Stand up paddleboarding—is it surfing, or is it canoeing? 
 
 A question for the ages! And, now, a question for the Court of Arbitration for Sport. 
 
 The court has been brought in to mediate a dispute between the International Surfing Association and the International Canoe Federation on the subject, according to a report from the Associated Press. The two governing bodies have been fighting over the sport in hopes that it will be added to the Olympics at some point in the near future. 
 
 The ISA has organized stand up paddleboarding competitions for years and claims that the use of a board makes it eligible to be classified as a type of surfing. But the ICF claims that the use of a paddle makes it canoeing. Back in April, ISA President Fernando Aguerre told Reuters that surfers did not take kindly to canoeists trying to hop in on the newfound popularity of the sport: “Up until last year there was no interest from the ICF.... We have a track record of doing this. At the ICF now there is an interest of how they can be part of the popularity of the sport.” 
 
 Hopefully the Court of Arbitration can resolve the matter soon. Otherwise the two groups may find themselves up a creek without a paddle... or a board. 
 
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 [Associated Press] 

 AARHUS, Denmark (Reuters) - The rapidly growing popularity of stand up paddleboarding (SUP) has led to an unlikely battle for control, with surfing and canoeing both claiming it as an off-shoot of their own sport against a backdrop of possible Olympic inclusion. 
 
 The International Surfing Association (ISA) has organized competitions for years in SUP, a sport where athletes stand on a board and move forward using a long paddle. 
 
 But the International Canoe Federation (ICF) says the use of the paddle automatically makes SUP, spreading quickly across the world’s beaches, part of its organization. 
 
 “Up until last year there was no interest from the ICF,” ISA President Fernando Aguerre told reporters on Wednesday. “The interest arose when we were to bring SUP to the (2018) Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires.” 
 
 “We have a track record of doing this. At the ICF now there is an interest of how they can be part of the popularity of the sport.” 
 
 Surfing is one of five new sports to be included in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, and Aguerre said the ISA had unsuccessfully tried to include SUP in those Games as a surfing discipline. 
 
 ICF Secretary General Simon Toulson rejected Aguerre’s comment about his organization’s recent arrival to the sport. 
 
 “The ICF has been involved in SUP for a number of years and did not start last year,” Toulson told Reuters. 
 
 “Many of our federations have SUP recognized by their National Olympic Committees running national and international competitions.” 
 
 “The reason it came to light was when ISA tried to get it into Tokyo and Buenos Aires the ICF objected stating that they were not the definite sport authority,” Toulson said. 
 
 The two federations met with the International Olympic Committee a few months ago to iron out differences. But a solution has yet to be found and ISA’s Aguerre said no new talks have been planned. 
 
 “ICF statutes state clearly that a person using a paddle as a main form of propulsion whilst on a craft in water is canoeing/paddling,” Toulson said. 
 
 “We have met with ISA on several occasions in the last two years and offered compromises which have all been rejected. The issue is really which organization is responsible at Olympic level and that is what the dispute is over.” 

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 The age-old questions. Is light a particle or a wave? Is Certs a breath mint or a candy mint? Is bridge a sport or a game? 
 
 And now add this one: Is stand-up paddleboarding more like canoeing or more like surfing? 
 
 This question, at least, is headed to mediation with the Court of Arbitration for Sport. 
 
 In stand-up paddle, athletes stand on a long, flat board. (Hey, that sounds like surfing!) They race one another, propelling their craft with a paddle. (Wait a minute, that sounds like canoeing!) 
 
 The races can be held on flat water, like standard canoeing races, or in the waves, like surfing. 
 
 Now both the International Surfing Association and the International Canoe Federation want to control the sport. It’s not just an academic exercise. Stand-up paddle is a candidate to be added to the Olympics, which has recently been binging on adding new sports and events. 
 
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 Both sides have held stand-up paddle events, and both believe they are the rightful stewards of the sport going forward.
– Ending an argument we're sure has happened at least once on a slow afternoon in a bar somewhere, a court will finally decide whether stand-up paddleboarding is closer to surfing or canoeing. The New York Times reports the Court of Arbitration for Sport has been asked to settle a dispute between the International Surfing Association and International Canoe Federation, both of which are fighting for control of the increasingly popular sport of stand-up paddleboarding, or SUP. The battle for control of SUP has become more urgent as the Olympics is considering adding it to future games. The ISA argues SUP is performed on a board, like surfing; it also claims it's been holding SUP competitions for years, Deadspin reports. The ICF counters that SUP uses a paddle. "Propulsion using a paddle is basically canoeing," the ICF secretary general says. "Standing up or sitting down is irrelevant." But the ISA claims the ICF is trying to jump on the bandwagon. "We have a track record of doing this," Reuters quotes the ISA president as saying. "At the ICF now there is an interest of how they can be part of the popularity of the sport." The ISA calls itself "the historical rightful custodian" of SUP, and the ICF claims its opponent has rejected all offers of compromise. No date has been set for the court's decision.