We might think NASCAR is a wild sport, but ther are some seriously crazy gladiator sports that were played a long time ago, but no longer exist. Many of these heart-dropping events used to take place in the ancient Olympic Games. The 2020 Olympics will be held in Tokyo, Japan from July, and the whole world shall be watching the most elite athletes win gold medals in serious sports.
But these athletes have nothing on what ancient stars had to deal with when they got out on the Olympic floor. There were plenty of weird and absurd games that have been included in the Olympic Games previously, which are not there anymore, and rightly so. Some of these games weren't just crazy, but downright dangerous or just plain silly, but all of them had thousands of spectators ready to take it all in.
In this article, we revisit the Olympics in decades past and look at some of these games that do not exist anymore. Some of these games make it pretty easy for you to understand why they do not exist, but others are a little nostalgic if you have watched a version of them and loved them. Our editors have scoured old sports books to bring you the low down on what they were playing a long time ago.
What Crazy Gladiator Sports No Longer Exist At The Olympics?
They may seem strange to us now, but these sports were quite popular in their time. The attracted fans and followers who would travel hundreds of miles to witness them. Let's get into some of the wild sports our ancestors cheered their hearts out for.
Horse Long Jump
By the name of this game, you can tell it was pretty weird. The officials probably thought if humans can jump, why not horses? And they did. Weird? Well, yes! The Olympics are traditionally human-oriented, and the horse long jump took place at the 1900 Olympic games, but never again.
Dueling Pistols
As far as guns and the Olympics are concerned, this is certainly a thing of the past. Back in the 1900s, the dueling pistols were part of the games. This was a rather bizarre competition, where the participants would fire guns. This was dangerous and objectionable and the competitors fired the pistols at dummies.
Tug-Of-War
During company retreats and family get-togethers, most people tend to enjoy a game of tug-of-war. Now, can you imagine having a tug-of-war competition at the Olympic Games? There were two big scrums of people who would grab on either side of a long rope and then pull it as hard as they could. This was included in the Olympic lineup from 1900-920 and then it was canceled.
Pigeon Shooting
You have probably heard of the clay pigeon shooting game. It is thought of as being more humane and the bloodless version of what actually went down during the 1900 Olympic Games. The Olympic organizers, later on, realized the horror of this sport after hundreds of live pigeons were slain, which was just too much and canceled the game. It’s hard to believe that such a game even existed.
Solo Synchronized Swimming
You may want to ask what this sport really is. Like what on earth does solo synchronized swimming even mean? This event was last held at the Olympics in 1992, and it crucially tweaked the meaning of what “synchronized” really means, because it is essentially supposed to be used when it comes to many swimmers swimming together. Good to know that it doesn’t exist anymore.
Plunge for Distance
How can one plunge for distance? Well, you are supposed to dive while underwater, then the officials will see how far the water inertial can carry you for a period of at least 60 seconds. This sport, - believe it or not as part of the 1094 Olympic Games in St. Louis. It was discontinued.
Croquet
This is not so strange since it is a game of leisure by today’s standards, however, the more austere croquet players might raise an eyebrow. It, not a sport that demands too much athletically from the participants, that’s why it was pretty strange to have it included in the Olympic Games.
Swimming Obstacle Race
This is pretty odd. During the 1900 Olympic Games, there was one event that combined swimming and obstacle courses and forced competitors to stop mid-race and climb over a series of rowboats that were tied up in the middle of the pool. Sounds absurd. Right?
Roque
Rogue is a game that most people do not understand, but it was included in the 1904 Olympic Games. It is the American Variant of the Croquet. You will note that the name is simply Croquet without the C and the T. The game is played on a hard and flat court, rather than on grass. After it was cut from the Olympics, the game took over America in 1904, but it was never included in the Olympics ever again.
Also Read: The Most Popular Events in the Summer Olympics
Crazy Gladiator Sports That No Longer Exist Conclusion
Well, some of these gladiator games are sure to raise eyebrows these days, but they were popular and there were athletes who specialized in competing in them. And in the same way, we cannot tell how the current Olympic events may change or which sport shall get banished and which one shall stay.
It is possible that in the coming decades, games such as discus throwing and javelin may be a thing of the past. We have no idea what the years will bring and which game shall appear absurd in the future. So let's enjoy our games as long as we can, before you know it, they could be replaced by competitive scrolling and swiping on your smartphone.
