7 Most Interesting Non-Olympic Sports
While the Olympic Games have always been included in the list of the most long-awaited events of a given year, the number of participating athletes and countries, as well as sports activities added to the competition list frequently varies. Due to some reasons, the International Olympic Committee sometimes makes a decision to exclude certain disciplines and replaces them with others.
As a rule, such kinds of sport were excluded from the Olympics program because of fans’ insufficient interest in them or the fact that the necessary governing body was absent at that time. Some kinds of sport (such as archery or tennis) were once excluded by the Committee, but later they were added to the Olympics program again due to their growing popularity among numerous fans. However, some sports have been excluded for years, and it is very unlikely that the Committee will decide in the future to bring them back. Below, you will find the list of sports.
1. Rope climbing
At present, this activity is widely practiced at the World Police and Fire Games, but for some time, the discipline was included in the list of Olympic sports. The debut of rope climbing took place at the Olympic Games in one thousand eight hundred and ninety-six, and it remained in the program of the Olympic Games until this sport was not excluded after the Olympics in 1932.
2. Polo
This is a team sport that is played on horseback, the aim of which is to score as many times as possible in the opponent’s goal. Polo is still popular in diverse parts of the world and remains an active sport in a large number of states. However, its stay as an official sport at the Olympic Games was limited to the period from one thousand nineteen to one thousand nineteen thirty nine, when it was one of the most popular sports in the world.
3. Lacrosse
This is a contact team game, which is played with utilization of a long-stick club and a small ball. Lacrosse is a tough sports activity that is suitable only for strong people probably appeared back in 1100 A.D. among the indigenous peoples living in North America.
It was an important part of the official program of the Olympic Games in one thousand and four, as well as one thousand and eight. At present, it is one of the most popular sports in the USA.
4. Standing high jump
It was an essential part of sports athletics competition, which was included in the official program of the Summer Olympic Games in the period from 1900 to 1912. At those major competitions, standing high jumps were performed in the same way as high jumps, with the only difference consisting in that the athletes did not run: they had to stand still and then jumped up with both legs.
5. Basque pelota
Basque pelota, what is the popular sport in the world now, is considered a prototype of squash. It was played in Spain, France and some states of Latin America such as Argentina and Cuba. This was the official discipline at the Summer Olympics in Paris that were held in 1900. In addition, the Basque pelota was a demonstration sport at the Olympics in 1924 (among male sportsmen), 1968 (among male sportsmen) and 1992 (among both male and female sportsmen).
6. Skijoring
Skijoring is a winter sport in which a skier runs a dog that pulls him or her along the distance. Also, the athlete can run a horse. Horse riding is considered to be a popular winter travel method, but today it is mainly a competitive sport. It appeared in the Winter Olympics in 1928, but later was excluded from the official Olympic program.
7. Clubs swinging
Being a type of juggling, clubs exercises are a competition that was held as part of rhythmic gymnastics at the 1904 Summer Olympics. This was the only time when club swinging was included in the program of the Olympic Games. Three athletes from one country (the USA) took part in the competition, and Edward Hennig became the winner.
If you want to find out more information on this subject, read the article about 10 popular sports in the world.