The Weird Sports That Were Once Actually In The Olympics

The Olympics has hosted its fair share of quirky, wild events.

Live pigeon shooting or obstacle course swimming, anyone?

Coincidentally, some of the most curious sports to be given Olympic status actually featured at the second-ever modern games in 1900 in Paris, where the sporting spectacle returns this summer.

Check out our roundup of long-forgotten Olympic sports below.

In what would have been an animal rights activist’s worst nightmare, almost 300 birds were reportedly killed when the live pigeon shooting event made its only Olympic appearance at the Paris Games in 1900. Clay targets mercifully replaced the live birds in future Olympics.

Paris’ River Seine hosted the 200-meter obstacle swimming race at the 1900 Games. Competitors had to climb over a pole and a row of boats before swimming under another row of vessels.

The Seine is set to host the opening ceremony, marathon swimming and swimming element of the triathlon event at the 2024 Games. Amid concerns about water quality, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo actually took a dip in the water earlier this month.

The Tug of War was a staple Olympic event from Paris 1900 to Antwerp 1920, with the 1916 Games canceled due to World War I.

Teams of eight had five minutes to pull their opponents six feet over a line.

The horse high jump also made its sole appearance at Paris 1900.

France’s Dominique Garderes on Canela and Italy’s Gian Giorgio Trissino on Oreste took joint first place after their horses leaped 1.85 meters into the air over a horizontal pole.

Some 120 years later, America’s William Dickey remains the reigning Olympic champion in plunge for distance. Dickey took gold at the 1904 Games in St. Louis, Missouri, by gliding below the surface for a literally breath-taking 62 feet and 6 inches. The event was later scrapped from the Olympic roster.

Croquet made history with its only appearance at Paris 1900 by being the first event involving women, although they competed against men.

France romped home with gold in all four categories.

Only one spectator showed up, though.

The event ran at five Olympics, from 1896 to 1932, and saw athletes clambering up 49-feet and then 25-feet lengths of rope.

America’s Ray Ewry (pictured below) was the master of the discipline that featured at every Olympics from 1900 to 1912. Ewry won gold at the 1900, 1904 and 1908 games.

Underwater swimming made its only appearance at Paris 1900.

Competitors swam below the surface of the River Seine for up to 60 meters, gaining points for each meter covered and every second submerged.

This story has been updated from this original story in 2016.