Amateur sport, by definition, involves participation for the joy of sport, without any monetary compensation. The ideal of amateurism in sport was intensely protected in the 19th century mostly by the elite sections of society who feared that professionalizing sport would weaken their monopoly over it. However, with the evolution of amateur sports and the rules that govern them, amateur sportspersons are now compensated through college scholarships, sponsorships and other benefits (some of which they are permitted to redeem only after they relinquish their amateur status).