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

"We must get back to giving women a level playing field to compete. We need to give women a sporting chance."

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2024

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

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

They are such genial, accommodating fellows, always ready with a pleasant smile, and willing to take a sporting chance on anything under the sun, that they won my heart at once.

From Across Mongolian Plains A Naturalist's Account of China's 'Great Northwest' by Andrews, Roy Chapman