12 Most Unusual Discontinued Olympic Events Throughout History - CraveOnline CraveOnline 12 Most Unusual Discontinued Olympic Events Throughout History Bizarre Olympic events that went bye-bye by Cory Dudak Jul 23rd, 2012 The 2012 London Summer Olympic Games are fast approaching, with opening ceremonies beginning on Friday, July 27. As always, people are pretty pumped. Watching top athletes gather from all over the world to compete for a shot at gold is something that the average person could only dream of (and they’d probably still lose in their dreams). However, there are a handful of Olympic events throughout history that would have even the most die-hard fans scratching their heads, and those are the events we're looking at today as we prepare for all the wonder that is to come in the following weeks. Tug of War (1900 Paris Summer Olympics–1920 Antwerp Summer Olympics) An Olympic team is only as strong as its weakest set of forearms.

OK, obviously there is more to it than that, but let’s be real: this game is played at picnics by people who just competed in a hot-dog eating contest 10 minutes earlier, so it’s easy to see why it was discontinued after 1920. The event was an eight-on-eight competition, and the first team to pull the other team six feet was declared the winner. But you tug-of-war buffs already knew that. Fun Facts: Constantin Henriquez de Zubiera was the first black athlete to compete in the Olympics. His French team received a silver medal in the tug-of-war competition in 1900, and he also was a member of the French Rugby team that won gold the same year. Tug of war was a part of the Ancient Olympics, first held in 500 B.C. Great Britain won the most medals during tug of war’s Olympic run, taking two golds, two silvers and a bronze. Note, however, that individual clubs were allowed to compete in the event. Therefore, sometimes there were multiple teams representing the same country. So there were years, like 1908, in which the U.K.

won all three medals due to the number of teams representing them. Solo Synchronized Swimming (1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics–1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics) Let this one sink in for a second. Not only does the name make no sense, but the general idea, even when it is explained perfectly, is still pretty weak. This was a women-only sport where athletes were awarded scores based on how well they danced in water to music. That’s where the word “synchronized” comes in. So you can see why this one was forgotten pretty quickly. Fun Facts: Medalists in all three Olympics in which this event took place were from the US, Canada and Japan. One judge accidentally gave Canadian solo synchronized swimmer Sylvie Frechette an 8.7 instead of a 9.7 during her 1992 Olympic performance, costing her the gold. It was later reinstated. Sheesh, even the interesting stuff about this event is boring. Equestrian Long Jump/High Jump (1900 Paris Summer Olympics) Call this one a twofer: two dumb sports for the price of one.

These were the products of the 1900 Olympic Games, which saw some of the weirdest events to this day take place due to the fact that the World’s Fair was happening in Paris at the same time. Many of the events were considered demonstration or trial events, to be decided on officially later. No need to describe these two in any more detail, as they are exactly what you think. Fun Facts: In the long-jump competition, Constant van Langendonck of Belgium won gold on a horse named Extra-Dry. He jumped a distance of 6.10 meters. There was actually a tie for gold in the high-jump competition, as horses Canela and Oreste both cleared 1.85 meters. Their riders were Dominique Garderes of France and Giorgio Trissino of Italy respectively. (You most likely pushed something of value out of your brain to make room for this useless information. Sorry about that). Rope Climbing (1896 Athens Summer Olympics–1932 Los Angeles Summer Olympics) Sure, it’s a feat of strength, but honestly, who climbs a rope unless they're trapped down a well?

This one had a pretty impressive tenure, but that didn’t stop it from getting the boot. The event was very simple but -- as silly as this sounds -- difficult. Competitors started in a seated position and could use only their arms to climb to the top of a rope. Form and speed were also judged since contestants didn’t always make it to the top. It was so challenging, Superman placed fourth in the 1932 event (Geek note: Yes, we are aware that Superman wasn’t created until 1938. But for the sake of the joke, let’s just say he did that back-in-time thing from the first Christopher Reeves "Superman" movie). Fun Facts: Rope climbing was considered a gymnastics event, and was featured in four Summer Olympic Games during the time period it existed as an event. Only two participants (both Greek) in the 1896 Olympic Games even made it to the top of the rope. The rope’s length was shortened in subsequent years from its original 14 meters to roughly between seven and eight meters. Plunge Diving (1904 St.

Louis Summer Olympics) An Olympic event requiring seemingly no talent whatsoever beyond being able to dive into a pool from a stationary position 18 inches above the water, this one didn’t make it past its first year. This is most likely due to how idiotic it was, not to mention that the heavier you were, the more likely you were to succeed. So, to explain further, the athletes dove into the water, and then simply held their positions for 60 seconds without propelling themselves anymore. The person to travel the furthest won. Fun Facts: William Dickey traveled 19.05 meters (62 feet 6 inches) to win the gold medal. All five (yes, only five) participants were American. Hot-Air Ballooning (1900 Paris Summer Olympics) Another demonstration event, hot-air ballooning included elevation, duration, distance and targeted stopping competitions. And some people think soccer is a dull sport. Fun Facts: Targeted stopping did not involve landing on a particular spot like one might think. It involved flying over a target and dropping a weighted marker at it to see who could get closest. There are no records of which countries competed in this event, as it was unofficial.

Skijoring (1928 St. Moritz Winter Olympics) Finally, a winter sport. Albeit a demonstration event, this one was just like dog sledding, minus the dogs and plus a horse. Competitors would strap on skis, and essentially hold on for dear life as their horses ran them through a course. The contestant to finish the course the quickest won. The sport didn’t last past its inaugural run. Fun Facts: This was the first actual winter Olympics not held in conjunction with a summer Olympics. The 1924 Chamonix Winter Olympics were technically named the first winter Olympics after the fact, but they went on the same year as the 1924 Paris Summer Olympics. Switzerland took all three medals for this event. Skijoring can technically use dogs, horses or motorized vehicles to pull the skier around. This particular Olympic games just happened to use horses. Dueling Pistols (1912 Stockholm Summer Olympics) Not quite what you think, considering that the men participating in this event were not actually dueling each other. They were shooting at mannequins in frock coats with bull’s-eyes on their chests.

We weren’t a bunch of savages back then, folks. Fun Facts: This event was held in the 1906 Intercalated Games as well, though they weren’t officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Dueling pistols had a 20-meter and 30-meter event. Leon Moreaux of France took the gold in the 20-meter duel. Konstantinos Skarlatos of Greece took the gold in the 30-meter. Live Pigeon Shooting (1900 Paris Summer Olympics) Remember that “we weren’t a bunch of savages” comment? That’s only half true once you consider this event. Like most of the stranger Olympic events on this list, live pigeon shooting took place during the 1900 Olympics and is pretty self-explanatory. However, that doesn’t make it right. The event involved releasing hundreds of pigeons into the sky, with contestants just basically going on killing sprees to determine the winner. Once you missed two shots in a row, you were out. Fun/Morbid Facts: More than 300 pigeons were slaughtered during this event, leaving a bloody, feathery mess to clean up.

This is the only Olympic event in history to involve intentionally killing animals for sport. The “winner” of the event took down 21 birds. His name was Leon de Lunden of Belgium. If it makes you feel any better, he’s probably long dead by now. Other strange demonstration events of the 1900 Olympic Games not yet mentioned include firefighting, surf lifesaving, delivery-truck driving, kite flying and cannon shooting. Tandem Bicycle 2000-Meter Sprint (1908 London Summer Olympics–1972 Munich Summer Olympics) A favorite activity of many TV sitcom roommates, this one is the longest-running event on the list. It was quite dangerous, though, as the sprints took place on a banked track or velodrome. Since it was a timed event, the bicyclists would be moving at top speeds, so wrecks were going to hurt. Fun Facts: Like the dueling-pistols event, the tandem bicycle 2000-meter sprint was held in the 1906 Intercalated Games, but was not officially recognized. This video features some tandem bicycling at its best (28-second mark).

One Handed Weightlifting (1896 Athens Summer Olympics–1904 St. Louis Summer Olympics) If this were a team sport, we’d want this dude on our team. But this competition revolved around solo men lifting weights one arm at a time. The competitor got three attempts with each arm to lift the most weight. When it was all said and done, the man with the best combined weight lifted by each arm (as in the most weight he lifted with his left plus his right) took the gold. Fun Facts: Once again, this event also was featured in the unofficial 1906 Intercalated Games. Come to think of it, if the guy in the video above did compete in this event, he’d most likely lose to every man with two strong arms. Forget it. He’s cut. Bandy (1952 Oslo Winter Olympics) You can call it “ice soccer” if you want. The sport involves skating around an ice rink the size of a soccer field using 1.2-meter-long (3.9-feet) sticks to smack a ball into a goal. There are 11 players to each side, and halves are 45 minutes each. Boom.

Ice soccer. Fun Facts: Bandy was a demonstration sport that never caught on. Only three countries competed. Sweden won. Norway took second. Finland took third. However, each team’s record was the same (one win, one loss), so it came down to goals scored to determine the champion. There probably should have been some controversy, but nobody cared. BONUS EVENT: Poodle Clipping (1900 Paris Summer Olympics) This was technically another trial or demonstration event at the 1900 Olympics (go figure). Believe it or not, it didn’t get the votes to become an official Olympic event. That might be because the general public just wasn’t ready for an event where competitors would try to clip as many poodles as they could in a two-hour time period. Maybe in 2016. Anyway, the winner of this first and only poodle-clipping Olympic event was a 37-year-old housewife from France named Avril Lafoule, who clipped 17 poodles in the two hours. Fun Facts: This event did not actually take place. All facts about it were completely made up as an April Fools' Day joke by a writer for the U.K.

newspaper The Daily Telegraph on April 1, 2008. He posted the story as a part of their “Countdown to the Beijing Olympics” segment. The story was picked up by several media outlets as fact, and still yields numerous results when Googled, mostly claiming the story to be a real event that took place. We just figured it was worth mentioning since most sites with articles on the subject don’t realize it is a joke ( The Telegraph ). Gotcha! Live Pigeon Shooting at the Olympics Home > Events > Olympics > Demonstration Sports > Summer > Shooting > Pigeon Shooting Live Pigeon Shooting Live Pigeon Shooting was held only once in Olympic history, in 1900. The object of this event was to shoot and kill as many birds as possible. The official report of the Games described this sport as "très aristocratique" (very aristocratic). This was the first and only time in Olympic history when animals were killed on purpose, though the event is not listed in official IOC medal records. Pigeon shooting was held at Cercle du Bois de Boulogne.

There were two competitions, Grand Prix du Centenaire (Centenary Grand Prize) and Grand Prix de l'Exposition universelle de 1900 (1900 World Expo Grand Prize). In the Centenary Grand Prize was held on June 19, with 166 entrants. The 1900 World Expo Grand Prize was held on the 25, 26 and 27 June, 1900. There were 54 competitors in this main event. Six birds were released 27 meters in front of the participant. The participant was eliminated once they missed two birds. The winner was the competitor who shot down the most birds from the sky. Nearly 300 birds were killed. The event turned out to be quite messy in the end with dead or injured birds on the ground and blood and feathers all over the place. An award of 20,000 Francs was the prize for the winner, though the top four finishers agreed to split the winnings.

Results 1900 World Expo Grand Prize Leon de Lunden (Belgium) 21 birds killed Maurice Faure (France) 20 birds killed Donald MacIntosh (Australia) 18 birds killed Crittenden Robinson [USA] 18 birds killed Centenary Grand Prize Donald MacIntosh (Australia) 22 birds killed Pedro Pidal (Marquis de Villaviciosa, Spain) 21 birds killed Murphy (USA) 19 birds killed Share: 9 peculiar Summer Olympic sports that have been discontinued | MNN - Mother Nature Network 9 peculiar Summer Olympic sports that have been discontinued Korfball, anyone? Here are a few events you won't see at London 2012. Photo: ebatty /Flickr For those of you mourning the fact that baseball will not be part of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London (or the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro), don’t worry because you’re not alone — there are legions of croquet enthusiasts, tug-of-war fanatics and solo synchronized swimming fans out there who have experienced a similar loss.

At the first modern Olympic Games held in Athens in 1896, nine sports were contested: wrestling, fencing, athletics (track and field events), cycling, tennis, swimming, weightlifting, gymnastics and shooting. Over the years, that number has increased significantly with the inclusion of everything from table tennis to taekwondo, from basketball to badminton. While many of these new additions have stuck around, others have been phased out indefinitely for one reason or another by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which in recent years capped the number of sports contested at the Summer Olympics at 28 (there will be only 26 at the 2012 Summer Olympics). Some sports, such as tennis and archery, have been discontinued and then, years later, reinstated. Currently, to be included in the Summer Olympics, a sport must be practiced by men in 75 countries spanning four continents and by women in 40 countries across three continents. Also, unlike some early Olympic events, no motors are allowed. Here’s the thing: In the early years, the Olympics were a more loosely organized affair and sports tended to come and go with the organizing country having final say on what sports and disciplines were included.

Plus, up until in 1992, demonstration sports were also held in an effort to promote up-and-coming or regionally popular sports (baseball, for example, started out as a demonstration sport in various Olympics and eventually graduated to official sport status). Of course, many of these discontinued Summer Olympic sports and disciplines, both of official and demonstration variety, fall into the “odd” and/or “obscure” category. Here’s a look at nine of them, listed alongside the year that marked their last — and in many cases, only — appearance. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’re off to play a game of korfball. Croquet — 1900, Paris While croquet doesn’t exactly fall under the “enthralling” category, this genteel — but no doubt competitive … just ask the “ Heathers ” — form of lawn recreation that was briefly all the rage in Victorian England was indeed an official sport in the Olympics program. Much to the dismay of croquet enthusiasts everywhere, it was a short-lived phenomenon. During the Summer Olympics of 1900 , the croquet event had only one spectator, an Englishman. And the players were all French.

Croquet (kind of) reappeared at the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis in the form of roque, an Americanized variant of the game in which the traditional grass playing surface is replaced by a hard court and the mallets have shorter handles. And to be clear, although croquet was the lawn game du jour in mid-19th century England, an earlier variation of the game called paille-maille (“ball-mallet”) was popular across Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries. Live pigeon shooting — 1900, Paris Shooting has long been an integral part of the Summer Olympics (save for 1904 and 1928). In fact, it was one of the nine original events at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. Clay pigeons have traditionally — and understandably — been used as moving targets with the exception of the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris in which live pigeons were used, making it the first and only Olympic event that involved the slaughter of animals.

As legend has it, more than 300 birds were shot from the sky during the 1900 Olympics, with Belgium’s Leon de Lunden taking top prize (21 kills). Pigeon racing, not shooting, was also an Olympic event that year, albeit an unofficial one. Hot air ballooning — 1900, Paris (unofficial) In addition to now-discontinued official sports such as croquet, Basque pelota (a hybrid of racquetball and tennis) and both obstacle course and underwater swimming (!) races, the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris was jam-packed with decidedly offbeat unofficial events ranging from firefighting to kite flying to surf lifesaving to our personal favorite, hot air ballooning. It’s unclear as to what countries took top place in the Olympic hot air balloon races, but we do know this much: This is one event that wouldn’t, ahem, fly nowadays even though we’d like to see it resurrected.

And on the topic of wacky contests from the 1900 Summer Olympics, contrary to popular Internet rumor, a well-attended Olympic poodle clipping competition “won by Avril Lafoule, a 37-year-old farmer's wife from the Auvergne region of France, who successfully clipped 17 poodles in the allotted two-hour time frame,” never actually went down . Tug-of-war — 1920, Antwerp If there was a single sport that we’d like to see reinstated at the Summer Olympics, our vote would enthusiastically go to tug-of-war, the grueling, grunt-inducing game of strength that, despite being phased out after the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, lives on at corporate retreats, family reunions, church picnics and summer camps everywhere (and we don’t think we’re alone with this ). Tug-of-war actually had a decent run at the Olympics, debuting at the 1900 Summer Games in Paris (a mixed team of Swedes and Danes took gold that year) and reappearing in all of its ropy, muddy glory for the 1904 Summer Games in St. Louis (the U.S.

walked away with all three medals), the 1908 Summer Games in London (Great Britain claimed gold, silver and bronze), the 1912 Summer Games Stockholm (host country Sweden yanked its way into first) and, finally, the 1920 games in Antwerp (once again, those brutish Britons took top honors). Glima — 1912, Stockholm (demonstration) Back before the IOC stepped in and ruined all the fun in 1924, the Summer Olympics were somewhat of a free-for-all as organizers were left in charge of selecting which sports, both official and unofficial, would be included in the Games. A shining example of this was the inclusion of a form of Icelandic folk wrestling known as glima in the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm. In addition to glima, Greco-Roman wrestling was an official sport, but host country Sweden forbade boxing, a former Olympic crowd-pleaser. And the other demonstration sport that appeared (for the second time) at the 1912 Summer Olympics? It’s one that’s not quite obscure as Icelandic folk wrestling — baseball.

Unlike glima, after years of appearing as a demonstration sport, America’s Favorite Pastime graduated to official Olympic sport status at the 1992 Summer Olympics and remained part of the official program up until 2008. In 2005 and 2009, the IOC eliminated both baseball and softball from the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympic programs, making them the first sports to be voted out since polo in 1936. Replacing them in 2016? Not tug-of-war and ballooning (we wish), but golf and rugby sevens. Korfball — 1928, Amsterdam (demonstration) Debuting as a demonstration sport at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp and reappearing eight years later at the Summer Games in its ancestral birthplace, Amsterdam, korfball is a hugely popular international sport (yeah, we’d never heard of it either) that didn’t quite manage to catch on at subsequent Summer Olympics.

Played either indoors or out, korfball is a coed, basketball-ish sport that managed to raise eyebrows back in the day due to the fact that each team was composed of four guys and four gals. Scandal! Today, the sport is a big deal not just in the Low Countries, but in numerous nations including Australia, New Zealand, the Czech Republic and Taiwan. Intrigued? Head over to the United States Korfball Federation to learn more about the small but well-organized stateside korfball movement, a movement which seems to be centered around Hamilton College , a small liberal arts school in Clinton, N.Y. Club swinging — 1932, Los Angeles Men’s club swinging, an official discipline in the Summer Olympics gymnastics program in both 1904 and 1932 , is exactly what it sounds like: a bunch of dudes in tights twirling bowling pin-shaped wooden clubs of different sizes and weights in immaculately choreographed patterns. Yessir. Club swinging, or Indian Clubs, was actually a fad-ish method of strength training back in the day before Jane Fonda and Shake Weights hit the scene.

And get this: Indian swinging clubs actually served as the inspiration for the modern day juggling club (and of course, the Clubbell ). Who knew? In addition to club swinging, other phased out Olympic events in the artistic gymnastics department include rope climbing (1896, 1904, 1924, 1932) and tumbling (1932). Photo: “Manual of physical training for use in the United States Army” Water skiing — 1972, Munich (demonstration) Although the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich were overshadowed by terrorism-related tragedy , let’s not forget that two intriguing demonstration sports debuted that year: Badminton, which would reappear again as a demonstration sport during the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul and go on to become an official event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, and water skiing, which, sadly, has never been part of the Games, officially or unofficially, since. Shuttlecocks, not water skis, get all the love, apparently.

The 1972 water skiing competition included a total of six events for both men and women – slalom, figure skiing and ski jump – with over 35 athletes from 20 countries participating. Representing the U.S., Water Ski Hall of Fame -r Ricky McCormick took first in the men’s jump and figure skiing events while another American, Liz Allen-Shetter, took first in women’s slalom. Other top contenders hailed from France, West Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Australia. Solo synchronized swimming — 1992, Barcelona Women’s duet synchronized swimming has been part of the official Summer Olympics aquatics program since the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. And for a while there, so was solo (yes, solo) synchronized swimming with top athletes, including Tracie Ruiz and Kristen Babb-Sprague (USA), Caroline Waldo (Canada) and Miwako Motoyoshi (Japan). Click here to witness as to why solo synchronized swimming was axed after the 1992 Summer Olympics and replaced with team synchronized swimming. Pretty ridiculous (yet oh-so-hypnotic) right?

If the IOC ever decides to resurrect solo synchronized swimming from its watery grave at some point down the line (and we’re not-so-secretly wishing they would), we definitely think they should open up the event to the fellas, mainly to this guy . Related Olympic content on MNN: 9 wildest moments in Olympic history 10 Weirdest Olympic Sports Ever (Olympic Sports) - ODDEE 10 Weirdest Olympic Sports Ever 7/14/2012 Tweet The Summer Olympics will be held in London, England from Friday, July 27, 2012 through Sunday, August 12, 2012. We can't wait to see the world's best athletes perform amazing feats of strength and skill. In light of this global sporting event, we started thinking about sports that didn't make the cut anymore; sports that were maybe... a little odd. Read on to discover ten of the weirdest ones that have ever been included in past Olympic games. 1 Live Pigeon Shooting (1900) This bloody event was only held once, at the 1900 Paris Games.

Nearly 300 birds were killed during the release-and-shoot competition, leaving a grimy crime scene of feathers and blood in its wake. There's little wonder why they discontinued this event, and to date this is the only event in Olympic history that involved killing live animals. ( Source | Photo ) 2 Kabaddi (1936) This wrestling-meets-team sport is popular in South Asia. The object is for one member of a team to enter the opposing side's half of the field, and score points by tagging or wrestling the opponents. The attacker then returns to his half of the field. ( Photo Via ) 3 12 Hour Bicycle Race (1896) They might have bitten off more than they could chew with this event. Seven riders got on their bikes at 5 a.m. and rode until 5 p.m. Four bikers dropped out before noon, but the winner, Adolf Schmal of Austria, managed about 180 miles. Only Schmal and one other competitor finished; Schmal won because he had lapped the other racers early on, so he was ahead by one lap.

( Source | Photo ) 4 Tug Of War (1900 - 1920) This may seem like a basic gym class sport more than an Olympic event, but Tug of War was actually one of the first sports played at the Olympic games in 500 BC. In the modern Olympic version of the game, there are two teams of eight; the winning team must pull the other team six feet forward in order to win. After 5 minutes, if no team had succeeded, the team which had pulled the furthest was declared the winner. ( Source | Photo ) 5 Rope Climbing (1896, 1904, 1906, 1924 and 1932) In this event the competitors climbed a suspended vertical rope, using only their hands. ( Source | Photo ) 6 Dueling Pistols (1906 and 1912) You know those cop shows where the cops try to shoot moving people-shaped targets to practice their criminal hunting skills? This game is just like that.

Despite the Wild West connotations, the participants didn't actually shoot each other; they fired on mannequins dressed in frock coats with bull's-eyes on their chests. ( Source | Photo ) 7 La Canne (1924) This French martial art is similar to fencing, but uses a cane or canne (a kind of walking-stick) for fighting. ( Source 1 | Source 2 | Photo ) 8 Roller Hockey (1992) The same as ice hockey, only played on a dry surface with inline or traditional roller skates. As a demonstration sport at the Olympics, the quad-skate format was used. Argentina took the gold against Portugal. ( Photo Via ) 9 Club Swinging (1932) Like rhythmic gymnastics with bowling pins, or juggling without letting go, club swinging featured competitors whirling clubs around their bodies in various patterns. ( Photo Via ) 10 Swimming Obstacle Race (1900) A combination of a swimming event and an obstacle course, the competitors had to climb over a pole, scramble over a row of boats, and then swim under another row of boats.

All of this was done in the Seine River, so they also had to contend with the current. This event was only ever held in 1900, in Paris. ( Source | Photo ) From the Web 11 Strangest Former Olympic Sports - 11 Points 11 Strangest Former Olympic Sports written by Sam Greenspan In case you didn't know, this is the last Olympics where baseball and softball will be events. They didn't get enough votes to stay in the Games. And that got me thinking about other Olympic sports that have been cut. Which led me down a pretty hilarious rabbit hole of former sports and exhibition sports that were included in Olympics of the past. Because it turns out there were a LOT of really strange sports that have made the Olympic roster. It was hard to cut down my list to just 11 of the strangest, dumbest and weirdest former Olympic sports, but, like a good list maker, I did. And here they are... Tug-of-War at the 1900 Olympics. Tug-of-War.

Tug-of-War, which is now pretty much reserved for church picnics, summer camp color wars and "Real World/Road Rules Challenge" events, was an actual Olympic sport. At five Olympics, 1900, '04, '08, '12 and '20. Olympic tug-of-war was eight-on-eight, and would be won when one team pulled the rope six feet. (Unlike in "RW/RR Challenge", when the winning team is the one that dumps the other team in a vat of Jell-O or pudding or KY Jelly.) In the five Olympics, Great Britain won the most tug-of-war medals (two gold, two silver, one bronze) and the U.S. won the second most (one of each medal). One more note: Back then, a lot of Olympic athletes were just regular dudes who happened to show up to the right place on the right day. So the Olympic tug-of-war squads weren't handpicked teams of athletes groomed from birth like our Olympians today. No, the U.S.'s 1904 gold medal winning tug team was the tug-of-war team from the Milwaukee Athletic Club.

In 1908, the gold went to the London police force's team. Poodle clipping. As this list will show repeatedly, at the second modern Olympic games -- 1900 in Paris, France -- there was just some crazy shit going on. And nothing exemplifies that to me more than the poodle clipping event. For this event (which was a trial event), 128 competitors assembled at the Bois de Boulogne, a park in western Paris. A giant (for the time) crowd of 6,000-plus watched as they competed to see who could trim the most poodles' fur in a two hour period. The gold medalist was 37-year-old Avril Lafoule from Auvergne, France, who clipped 17 poodles. After the Paris Olympics ended, poodle clipping failed to get the votes to become an official Olympic sport. Firefighting. Another trial event from 1900 Paris. It's not clear what exactly was involved in the firefighting event... like, did they light some random Parisian neighborhood on fire and send all the dudes over there to see who could put their designated house out the quickest?

In the volunteer competition, the winner was a team from Portugal; in the professional division, the winner was a group of firefighters from Kansas City. And even though firefighting never became an official Olympic sport... I gotta feel like an Olympic gold medal in firefighting would feel a lot more prestigious than winning one for something like equestrian or rafting. Solo synchronized swimming. Like the sound of one hand clapping. Solo synchronized swimming. Lest you think that all the weird events are from the early 1900s... this should prove that Olympic organizers make strange, strange decisions in the modern era, too. In 1984, '88 and '92, there was actually solo synchronized swimming in the Olympics. And, yes, solo synchronized swimming is the paradox it sounds like... kind of like a three-man barbershop quartet or a two-way orgy. Upon doing my research, I found that the swimmer wouldn't be synchronized to other people... but rather, to music. So, I guess, if you were solo synchronized swimming to "Shout!" you'd have to kick your heels up out of the water when the lyric says "kick your heels up and shout!" Or something.

Anyway, no one bothered to figure it out and it was cut after the Barcelona games. Delivery van driving. More from 1900 in Paris. This was another trial event (and tied in with the 1900 World's Fair that as going on concurrently). The Paris Olympics featured a ton of different motor races, including delivery van driving. French "athletes" got all three medals, although their names aren't on record. The motor racing event also included small cars, large cars, seven-seat cars, trucks and taxis. It looks like France really dominated the event -- a guy from the U.S. got a bronze in the small truck division, a German got a bronze in a large car distance race, and, other than that, it was all French victories. Meaning that this was possibly the brightest moment in the history of both Peugeot and Renault. Plunge diving. OK, you know how when you were, like, six, you and your friends all stand at the edge of a pool and see who could jump in the furthest? That was once an Olympic event. At the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis, there was an event called plunge diving.

A diver would stand stationary on the edge of a pool, then, from that stand still, jump as far as possible. Once they got underwater, they could swim forward for up to 60 seconds... or as long as they could keep their head below the surface. I feel like I could do really well in this, by the way. Only five people competed and all of them were from the U.S. The winner was William Dickey, who made it 62.5 feet. Which doesn't seem like that far. And, like most of the events on this list, plunge diving was a one-and-done event, never appearing again. Live pigeon shooting. There's only been one Olympic event in history where animals were (intentionally) harmed. And that was live pigeon shooting, which went down at those absolutely absurd 1900 Paris Olympics. The goal of the event: Stand there with your gun and kill as many pigeons as possible. For the event, more than 300 pigeons were shot and killed... and, apparently, afterwards, there was a ridiculous mess of blood and feathers. Leon de Lunden of Belgium won the event with 21 kills.

An American tied for the bronze with 18. It was the first and last time animals were killed for an Olympic event. At the Paris games that year, there was also a shooting competition centered around shooting running deer... except those were moving cut-outs, not actual animals. Swimming obstacle race. Now this sounds really cool... and sounds like another thing little kids do in a pool. This is another 1900 Paris event, and took place in the Seine. First, competitors had to swim to a pole, then climb up it, then slide down it. Then they'd swim toward some boats, which they had to climb over. After that, more swimming to more boats... but this time, they had to go under. Overall, they'd swim 200 meters... with a lot of climbing in between. Frederick Lane of Australia won the swimming obstacle race, doing it in 2:38.4. Turns out he also won the 200-meter freestyle those Olympics... swimming that in 2:25. In other words, all the pole and boat climbing only slowed him down by 13 seconds. I don't do rope climbing. Rope climbing.

This was in four Olympics: 1896, 1904, 1924 and 1932. It was incredibly simple: Just climb to the top. The whole event gives me a funny feeling. Like when I used to climb the rope in gym class. Water skiing. Water skiing was a demonstration sport at the tragic 1972 Olympics in Munich. There were three different events -- slalom, figure skiing and jumping. Apparently it was pretty cool... but there was too much controversy about whether or not water skiing involved any actual athleticism... so water skiing never showed up at the Olympics again. It did become a staple at Sea Worlds, though, so it's got that going for it. Hot air ballooning. And one more from the 1900 Olympics for good measure. During the Paris Olympics, they held several hot air ballooning events, including distance, duration, elevation and targeted stopping. French competitors won every single event. I think I'd like to see hot air ballooning in the Olympics today, partially because I think a bunch of hot air balloons in the sky looks cool... and partially because I know NBC would spend $80 billion on special cameras to record the event.

They'd also find a way to let us know how one of the American hot air balloonists overcame a lot of adversity to get to that moment. Man I love Olympic tales of people triumphing over adversity. I hope I hear 50 tonight. This post was originally published on Wednesday, August 13, 2008 at 12:00:00 PM under the category Sports . Facebookery? 12 Forgotten Olympic Sports 12 Forgotten Olympic Sports Last Updated: July 31, 2012 1:51 PM Terry Wing The Tug-of-War event, 1900 Paris Olympics Share Since the introduction of the modern Olympics 1896, and the addition of the Winter Olympics in 1924, the popularity of sports has changed. At each Olympiad, new events are added and some sports retired. Following the 2008 Beijing Games, two sports - softball and baseball - were cut from the Olympic program. Notable new events at the 2012 London Olympics are women's boxing (three weight classes), mixed doubles in tennis and Omnium racing in track cycling.

Some popular sports find their way into the Olympics; some don’t. Olympic golf 1900 Golf was featured in the 1900 and 1904 games, but then it disappeared. However, the IOC has decided to reinstate the event for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, and many professional golfers have expressed interest in participating. Bowling is not an Olympic event and there is no timeline for adding it. However, bowling has been an event in the Special Olympics since 1975. Many Olympic sports have come and gone over the last 116 years. Here are a dozen or so Olympic sports that are now forgotten: Live Pigeon Shooting The 1900 Olympics in Paris had a number of odd events by today's standards. Perhaps the oddest was this one, in which the competitor who shot down the most live birds was declared the winner. Nearly 300 birds were killed and the competition field was reportedly littered with blood and feathers. It was the only time in Olympic history in which animals were killed on purpose.

Tug-of-War Originally a sport in the Ancient Olympics, Tug-of-War was contested from 1900-1920. Two teams pulling in opposite directions on a rope tried to drag their opponents over a line separating the teams. The number of participants on a team varied over the years, and contestants from different countries could participate on one team. Solo Synchronized Swimming It may sound like an oxymoron, but this sport was contested in three Olympiads (1984, 1988, 1992) before organizers realized that a person swimming alone cannot be synchronized with anyone else. One-Handed Weightlifting This weightlifting event was on the Olympic Program in the years 1896, 1904 and 1906. Only one hand was allowed in lifting the weights. Contestant had to perform lifts with each hand, with the winner determined from the combined score of both hands. Skijoring - St. Mortiz 1928 A demonstration sport at the 1928 Olympics in St. Moritz.

Swimming obstacle race Another 1900 Paris event, the competitors had to climb over a pole, scramble over a row of boats, and then swim under another row of boats…for a total distance of 200 meters. The swimmers also had to contend with the strong current of the Seine River. All Around Dumbbell Surprisingly, given its name, this was not an invention for the 1900 Paris games. In 1904, this event attempted to determine the strongest of the strong by compiling 10 different lifting events over two days of competition. Discus (Two Hands) & Javelin (Two Hands) These events held in 1912 are not as unusual as they sound. The participants were not required to throw the implement with two hands, but throw it with each hand, and the combined score of each hand was used to determine the winner. Rope Climb Rope Climbing was held as part of the gymnastics program in 1896, 1904, 1906, 1924 and 1932. In this event the competitors climbed a suspended vertical rope, using only their hands.

How quick you can climb a rope sounds like a great test of upper body strength, and it has been part of the Olympic gymnastics program on several occasions Plunge Diving At the 1904 Olympics, competitors dove into the pool from a standing position and their attained distance was measured after either 60 seconds passed or their head broke the surface, whichever came first. Divers could not propel themselves through the water after the initial dive as they were required to remain motionless. Equestrian High Jump and Long Jump Chariot Races were part of the Ancient Olympics. In the modern Olympics, originally only commissioned officers were allowed to compete. From 1952 the rules were changed to allow civilians and women. The winning horses were both able to clear 1.85 meters in height and leap 6.1 meters in length. Croquet In the 1900 games, women were competitors for the first time, and three women took part in this event. Not a big hit with the spectators, only one fan watched, an Englishman who had travelled especially for the occasion.

Top Ten Surprising Sports That Were Actually in the Olympics - Toptenz.net Toptenz.net Posted by Michael Young on August 6, 2016 in Sports | 9,351 Views | 1 Response We are reposting this classic list about the Olympics. The Olympic Games come around every four years although technically it’s now every two years since the summer and winter games are on a staggered schedule. Most people are all familiar with the popular Olympic sports . In the summer games the main focus is on track and field, gymnastics, swimming and in recent years, beach volleyball. In the winter games most of the attention is on figure skating, skiing, hockey and, due in part to the Jamaicans, bobsledding. If you are a real die hard Olympics fan, you might watch some of the more obscure sports, badminton, curling, the pentathlon or the biathlon on some of the late night cable channels. The 2012 Summer Olympic Games included 26 sports (with 2 more to be added in the 2016 games). The 2014 Winter Olympics will include 7 sports.

However, over the history of the modern Olympic Games , there have been a great number of sports that made a brief appearance. Some are fairly well known, such as baseball and softball. Others are more obscure, while still others may be complete head scratchers. Still each sport was probably very important to those who competed and they deserve their moment in the spotlight 10. Plunge Diving Picture of a swimmer plunging feet first (the plunge for distance was a competitive swimming event in the 19th and early 20th century Also known as plunge for distance this was part of aquatics, which encompasses water disciplines such as swimming, diving and water polo. Its only appearance was at the 1904 Summer Games in St Louis. Plunge for distance was a diving long jump . Competitors dove into the pool from a standing position and their attained distance was measured after either 60 seconds passed or their head broke the surface, whichever came first. Divers could not propel themselves through the water after the initial dive as they were required to remain motionless. An interesting note. There were only five entrants in the plunge diving competition, all of them from the United States. Needless to say, the Americans swept the medals.

9. Croquet The 1900 Olympic croquet tournament This was another sport that had only one appearance , in the 1900 Summer Games in Paris. Even though there were three events, Singles (one and two balls) and Doubles, there were only ten competitors, nine of whom were from France. There was one competitor from Belgium, but he didn’t make it through the first round. Another surprising note, there three of the competitors were women and they competed against the men. Not surprisingly, France swept all the medals taking gold, silver and bronze in both the singles competitions and the gold medal in the doubles competition – apparently only one team entered the doubles. It’s too bad the competitor from Belgium couldn’t find a partner, they would have been a shoe in for the silver. 8. Motorboat Racing London 1908: Motor boats in action during competition when the sport was included for the first and last time. The races were held round the Isle of Wight off the south coast of Britain. This was another one hit wonder in the Summer Games.

The 1908 Summer Games in London was the only time that any kind of motorized sport has taken place in the Olympic games (although it was a demonstration sport in the 1900 games). There were three separate events each for its own class of motorboat. Each race consisted of five laps around an eight nautical mile course. Unfortunately, someone must have forgotten to inform Mother Nature that this was the Olympic Games, because even though multiple boats started each race, only one managed to complete each one. This was mainly due to gale force winds that swept over the course. The fact that motorboats had only been invented around 20 years earlier may have contributed to this as well. So the final medal count was three gold and zero silver and bronze. Ironically, the races had originally been scheduled for July, but were pushed back a month at the request of the Duke of Westchester and Lord Howard de Walden who were visiting America during the original July date. Another note of interest, one of the boats from those races was recently bought and completely restored by a British collector . 7.

200 Meter Obstacle Swim In Paris 1900, swimming took place on the Seine and included an obstacle race and one where the point was to swim the whole distance under water. Continuing with one and done events is the 200 meter Obstacle Swim, which is pretty much what it sounds like . This curious event took place (like Croquet) at the 1900 Summer Games in Paris. Like all the swimming races in the Paris Games, the Obstacle Race took place in the River Seine. Competitors were rowed out 200 meters from shore and traverse three different obstacles in the race. First they had to climb over a pole, then over a row of boats , then finally under another row of boats. Unlike the previous entries, this event had enough competitors (12 from 5 nations) to have semi-final heats. However, since the top ten times qualified for the finals so it seems that it might have been just a really a cruel trick to play on the two non-qualifiers (one of which was Fred Hendschel, the only competitor in the race from the United States). 6. Two-Handed Throws Yet another one-time appearance.

Although technical this is three one-time appearances rolled into one. In the 1912 Summer Games in Stockholm, in addition to the regular shot put, javelin and discus events, there was also a two-handed version of each. All three were scored the same. Each competitor got three throws with their left hand and then three throws with their right hand. The longest throws from each hand were added together to get the total distance. Surprising (or maybe not that surprisingly) there were many duplicate medal winners in the one-handed and two-handed events. In the javelin, Julius Saaristo of Finland won the silver medal in the one-handed and the gold in the two-handed. In the discus, Armas Taipale of Finland won the gold in both the one-handed and two-handed. And in the shot put , the top four throwers in the one-handed event were the same as those in the two-handed, though they finished in a different order. 5.

Rope Climbing A gymnast competes in the rope-climb at the 1896 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece Unlike the previous entries, rope climbing was part of four different Olympic games, including the inaugural Modern Olympics Games of 1896 in Athens. Rope climbing was part of the gymnastics program . At its high point in the 1924 Paris Olympics, it had seven competitors from nine nations. Rope climbing has had a long and often times popular standing around the world, although maybe not that popular if you were subjected to rope climbing in high school gym class. In the United States, competitive rope climbing was sanctioned by the NCAA until the early 1960’s. There are still international rope climbing events held today. In the rope climbing competitors started from a sitting position and could only use their arms to climb. In Olympic competition both time and style (keeping the legs horizontal to the ground) were considered in scoring. 4.

Tug of War Tug of war was contested as a team event in the Summer Olympics at every Olympiad from 1900 to 1920 This somewhat familiar sport, probably most often experienced on the playground as kids, was a regular competition, making five appearances in the Olympic Games from 1900 to 1920. In the 1904 St. Louis Games, the American teams (two of which were from the same St. Louis athletic club) swept the medals probably giving a new meaning to home field advantage. Four years later, at the 1908 London Games, Great Britain returned the favor by sweeping all three medals on their home turf. Interestingly, all three British teams were composed of police officers. The 1908 competition was not without its controversy, however. The American team, composed mostly of competitors in the throwing events (they had collectively won 16 Olympic medals in the discus, shot put and hammer throw events) were soundly defeated in the first pull by the Liverpool Police team. The Americans launched a protest stating that the boots worn by the British team constituted illegal footwear. The British team countered that the boots were part of the standard police attire.

The protest was disallowed and the American team withdrew in disgust. 3. Skeleton (Cresta) This may seem like a surprising entry to those out there who follow the Winter Games . Skeleton has been a regular sport in the Winter Olympics since 2002. For those not familiar Skeleton is similar to the luge except that the competitors ride face first and on their stomachs instead of feet first and on their backs. However, what makes this event so unusual is that until 2002, it was only included when the Winter Games took place in St. Moritz, Switzerland, apparently because they were the only one that had an actual Skeleton (or Cresta Run) track. Unfortunately for the Skeleton enthusiasts, the games had only been at St. Moritz twice (in 1928 and 1948). To add another interesting twist American John Heaton won the silver medal in the 1928 games (behind his older brother Jennison). He then came back to St. Moritz 20 years later for the 1948 games and again won the silver medal in the Skeleton, giving him the record for the longest span between winging two Olympic medals for the same event.

To top everything off, or because he was bored in between the two St. Moritz games, he also won the bronze medal in the two-man bobsled at the 1932 Lake Placid Winter Games. 2. Live Pigeon Shooting Leon de Lunden of Belgium won the live pigeon shooting event at the 1900 Olympics in Paris — the only time in Olympic history when animals were killed on purpose. Unfortunately, this is disgusting event is exactly what it sounds like. Live pigeons were released one at a time and competitors tried to shoot as many in a row as possible. As soon as a competitor missed two birds , they were eliminated. Nearly 300 birds were shot and killed. As one might expect this event turned quite messy as the field soon became littered with dead and wounded birds, feathers and blood. To add to the weirdness, an award of 20,000 Francs was the prize for the winner. The top four finishers agreed to split the prize. Fortunately animal rights groups made enough noise that the Olympics organizers switched to clay pigeons in all their subsequent games.

There has been some debate over the years on whether or not this was an official Olympic event and the IOC (International Olympic Committee) has been reluctant to verify it. Either way, thankfully this marked the only time in Olympic history that animals were killed on purpose. There was another shooting event called the 100 meter running deer that was included in the Olympics from 1908 to 1948 but fortunately for Bambi enthusiasts, the “deer” were just cardboard cutouts that moved sideways across an open field. 1. Ice Hockey and Figure Skating (Summer Olympics) Anna Hubler and Heinrich Burger, who captured the pairs figure skating competition at the 1908 Summer Olympics. (The Fourth Olympiad London 1908 Official Report) Before anyone starts calling foul and stating the obvious; that ice hockey and figure skating can hardly be considered unusual or surprising Olympic events, please continue reading. Certainly both of these sports have been the cornerstone sports of the Winter Olympic Games from the very beginning. Who can forget the incredible figure skating of people like Sonja Henie, Peggy Fleming, Kristi Yamaguchi, Brian Boitano and Scott Hamilton?

And who doesn’t still get shivers of national pride when we think about the Miracle on Ice team of the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics? So what makes these two obviously well-known Winter Olympic sports usual? Because both of these sports made their O lympic debut in the Summer Olympic Games . That’s right, these ice based sports were both briefly part of the Summer Olympics. Figure skating debuted in the 1908 Summer Games in London. While the other “warm weather” events were held in April, the figure skating was held at the end of October, which made the London Games the longest in modern Olympics history. Figure skating returned, this time along with ice hockey , in the 1920 Summer Games in Antwerp. Fortunately, an indoor ice arena, the Palais de Glace d’Anvers, was available to host both events so they were able to be held in April along with the other “summer sports”. Perhaps appropriately, considering their influence on the development of modern hockey, Canada was the winner of the first Olympic ice hockey gold medal, with the United States taking the silver and Czechoslovakia snatching the bronze.

Four years later the Winter Olympic Games debuted in 1924 in Chamonix. These inaugural Winter Games included skiing, bobsledding, curling, and of course, figure skating and ice hockey. Michael Young was born and raised in Iowa. In 1996, a lifelong dream was fulfilled when he attended the Olympic Games in Atlanta with his oldest son. He has been a school teacher and an insurance underwriter. He is currently working on his Master’s Degree in Social Work at the University of Iowa. You won't believe how crazy these former Olympic events were You won't believe how crazy these former Olympic events were 10 things you need to know today Today's best articles The week's best photojournalism Daily business briefing For all the beauty and grace on display, the Olympics are actually pretty weird. Besides running and swimming well, you can get a gold medal for things like race walking , steeplechase , shooting , and even jumping really well on a trampoline . But believe it or not, the Olympics used to be even weirder.

The Paris Games in 1900 were of particular interest to fans of oddball sports — there were lots of wacky demonstration sports being played because the Games coincided with the World's Fair (the 1900 Paris Olympics were also the first year that women were allowed to compete in the Games). But in the modern Olympics' 120-year history, there have been plenty of other chances for bizarre sports to show up on the international stage. Read about some of the strangest to have ever been played, below. 1. Live pigeon shooting Reigning champion: Leon de Lunden (Belgium) Last played: 1900 Apparently between 300 and 400 birds were shot out of the sky for this event, which made its first and only appearance at the 1900 Olympics. Today, they use clay targets that are mechanically flung into the air, rather than, you know, actual living animals. 2. Cane fighting Reigning champion: Beauduin (France) Last played: 1924 Canne de combat was preformed as a demonstration sport at the 1924 Olympics.

Yes, it is exactly what it sounds like — people whacking each other with canes. 3. Greek-sailors-only swim (100 meter) Reigning champion: Ioannis Malokinis (Greece) Last played: 1896 You know a good way to rake in a bunch of Olympic medals for your country? Host an event only open to your own nationality. The men's sailors 100-meter freestyle swim in 1896 was only open to sailors in the Greek Royal Navy; apparently this was totally fine with Olympic organizers, although historian Bill Mallon called "its inclusion in the Olympic records dubious at best." 4. Firefighting Reigning champion (professional): Kansas City (USA) Last played: 1900 Both professional and volunteer firefighters played in the unofficial firefighting competition at the 1900 Olympics, although individuals didn't fight the fires — cities did. Kansas City, Missouri, earned the professional gold medal. Apparently Kansas City was kind of the firefighting champions of the world at the time; resident firefighting legend George C. Hale patented "more than 60 firefighting inventions," Missouri Valley Special Collections writes .

"He was also chosen to represent the United States in an international fire exhibit in London in 1893. In front of the lord mayor and royalty, Hale led the Kansas City Fire Department to a first-place victory." Kansas City didn't disappoint in Paris, either. 5. Swimming obstacle course (200 meter) Reigning champion: Frederick Lane (Australia) Last played: 1900 You know what makes swimming even more exciting? Swimming with obstacles in the way. That is what some sharp Frenchman figured out back in 1900, when 12 swimmers from five nations competed by swimming under and climbing over rows of boats. There is probably a good reason this sport got discontinued, but it must have been thrilling to watch. 6. Tug-of-war Reigning champion: Great Britain Last played: 1920 Everybody's favorite childhood game of brute force was included in the Olympics between 1900 and 1920. Apparently people miss it, because the Tug of War International Federation applied for their sport to be included in the 2020 Olympics. It didn't end up making it this time around, but here's to hoping for 2024!

7. Motor boating (40 nautical miles) Reigning champion: Emile Thubron on the Camille (France) Last played: 1908 Motor boating is probably one of the less athletic sports to ever make it into the Olympics, which is likely why it was included one time and one time only, way back in 1908 (it was also demonstrated in 1900). But with the sport played on turn-of-the-century powerboats and in a gale, the whole spectacle sounds like it still managed to be quite the show: Just before the start, Daimler II. showed a fine burst of speed, but just as the five-minute gun fired she developed some trouble, and, after hanging about and cruising at slow speed for some time, she turned and went away down the course without crossing the line. Meanwhile, Wolseley-Siddeley, after waiting for Daimler II., in order to make a race of it, started alone, to be followed, however, shortly afterwards by Camille. Wolseley-Siddeley finished her second round in 18 min.

8 sec., this representing a speed of 26·6 knots, which was as much as could be expected on such a day, and, as she had then nearly lapped 230 Camille, it seemed safe to conclude that the third gold medal would also go to an English-built boat. But it was not to be. The tide was rather past half-ebb, and Wolseley-Siddeley getting too close to Hamble Spit went high and dry on the soft mud, and so eliminated herself from the contest. Daimler II. meanwhile had retired, and so Camille was left to finish alone, which she did at a speed of nearly 18 knots. [...] This finished the racing, which had proved most disappointing from both the record-breaking and spectacular points of view, but which furnished another instance of what can be got out of modern boats when handled with skill, nerve, and determination. [ The Fourth Olympiad: London ] 8.

Rope climbing (8 meter) Reigning champion: George Eyser (United States) Last played: 1932 This sport was played exactly like it is in gym class — scramble up the rope as fast as you can (okay, early competitors got points for "style" too, which might have been a finer artistic point overlooked by your P.E. teacher). Perhaps the coolest thing about rope climbing was that the final gold medal went to U.S. gymnast George Eyser, who won with a wooden leg . 9. Underwater swim race Reigning champion: Charles Devendeville (France) Last played: 1900 If obstacle-course swimming isn't your cup of tea, then perhaps underwater swimming races are? Athletes got points for how long they stayed underwater; however, the sport was so unpopular that they didn't continue it at the next Olympics. For the record, Devendeville won by swimming 60 meters underwater in 68.4 seconds. 10. Gymnastics on horseback Gold medal: M.

Bouckaert (Belgium) Last year played: 1920 This odd sport is more commonly known as "vaulting." Riders at the Olympics had to perform moves both with the horse stopped and at a canter, as well as with a saddle and bareback. There have been several attempts to get vaulting included once again in the Olympic Games; it was demonstrated at the 1984 and 1996 Olympics. Nowadays, though, gymnasts simply stick to the pommel horse and the vault for these sorts of feats. 11. Hot air ballooning Reigning champion: Unknown balloonist (France) Last played: 1900 How does one compete at hot air ballooning, exactly? Good question — apparently judges at the one and only hot air ballooning Olympic demonstration event gave points to contestants for distance, duration, elevation, and, uh, stopping. Sixty-one men and three women competed for the medals, all of which ultimately went to the French. The event was banned from returning to the Games because it was considered a motorized sport . 12.

Taxi and delivery truck racing Reigning champion: Taxi, unknown driver (France); delivery truck, unknown driver (France) Last played: 1900 While you might be picturing a New York City yellow cab racing through the streets of Paris, keep in mind this was the turn of the century — cars were a startling new invention (and one can't imagine they actually raced very fast). The 14 vehicles in the race "had to complete a course of 30 km round Vincennes twice a day. Prizes were awarded in four categories, divided by type of car and propulsion," The International Society for Olympic Historians reports . 13. One-handed weight lifting Reigning champion: Launceston Elliot (Great Britain) Last played: 1906 If you're only any good at lifting things with one hand, then the inaugural one-handed weight lifting event at the 1896 Olympics were for you. Lifters had to pick up weights with each hand successively, however; second and third place medalists almost tied, except Greece's Alexandros Nikolopoulos failed to lift 57 kg with his other hand, giving a silver to Denmark's Viggo Jensen.

The top spot on the podium went to Launceston Elliot of Great Britain, and was the nation's first gold medal ever. 14. Ski ballet Reigning champion: Men, Fabrice Becker (France); Women, Conny Kissling (Switzerland) Last played: 1992 Yes, ballet on skis is a thing, and yes, it's as absurd as it sounds. (It is truly better watched than described — trust me, this is a YouTube hole you want to go down ). Unfortunately, ballet skiing was short lived at the Olympics — it only made an appearance as a demonstration at the 1988 and 1992 Olympics, and it didn't exactly garner the widespread popularity its proponents might have hoped for. "It was not received well [in 1988], and I would venture to say that from that moment on, it was probably doomed. It didn't do well with TV ratings, it didn't do well with respect to how it was viewed and reviewed. Which is not to say that there wasn't some great ballet skiing that happened," aerialist Jeff Chumas told Grantland in an essential history of the sport . 15.

Plunge diving Reigning champion: William Dickey (USA) Last played: 1904 There isn't a whole lot of skill involved with this one; basically, you just want to sink as deep as possible when you hit the water (you aren't allowed to wiggle or move in any way to encourage sinking). That is why plunge diving was eventually removed from the Olympics; it ended up depending more on an athlete's weight than, well, talent. "The stylish-stout chaps who go in for this strenuous event merely throw themselves heavily into the water and float along like icebergs in the ship lanes," The New York Times harumphed in 1930. Alas, the event lived and died at the St. Louis Olympics.

Question: Which Olympic event in 1900 left around 300 creatures dead
Answer: Pigeon shooting