sporting chance

American  

noun

1. an even or fair opportunity for a favorable outcome in an enterprise, as winning in a game of chance or in any kind of contest.

   They gave the less experienced players a sporting chance by handicapping the experts.

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Etymology

Origin of sporting chance

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

Even a scoreless draw or 1-0 defeat would leave them a sporting chance before a second leg against a Peru side that could conceivably buckle under the potentially crippling weight of national expectation back home.

From The Guardian • Nov. 9, 2017

The next two teams on the list, the 1968 Cardinals and 1968 Indians, pitched in a year so offensively anemic that baseball soon lowered the mound to give hitters a sporting chance.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 19, 2016

It is, rather, to give juvenile offenders a sporting chance, perhaps after decades in prison, to make the case that they deserve to get out, he said.

From New York Times • Apr. 29, 2013

With Affleck not nominated this time, and no star directors among the final five, Spielberg has a sporting chance, though the feeling here is that Ang Lee will be cited for Life of Pi.

From Time • Feb. 22, 2013

But I am prepared to take a sporting chance that there are.

From The Crooked House by Fleming, Brandon