High Ten Shocking Sports activities That Have been Truly within the Olympics

We’re reposting this basic record in regards to the Olympics.

The Olympic Video games come round each four years though technically it’s now each two years because the summer season and winter video games are on a staggered schedule.  Most individuals are all acquainted with the favored Olympic sports activities.  In the summertime video games the principle focus is on observe and discipline, gymnastics, swimming and in recent times, seashore volleyball.  Within the winter video games a lot of the consideration is on determine skating, snowboarding, hockey and, due partly to the Jamaicans, bobsledding.  If you’re an actual die arduous Olympics fan, you may watch a few of the extra obscure sports activities, badminton, curling, the pentathlon or the biathlon on a few of the late evening cable channels.  The 2012 Summer season Olympic Video games included 26 sports activities (with 2 extra to be added within the 2016 video games).  The 2014 Winter Olympics will embrace 7 sports activities.  Nevertheless, over the historical past of the fashionable Olympic Video games, there have been a large number of sports activities that made a short look.  Some are pretty well-known, comparable to baseball and softball.  Others are extra obscure, whereas nonetheless others could also be full head scratchers.  Nonetheless every sport was most likely crucial to those that competed they usually deserve their second within the highlight

10. Plunge Diving

Image of a swimmer plunging ft first (the plunge for distance was a aggressive swimming occasion within the 19th and early 20th century

Also called plunge for distance this was a part of aquatics, which encompasses water disciplines comparable to swimming, diving and water polo.  Its solely look was on the 1904 Summer season Video games in St Louis.  Plunge for distance was a diving lengthy leap. Rivals dove into the pool from a standing place and their attained distance was measured after both 60 seconds handed or their head broke the floor, whichever got here first. Divers couldn’t propel themselves by the water after the preliminary dive as they have been required to stay immobile.  An fascinating observe.  There have been solely 5 entrants within the plunge diving competitors, all of them from the US.  For sure, the People swept the medals.

9. Croquet

The 1900 Olympic croquet event

This was one other sport that had just one look, within the 1900 Summer season Video games in Paris.  Regardless that there have been three occasions, Singles (one and two balls) and Doubles, there have been solely ten rivals, 9 of whom have been from France.  There was one competitor from Belgium, however he didn’t make it by the primary spherical.  One other stunning observe, there three of the rivals have been ladies they usually competed in opposition to the boys.  Not surprisingly, France swept all of the medals taking gold, silver and bronze in each the singles competitions and the gold medal within the doubles competitors – apparently just one workforce entered the doubles.  It’s too unhealthy the competitor from Belgium couldn’t discover a companion, they might have been a shoe in for the silver.

8. Motorboat Racing

London 1908: Motor boats in motion throughout competitors when the game was included for the primary and final time. The races have been held around the Isle of Wight off the south coast of Britain.

This was one other one hit marvel within the Summer season Video games.  The 1908 Summer season Video games in London was the one time that any type of motorized sport has taken place within the Olympic video games (though it was an indication sport within the 1900 video games).  There have been three separate occasions every for its personal class of motorboat.  Every race consisted of 5 laps round an eight nautical mile course.  Sadly, somebody should have forgotten to tell Mom Nature that this was the Olympic Video games, as a result of though a number of boats began every race, just one managed to finish each.  This was primarily attributable to gale power winds that swept over the course.  The truth that motorboats had solely been invented round 20 years earlier could have contributed to this as properly. So the ultimate medal depend was three gold and 0 silver and bronze.  Satirically, the races had initially been scheduled for July, however have been pushed again a month on the request of the Duke of Westchester and Lord Howard de Walden who have been visiting America in the course of the authentic July date.  One other observe of curiosity, one of many boats from these races was lately purchased and fully restored by a British collector.

7. 200 Meter Impediment Swim

In Paris 1900, swimming came about on the Seine and included an impediment race and one the place the purpose was to swim the entire distance below water.

Persevering with with one and performed occasions is the 200 meter Impediment Swim, which is just about what it appears like.  This curious occasion came about (like Croquet) on the 1900 Summer season Video games in Paris. Like all of the swimming races within the Paris Video games, the Impediment Race came about within the River Seine.  Rivals have been rowed out 200 meters from shore and traverse three totally different obstacles within the race.  First they needed to climb over a pole, then over a row of boats, then lastly below one other row of boats.  Not like the earlier entries, this occasion had sufficient rivals (12 from 5 nations) to have semi-final heats. Nevertheless, because the prime ten instances certified for the finals so evidently it may need been only a actually a merciless trick to play on the 2 non-qualifiers (one in all which was Fred Hendschel, the one competitor within the race from the US).

6. Two-Handed Throws

One more one-time look.  Though technical that is three one-time appearances rolled into one. Within the 1912 Summer season Video games in Stockholm, along with the common shot put, javelin and discus occasions, there was additionally a two-handed model of every.  All three have been scored the identical.  Every competitor acquired three throws with their left hand after which three throws with their proper hand. The longest throws from every hand have been added collectively to get the overall distance.  Shocking (or perhaps not that surprisingly) there have been many duplicate medal winners within the one-handed and two-handed occasions. Within the javelin, Julius Saaristo of Finland received the silver medal within the one-handed and the gold within the two-handed.  Within the discus, Armas Taipale of Finland received the gold in each the one-handed and two-handed.  And within the shot put, the highest four throwers within the one-handed occasion have been the identical as these within the two-handed, although they completed in a unique order.

5. Rope Climbing

A gymnast competes within the rope-climb on the 1896 Olympic Video games in Athens, Greece

Not like the earlier entries, rope climbing was a part of four totally different Olympic video games, together with the inaugural Fashionable Olympics Video games of 1896 in Athens. Rope climbing was a part of the gymnastics program.  At its excessive level within the 1924 Paris Olympics, it had seven rivals from 9 nations.  Rope climbing has had an extended and sometimes instances fashionable standing world wide, though perhaps not that fashionable should you have been subjected to rope climbing in highschool gymnasium class.  In the US, aggressive rope climbing was sanctioned by the NCAA till the early 1960’s.  There are nonetheless worldwide rope climbing occasions held at present.  Within the rope climbing rivals began from a sitting place and will solely use their arms to climb.  In Olympic competitors each time and elegance (holding the legs horizontal to the bottom) have been thought-about in scoring.

4. Tug of Warfare

Tug of struggle was contested as a workforce occasion within the Summer season Olympics at each Olympiad from 1900 to 1920

This considerably acquainted sport, most likely most frequently skilled on the playground as children, was an everyday competitors, making 5 appearances within the Olympic Video games from 1900 to 1920.  Within the 1904 St. Louis Video games, the American groups (two of which have been from the identical St. Louis athletic membership) swept the medals most likely giving a brand new that means to dwelling discipline benefit.  Four years later, on the 1908 London Video games, Nice Britain returned the favor by sweeping all three medals on their dwelling turf.  Apparently, all three British groups have been composed of law enforcement officials.  The 1908 competitors was not with out its controversy, nonetheless.  The American workforce, composed principally of rivals within the throwing occasions (they’d collectively received 16 Olympic medals within the discus, shot put and hammer throw occasions) have been soundly defeated within the first pull by the Liverpool Police workforce.  The People launched a protest stating that the boots worn by the British workforce constituted unlawful footwear.  The British workforce countered that the boots have been a part of the usual police apparel.  The protest was disallowed and the American workforce withdrew in disgust.

3. Skeleton (Cresta)

This may occasionally appear to be a stunning entry to these on the market who observe the Winter Video games.  Skeleton has been an everyday sport within the Winter Olympics since 2002.  For these not acquainted Skeleton is much like the luge besides that the rivals journey face first and on their stomachs as an alternative of ft first and on their backs.  Nevertheless, what makes this occasion so uncommon is that till 2002, it was solely included when the Winter Video games came about in St. Moritz, Switzerland, apparently as a result of they have been the one one which had an precise Skeleton (or Cresta Run) observe.  Sadly for the Skeleton lovers, the video games had solely been at St. Moritz twice (in 1928 and 1948).  So as to add one other fascinating twist American John Heaton received the silver medal within the 1928 video games (behind his older brother Jennison).  He then got here again to St. Moritz 20 years later for the 1948 video games and once more received the silver medal within the Skeleton, giving him the file for the longest span between winging two Olympic medals for a similar occasion.  To prime all the things off, or as a result of he was bored in between the 2 St. Moritz video games, he additionally received the bronze medal within the two-man bobsled on the 1932 Lake Placid Winter Video games.

2. Stay Pigeon Taking pictures

Leon de Lunden of Belgium received the reside pigeon capturing occasion on the 1900 Olympics in Paris — the one time in Olympic historical past when animals have been killed on objective.

Sadly, that is disgusting occasion is precisely what it appears like.  Stay pigeons have been launched one after the other and rivals tried to shoot as many in a row as doable.  As quickly as a competitor missed two birds, they have been eradicated.  Practically 300 birds have been shot and killed.  As one may anticipate this occasion turned fairly messy as the sector quickly grew to become plagued by lifeless and wounded birds, feathers and blood.  So as to add to the weirdness, an award of 20,000 Francs was the prize for the winner.  The highest four finishers agreed to separate the prize.  Fortuitously animal rights teams made sufficient noise that the Olympics organizers switched to clay pigeons in all their subsequent video games.  There was some debate through the years on whether or not or not this was an official Olympic occasion and the IOC (Worldwide Olympic Committee) has been reluctant to confirm it.  Both approach, fortunately this marked the one time in Olympic historical past that animals have been killed on objective.  There was one other capturing occasion referred to as the 100 meter working deer that was included within the Olympics from 1908 to 1948 however happily for Bambi lovers, the “deer” have been simply cardboard cutouts that moved sideways throughout an open discipline.

1. Ice Hockey and Determine Skating (Summer season Olympics)

Anna Hubler and Heinrich Burger, who captured the pairs determine skating competitors on the 1908 Summer season Olympics. (The Fourth Olympiad London 1908 Official Report)

Earlier than anybody begins calling foul and stating the apparent; that ice hockey and determine skating can hardly be thought-about uncommon or stunning Olympic occasions, please proceed studying.  Definitely each of those sports activities have been the cornerstone sports activities of the Winter Olympic Video games from the very starting.  Who can overlook the unimaginable determine skating of individuals like Sonja Henie, Peggy Fleming, Kristi Yamaguchi, Brian Boitano and Scott Hamilton?  And who doesn’t nonetheless get shivers of nationwide pleasure once we take into consideration the Miracle on Ice workforce of the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics?  So what makes these two clearly well-known Winter Olympic sports activities standard?  As a result of each of those sports activities made their Olympic debut within the Summer season Olympic Video games.

That’s proper, these ice based mostly sports activities have been each briefly a part of the Summer season Olympics.  Determine skating debuted within the 1908 Summer season Video games in London.  Whereas the opposite “heat climate” occasions have been held in April, the determine skating was held on the finish of October, which made the London Video games the longest in trendy Olympics historical past.  Determine skating returned, this time together with ice hockey, within the 1920 Summer season Video games in Antwerp.  Fortuitously, an indoor ice enviornment, the Palais de Glace d’Anvers, was out there to host each occasions in order that they have been in a position to be held in April together with the opposite “summer season sports activities”.

Maybe appropriately, contemplating their affect on the event of contemporary hockey, Canada was the winner of the primary Olympic ice hockey gold medal, with the US taking the silver and Czechoslovakia snatching the bronze.  Four years later the Winter Olympic Video games debuted in 1924 in Chamonix.  These inaugural Winter Video games included snowboarding, bobsledding, curling, and naturally, determine skating and ice hockey.

Michael Younger was born and raised in Iowa.  In 1996, a lifelong dream was fulfilled when he attended the Olympic Video games in Atlanta together with his oldest son.  He has been a faculty trainer and an insurance coverage underwriter.  He’s presently engaged on his Grasp’s Diploma in Social Work on the College of Iowa.

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