Meeting ‘the one’ through sport is a sure-fire way to find a lasting partner according to a new survey
Speed. Dinner. Blind. Joshua Allan had tried pretty much every kind of dating when he first joined Sporty Singles, one of a new breed of sites that offers singles the chance to connect through sports. He had a few success stories but every time he got excited and thought that a new girlfriend might be turning into ‘the one’, things didn’t work out. Nothing lasted and he couldn’t figure out why.
When a colleague suggested he sign up to Sportysingles.com, however, Joshua’s luck changed. Or did it? Many of the success stories from this popular dating site say that having similar fitness goals and shared sports hobby equals the difference between make and break for many singles out there looking for partners. It’s not just luck; it’s a real point of connection for many busy modern singles.
“I’d played rugby for years and I used the gym at my club which was all male,” says Joshua. “I was fit and loved working out but never got the chance to meet women into sports like me.” Within two months of signing up to the popular dating site, however, Joshua had met Louise and a year later they were engaged. “Louise was clearly very into working out: running and playing sports such as netball but I never would have had the chance to meet her. When we met through the site we just connected straight away. Sport is a big part of both of our lives; both of us do something at least twice a week. It means we understand each other’s sports commitments and there isn’t the usual jealousy about partners going off and focussing on hobbies. We understand.”
Joshua isn’t alone in his tale of sporting success. Sporty Singles across the UK have found partners this way and, according to research carried out across more than 100 new and former members of Sportysingles.com, more than 95% say they believe that connecting with a partner through sport has been the key factor in creating a relationship that lasts.
The research went on to find that shared goals, similar outlooks on health and fitness, diet awareness and even wardrobes that are quite alike are just a few of the reasons that sports partners also potentially work well as life partners and are less likely to split after two or three dates. It’s certainly a recipe for a happy match according to Joshua Allan. “I’d had a string of partners on and off for ten years and was beginning to wonder what was wrong with me! Now I know: sport was the secret.” Well, it’s not so secret now…