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Sunday 2 November 2014

10 OBSCURE SPORTS AROUND THE WORLD


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10 obscure sports in the world
By Beer L. Golfer,
Modern Man Jack, 31 October 2014.

In the sporting world there are many basic world renowned sports such as soccer, tennis, boxing and so many others that we could write the whole article about them. But this article is about obscure sports that sound interesting but are just plain old weird.

1. Toe Wrestling

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This game is one of a kind. Two players compete in this sport. Both the contestants are bare footed and their job is to entangle each other’s foot so that one of the two can be declared the winner. If the opponent’s foot gets trapped for three seconds, then the former will win the match. The actual number of rounds to be played in the game is decided either by the participants or the referee. Several international level championships have taken place since the 70s. This sport has many adoring fans mostly in the UK. [Video]

2. Chess Boxing

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Chess Boxing is really an interesting competition that is an amalgamation of two sports. It is played in alternating rounds - in the first round the contestant’s box and in the next round they play a game of chess. This strange sport is loved and played in many places around the world but predominantly in Berlin and Tokyo. [Videos]

3. Oil Wrestling

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In this sport both combatants are massaged with oil. The game is played by abiding the usual rules of traditional wrestling. This is the national game of Turkey. It is also played in Japan and Europe. [Video]

4. Land Diving

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For this sport all you need is a vine and a wooden tower. The vine is tied on the ankle of the contestant. The contestant needs to take a dive from the top of that wooden tower. Not only is this an unusual sport but also a rite of passage in some cultures. Contestants hold numerous Guinness World Records. [Video]

5. Three-Sided Football

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Three-Sided Football is a usual football match with only one difference: that instead of two, three teams play this match. There are three goal posts and the field is hexagonal. No score is kept of the goals which a team scores, but conversely a count is taken of the number of goals conceded and the winning team is that which concedes the fewest goals. This sport has gained immense popularity in Scotland, Austria, Poland, England and Italy. [Video]

6. Canine Surfing

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The most exciting feature of this game is, instead of humans, dogs participate and they are trained to surf. There is no hard and fast rule that only dogs can surf in the competition because in certain countries people participate along with their dogs. [Video]

7. Bossaball

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Bossaball is a modified form of volleyball. In this game trampolines are laid in the game court. The net is kept at a much higher level from the ground and the participants of the teams jump on the trampolines while playing the game. This sport originated in Spain, but now it is being played in many countries such as Mexico, Germany and France. [Video]

8. Cheese Rolling

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Cheese Rolling is a chasing game that is played on a hill. A block of cheese weighing 9 pounds is rolled from the hill top and the contestants are supposed to run down the hill. The one who strikes the winning post first is declared the winner and is rewarded with that block of cheese. [Video]

9. Elephant Polo

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The players of elephant polo sit on one elephant unlike the participants of polo where each has his own horse. All the players are given a polo stick to which a polo mallet is attached. The game appears a bit awkward when played on elephants. Elephant polo has been blamed for numerous accidents and injuries which have happened over the years. [Video]

10. Underwater Hockey

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Underwater Hockey was invented in England in the ‘50s. The rules of the game are similar to hockey with a difference that players play it under water, and that makes this sport really thrilling. Two teams of up to ten players compete, with six players in each team in play at any one time. The remaining four players are continually substituted into play from a substitution area, which may be on deck or in the water outside the playing area, depending on tournament rules. [Videos]

Top image: Cheese Rolling at Cooper's Hill, Gloucester, England in 2013. Credit: Credit: Dave Farrance/Wikimedia Commons.

[Source: Modern Man Jack. Edited. Top image and links added.]


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