a book and sells that book. The same information can be found in several other places, usually free of charge.

Ezhil “The market is driven by dishonest ambitions, everyone knows. The other name for "cheating" is "business".”

Maybe Ezhil will elaborate on what he would use

and how anyone would get to eat or find clothes for themselves or basically “live” whilst enjoying the “economies of scale” from what is a "community of specialists" -

without a the intercession of some form of “market” or "business"

Playing is for improving one's physical fitness. Keeping fit to play is something quite paradoxical and strange! How can playing be one's career? Converting playing as a lucrative avocation is absurd and fraught with danger.

Actually, when I used to participate in competitive sport, I always thought the primary object of 'playing' was to have fun. Silly me!

As for Guiness Records, are any of them actually "useful" beyond bragging rights or providing an objective for the obsessives?

Ezhil “Playing is for improving one's physical fitness. Keeping fit to play is something quite paradoxical and strange! How can playing be one's career? Converting playing as a lucrative avocation is absurd and fraught with danger.”

Ah good rational choices…

However, they completely ignore the “emotional choices” which most people live for and give priority to.

Now, what does Ezhil see as the best way of ensuring we all make only “rational” and “objective” choices?

"Now, what does Ezhil see as the best way of ensuring we all make only “rational” and “objective” choices?"

it seems Ezhil can criticise what other people freely choose to do but has no suggestions to how to pursuade them to make only rational and objective choices.....

Such a silence suggests ezhil is more an "envious, leftie troll", full of opinions and directives but no pursuasive arguments, than a genuine "thinking" opinion poster.