is chess a sport?

Chess has been recognised as a sport by the International Olympic Committee since 2000

Could you provide a source for this? I cannot find it listed as a sport on the official website.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-chess-olympics-idUSKCN1Q12N4

https://www.chess.com/article/view/is-chess-a-sport

Thank you! It's odd that it isn't listed anywhere on their website then

Apparently chess wasn’t in the 2020 Olympics because it was not that popular. Oh well. Even wushu was kicked out, and wushu is Chinese martial art! Definitely a sport.

I don't think that's the reason. Chess is very popular. About 600 million people play chess. But only 100 to 200 million people ski. So chess is much more popular than many sports.  I'll bet even less people participate in some of the other more obscure Olympic activities, like curling or bobsledding. 

I would imagine chess is more popular than almost ALL of the Olympic activities, except for maybe something like running. So popularity isn't the reason. The reason is chess isn't a sport. There is a committee that claims they WANT chess to be a sport. But that doesn't mean it is. 

The committee that wants chess to be a sport probably had some heated words with the committee that decides which sports are in the Olympics. Excerpts from the meeting included phrases like "dunderhead idea, take your medication, and aren't you the janitor".

Since some of you people are doubting chess is a sport, here are a few reasons it is a sport. 

1. Competitive. The objective of a game of chess is to win. Chess involves a relentless struggle against one’s opponent. There is probably no sporting activity in which two people are locked in a competitive struggle of such intensity for such a sustained period of time. One lapse of concentration and suddenly a good position is transformed into a losing one. Each game is a drama in which the outcome is uncertain until the very end. When recently interviewed by journalist Dominic Lawson, the world chess champion Magnus Carlsen said that chess was “definitely a sport”.
2. Well established. The world championship has been organized since 1886 and our national federation was founded in 1904. Chess competitions are organized at every level: schools, universities, counties, cities, leagues, junior, senior, European, World, etc. Six million people play chess in England each year according to pollsters YouGov. 125,000 children learn chess in school each year.
3. Physical fitness. Peak mental condition requires being in good physical condition. Players need to concentrate totally for up to seven hours. As the stress and tension build up, blood pressure, pulse, and respiration rates all increase. Contenders for the world championships have nutritionists and fitness coaches.
4. Behavior code. Players are penalized for poor sportsmanship e.g. for refusing to shake hands with their opponent. Potential cheating is taken seriously. Mobile phones are banned. Players are prohibited on their move from leaving the playing area. There is an anti-doping policy.
5. Olympic Recognition. Chess has been recognized as a sport by the International Olympic Committee since 2000. It was an event at the Asian Games in 2006 in Doha and again in Guangzhou in 2010. It is also being considered for inclusion in the Pan-American Games. Tokyo is preparing bids for the 2020 summer Olympics and has invited chess and bridge to apply for inclusion. Russia is trying to bring chess to the winter Olympics.
6. European Recognition. Chess is recognized as a sport in 24 out of 28 member states of the European Union. The exceptions are the UK, Ireland, Belgium, and Sweden. In Sweden, chess will likely be included from next year. Support has come from the Swedish sports coaches organization which admires the mental discipline of chess.
7. Global game. Chess is played around the world irrespective of age, race, gender, income, or language. People with physical disabilities play chess. Blind people play chess. People with advanced motor neuron disease play chess: Professor Stephen Hawking played chess with his children.
8. Mental component. All sports have a mental component. Ultimately competitive sports may be construed as strategy games differing only in their physical manifestation. Commentators are prone to similes such as curling = chess on ice; bowls = chess on grass; snooker = chess with balls, and so on.
9. National accolade. World chess champions have won their national Sportsman of the Year competition including Magnus Carlsen (Norway), Vishy Anand (India), and Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria).
10. Player ranking system. The player ranking system was developed for chess in 1960 and has been adopted by many other sports including American football, baseball, basketball, hockey, korfball, rugby, and golf. Football and cricket use a related formula.

(credit: https://londonchessconference.com/a-question-of-sport/#:~:text=Chess%20has%20been%20recognised%20as,in%20the%20Pan%2DAmerican%20Games.)

Edit: The article is written in European wording, so I changed it in my comment to be written in more American wording.