Soccer, football, basketball, baseball. . . . These are some of the most popular sports in the world, but they are not the only sports. People around the world who do not—or cannot—participate in these sports are constantly finding ways to create their own competition. These competitions may sit unrecognized and underrated in the shadow of the more popular sports, but they do not lack support and participants. Around the world, it seems that if you can do something, you can make it competitive, and people will come out for it—no matter how weird or unusual it is. 

In Middle East, they play what might be considered a more serious version of red rover. It’s called Kabaddi, and it is played with two seven-player teams on a court about half the size of a basketball court. Each team takes turns sending a “raider” to the other team’s side to try to tag or tackle (depending on which version of the sport is played) an opposing player, at which that player would be “out” and the raider’s team would get a point. The catch: the raider must hold his breath for the duration of his time on the other team’s side. If he takes a breath, he is out. (To prove he is not taking a breath, the raider must say Kabaddi, Kabaddi, Kabaddi, etc. continuously.)

The sport is actually quite popular, especially in India, Pakistan, and the surrounding countries. Canada and the U.S. have also caught onto the spirit. There have been five Kabaddi World Cup tournaments, which started in 2004, all of which were won by India. The sixth World Cup begins at the end of November of 2013.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrtyQ1uSRB4

Not all competitions are this organized, or have this many rules. For example: racing. Races are simple, and universally understandable. But running may seem pointless to some, unless there is some other variable involved. Such a variable is put in place in the bed races in Knaresborough, England, where teams must push a “bed” with a person on it, on land and in water. A similar race is the Dunny Derby (Dunny is an outback term for “toilet”) in Australia, where one pushes another sitting on the “throne” on wheels.

Possibly the most bizarre is the Finnish Wife Carrying Festival, where men must complete a muddy, wet course with their wife (or someone else’s) on their back. The winning prize: a phone and their wife’s weight in beer.

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Jesse Cowley

Simply put, Jesse is pretty simple. He loves sports. He loves puns, poems, comic strips, and basically anything that simply humorous. He is the youngest in his family, and an uncle, which he thinks is the best.

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