Whilst much of the world is focused on popular sports such as boxing, football and rugby, there are many sports that often go under the radar. Many of these are unusual sports you may not have even realised were actually a thing.
Today we’re going to correct that and bring to your attention a number of unusual sports we think you need to know about. And who knows if this article takes off and everyone discovers a new sport they love we may one day see it appearing on the list of most popular sports around the world.
So without further delay, here are those unusual sports.
5 Unusual Sports You Need To Know About
Kabaddi
Kabaddi is an insane and unusual sport that originates from Ancient India. It doesn’t really get played anywhere else but in India nowadays, although it has grown in popularity in recent years to the point there is now an Anime series about the sport called Burning Kabaddi.
The game itself is a contact team sport where two teams of seven players compete against each other. The aim is for a player known as a “raider” to cross the court and enter their oppositions half and touch as many players as possible without being tackled on his way back to his own half. All within a single breath.
Each player touched by the raider will earn his team a point, but the defending team can also earn a point by tackling the raider. If a player is touched or tackled they’re out of the game but can be brought back in if their team makes has success attacking or defending.
World Chase Tag
You may remember playing tag back in your school days. Well, guess what? It has gone competitive and this unusual sport just like Kabaddi is insane as well. More than just a playground game, the World Chase Tag (WCT) championships combines the classic childhood game with parkour, and some intense battles between professionals as they sprint, jump and dive around small courses full of obstacles avoiding being tagged by their competitor.
I don’t think whatever I say can really do it any justice, so just check out this video below which shows some of the most intense chases from WCT5 UK!
Quidditch
Ok, so you will know this sport from the Harry Potter films but it has become an actual sport people play. What makes it an unusual sport though is because wizards clearly aren’t real, it involves people running around with a stick in between their legs pretending they’re flying. We know, it sounds like something that would be going down at an institution for the insane, but it’s actually a legit sport nowadays and even has its own governing body.
There has been a lot of controversy around the sport recently though, with those involved trying to distance the sport from the author of the Harry Potter series J.K. Rowling following comments about trans people. Whilst we support people of all colours, genders and planets (there may be alien life out there, who knows) we do find this a little bit extreme, because they’re essentially trying to rename a sport that was made up anyway based up on another made up sport. It just makes the whole situation even more unusual, but it’s an interesting one to follow.
Lawn Mower Racing
We’re not just talking about your typical Flymo here, lawnmower racing takes place on the fancy driving lawnmowers you see rich folk and their private gardeners use. Except these lawnmowers are often suped up with more powerful engines. The sport itself originated in 1960 as a cheap alternative to traditional motorsports which were too expensive, and now it is a sport that is not just enjoyed around the world, but that has also made its way into video games such as Wreckfest which is available on both game consoles and PC.
Underwater Hockey
The last unusual sport we have in our list is one we have mentioned before when we delved into the many types of hockey that people play. Played in a swimming pool, underwater hockey much like the standard version is played by two teams who hold miniature hockey sticks whilst trying to smack a puck along the floor of the pool. In order to stay submerged for longer players often wear a snorkel and also use fins to help them move more quickly.
Closing Thoughts
So there you have it, a number of unusual sports that are widely played and are surprisingly popular even though many people don’t actually know they exist. And these are only the tip of the iceberg, there are many more weird and wacky sports that are being played we’ve not even mentioned.
Are you interested in a particularly unusual sport? Maybe you play one yourself? Why not let us know in the comments below and tell us a little bit about what it is you play or watch. Until next time!
For even more general sports pieces like this, click right HERE.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks