Paralympic sports - past and present

The excitement of the Olympics Games may have died down a bit but there is certainly still anticipation in the air. There is a happy buzz across London and it seems the city is still on a sporting high because everyone is now awaiting the Paralympic Games. And there isn’t too long to wait either. The Paralympics will be kicking off on 29 August and I for one cannot wait.

While perusing the Paralympics Games website the other day I came across a few sports that I didn’t really know. It encouraged me to look into other popular Paralympic sports so that’s exactly what I did…I knuckled down and got on with some research. The findings were rather interesting. Do you know your Paralympic sports past and present? If not take a look at these:

Boccia
Boccia is a demanding but exciting sport that is a tough test of extreme skill, nerves and tactics. It requires strong muscle control, accuracy and concentration. It can be played by individuals, pairs or teams.

Boccia is played on a rectangular court and the aim is to throw leather balls and land them as close as possible to a white target ball, or jack. In this sense it is very similar to the well-known games of boules or petanque. The jack is thrown first and then the two opposing sides will play one ball each. The side who is furthest away from the jack will throw their remaining balls in an effort to get closer to it or to knock the opposition’s balls out of the way. Once they have thrown all their balls the opposing side will throw theirs. At the end of the round the referee measures the distance of the balls to the jack and awards points to the team or player who is closest. The team or player with the highest amount of points at the end of the game is the winner.

The balls can be moved with hands, feet, or, if the competitor’s disability is severe, with an assistive device such as a ramp. This year Great Britain are the defending Paralympic champions in this sport. Hooray for Team GB!



Photo: tetraplegicos.blogspot.co.uk

Goalball
Goalball is one of the most popular Paralympic sports and is played competitively in more than 100 countries. It is played by blind and visually impaired athletes. Blindfolds are used by those athletes who have partial sight so as to compete on an equal footing with the blind players. The game was originally developed as a rehabilitation activity for injured soldiers returning from the Second World War.

In goalball participants compete in teams of three and try to throw the ball into their opponent’s goal. The teams take it in turns to throw or roll the ball from one end of the court to the other. The ball has a bell in it so that players can judge the ball’s position and movement. The teams remain in the area of their own goal in both defence and attack and whoever gets the most goals wins the game.

Photo: buryssp.co.uk

Ice Sledge Hockey
This is the Paralympic version of Olympic Ice Hockey and is played by athletes with a lower limb impairment. It is a very popular Paralympic sport and was invented in the early 1960s in Stockholm, Sweden at a rehabilitation centre. The game uses sledges, which are adapted to each player, to allow participants to move about the rink at high speeds, hitting a puck travelling at speeds of up to 100kph. Players propel themselves with sticks.

The majority of the rules are the same as regular ice hockey, but there are a handful of differences. The main differences are those necessitated by the ice sledge and the athlete. The equipment used is also similar.

Sledge Hockey was first introduced into Great Britain in 1981 and the British Sledge Hockey Association (BSHA) was formed in 1995 in order to promote and develop the sport.

Photo: nowpublic.com

Dartchery
It’s quite self-explanatory but Dartchery is a combination of darts and archery. It is played with two players or two teams and the distant from the archer to the target is 20 yards (18.3 metres), Each player shoots three arrows and the points received depend on where the arrow hits the target.  The sport was actually part of the Paralympic games between 1960 and 1980.

Photo: enlightenedmind.co.uk

Showdown

This sport is a bit like air hockey or table tennis and is played by blind and visually impaired people. It is played by two players on a table that has goal pockets on each end. In the middle of the table there is a net like divider. The participants play the game with racquets and an audible ball. The aim of the game is to keep the ball out of the goal but to try and get it into the opponent’s net. It must pass under the net.

The game was invented in the 1960s by Joe Lewis, a totally blind Canadian man. The sport has been played in the Paralympic Games in the past but it is no longer part of the event.

Photo: showdownsweden.se

So there we have it, five sports that until today I’d never really heard of. Every day’s a school day and all that! If you know of any other popular Paralympic sports please do let us know. It’d be great to hear about them.

Peace, love and pizza.

What On Earth

Strange sports from around the world

All this Olympic talk got me thinking about sports that go on around the world. There are obviously hundreds, but aside from the regular sports there are some rather unusual ones that exist too. I never knew the world of sport was quite so colourful!

After doing some research into the strange sports that happen across the globe, I found some rather amusing ones that I just had to share with you. Here are ten of my favourite weird and wonderful sporting events that take place.

Bog snorkelling:
This muddy sport is exactly as it sounds – snorkelling in a bog. It first began in 1976 after the game was devised over a pint of beer. The first World Bog Snorkelling Championship was then held in 1985. This annual event, which attracts more than 100 people, still takes place today and it is held in Wales. Contestants must swim two lengths of a 55 metre bog trench wearing a snorkel and fins, although they are not allowed to use regular swimming strokes.

Photo: tommartinphotos.blogspot.com

Bed racing:
Another British sport to add to the list. Bed racing was introduced in 1965 in the town of Knaresborough, North Yorkshire. The first race was only open to Army, Navy and American marines but now it is open to anybody. The rules state that competitors must race in teams of six with one contestant on the actual bed. The rest push and control the bed round a 3km track that involves hills and river crossings.

Photo: jm.creativeblogs.net

Joggling:
This sport maintains a rather simple rule – competitors must juggle while jogging. Rather self-explanatory really! If an object is dropped the joggler (yes that is what they are termed) must return to the point where the object fell and continue from there. The annual Joggling World Championship was first held in 1980 in North Dakota, USA. The championships include a variety of races and the most common objects used are juggling balls and clubs.

Photo: en.Wikipedia.org

Sepak Takraw:
Sepak Takraw is an exciting fast paced sport that was founded in South-East Asia, perhaps as far back as the 15th century. The popularity of the game is spreading throughout the world. It brings together the skills and techniques found in volleyball, football and martial arts. It is traditionally played over a badminton-like net and each team has three players on the court at one time. The game is similar to volleyball, except that using the hands is not permitted and each player can touch the ball only once before it is hit over the net. The ball can be returned over the net using any part of the body except for the arm – from the shoulder to the point of the finger.

Photo: sepaktakrawfans.blogspot.co.uk

Street luge:
This extreme gravity powered activity is a dry land version of the renowned winter sport, the luge, although rules do vary. Participants race downhill feet first on a streetluge board, which is similar to a skateboard. Street luge started in 1975 in southern California. The sport was hosted by the US Skateboard Association but was soon halted due to a high number of injuries for both contestants and spectators. Several riders kept the sport alive and as a result the sport evolved rapidly. There are now there strict safety requirements for any sanctioned competitions, including the wearing of a helmet, sturdy shoes and a protective racing suit.

Photo: adventure.howstuffworks.com

Shin kicking:
This is an ancient sport that makes up part of the Cotswold Olimpicks (not a typo!), a popular event held in Gloucestershire since 1612. Once again the sport is rather self-explanatory with the aim to kick your opponent as hard as you can in the shins. Each time the opponent falls to the ground the other participant gets a point. The winner is the person with the highest score in the best of three rounds. The rules state that competitors can pad their legs with straw.

Photo: brainz.org

Canal jumping:
This unusual sport was founded in Holland and is known to locals as Fierljeppen. Contestants have to use a long pole to jump from one side of the canal to the other. The poles are between 3-5m long and have a flat round plate at the bottom to prevent it from sinking into the muddy canal. The contestants run and jump onto the pole and then shimmy to the top of it before jumping off on the opposite side of the canal. Participants attach bicycle inner tubes to their feet to aid their jump. A National Canal Jumping Contest is held in the Netherlands on 22 August each year. No prize is won in the competition, except the honour of being the Dutch Champion Canal Jumper.

Photo: obscuresports.wikispaces.com

Toe wrestling:

Another strange British sport with another simple theory. Competitors must take off their shoes and socks, face each other, interlock toes and try to force each other off the ‘toedium’. It is common courtesy for each player to remove their competitor’s socks (yuck!!) Typically, after a short starting chant (for example, “one, two, three, four, I declare a toe war.”), the competitors proceed to attempt to pin their opponent’s feet for three seconds, while avoiding the same. Pinning is accomplished by placing one foot on the same foot of the opponent. The first World Toe Wrestling Championship was held in 1976 after the game was devised in a pub in Derbyshire.

Photo: creative-journeys.com

Cardboard Tube Fighting:
Once a favourite childhood pastime after the wrapping paper had been used up, cardboard tube fighting is now a proper sport. Opponents go head to head and try to break each other’s tube without breaking their own. They also get points for cardboard costumes and theatrics. The game is so well known that a global organisation called the Cardboard Tube Fighting League (CTFL) was devised. The CTFL hosts cardboard tube based events in the USA and Australia.

Photo: laughingsquid.com

Dunny derby:
As you may know the dunny is an Australian term for the toilet so yes this sport does involve toilets! The Dunny Derby is an important event on the sporting calendar of Winton in Queensland, Australia. The unusual pursuit involves a person sitting on a lavatory on wheels while other team members pull it along. Teams can have up to five members. The event is part of the Outback Festival which is held every second year in September.

Photo: australiantraveller.com

So there’s a little round up of some rather unusual sports. The list doesn’t stop there though. There are plenty more strange pursuits going on around the world; some involving animals, some using food and some in which you’re attached to your spouse! You should look them up – they will definitely make you giggle. Maybe you’ll even be encouraged to have a go at some…

Peace, love and unusual sport pizza,

What On Earth

Funny photos from the Olympic Games

London is getting busier, the Olympic Torch is getting ever closer to the Olympic Stadium (and What On Earth!) and there are only three days until the London 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony. It’s clear to see that Olympics mania really is in full force. It has hit What On Earth too; we are now busier than ever, plus everybody in the office is chatting about the big event. With this in mind I thought I’d do a bit of reading up on the Olympics and that’s when I came across some very amusing photos.

It seems that in the past photographers from around the world have captured athletes at prime times during the Olympic Games. Whether the pictures were taken by fluke or with calculated timing, the photographers have certainly snapped their way to some amusing material. Some of the photos were so good that I had to share them with you. I have put together a collection of my favourites, which have all been taken from various websites. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not belittling these Olympiads, they are amazingly talented people after all, but you have to have a little giggle at some of these unfortunate pictures.



Photo: egotvonline.com

Photo: funnyphotography.blogspot.com

Photo: forum.asiajam.com

Photo: posted-in-jokes-tagged-book-recommendation-dictionary-funny.blogfunnyimg.no-ip.org Photo: oneinchpunch.net/

Photo: picfor.me

Photo: signsfunny.com

Photo: photographytips.com.au

Photo: smellyfunny.blogspot.co.uk

 

Photo: sportsfunny.com

Photo: sportzfun.com

So there we have it, some of our favourite amusing photos from different Olympic Games events from around the world. There were also a few photos that made us all squirm a bit but I didn’t want to add those in case we have some squeamish readers out there!

Peace, love and funny Olympics pizza,

What On Earth