Chess Boxing combines brain with brawn like no other sport. Players alternate rounds of playing chess and boxing. Each contest consists of 11 rounds: 6 rounds of chess, 5 of boxing. A contest can be decided by checkmate, exceeding the chess time limit, a player giving up, knock out, or referee's decision.
The current Chess Boxing World Champion is "Anti Terror" Frank Stoldt from Germany. He beat American David "Double D" Depto in a seventh round checkmate.
9. Bog Snorkelling Championship
The Bog Snorkelling Championship is an annual event that has taken place in a Welsh peat bog since 1985. Contestants don snorkels and flippers before entering the bog and completing two consecutive 60 yard swims without using conventional swimming strokes. There are men's, women's, and junior's divisions. The current world record holder is Joanne Pitchforth who completed the course in 1 minute and 35 seconds.
The popularity of the Bog Snorkelling Championships has inspired the creation of Mountain Bike Bog Snorkelling and the Bog Snorkelling Triathlon.
8. World Beard and Mustache Championships
Competitors in the biannual World Beard and Mustache Championships can enter their facial hair to compete in 17 different categories. Organizers state that the objective of the competition is to "encourage and celebrate standards of excellence in the growth, design and presentation of facial hair." The competition is dominated by the Germans with the U.S. and the U.K. taking home the second and third most victories, respectively.
Categories include Dali (for Salvador Dali-esque mustaches), Natural Goatee, Sideburns Freestyle, Musketeer, and Chinese.
7. Air Guitar World Championship
Held annually in Finland since 1996, the Air Guitar World Championship's stated ideology is that "wars would end and all the bad things would go away if everyone just played air guitar." Competitors play air guitar on stage in two 1 minute rounds. For the first round, the participant may choose their own song. In the second round, each competitor must play a song chosen by the organizers. This song is usually kept top secret until the round begins, forcing participants to improvise. Judges score each round using a 4.0-6.0 score system for each of the criteria, which usually include technical merit, stage presence, and "airness." Airness is very subjective and is a reflection of how artistic and entertaining the performance was.
The two-time defending champion is Ochi "Dainoji" Yosuke from Japan. While competing, he wears a white sweater with the face of a tiger imprinted on the front.
6. Rock-Paper-Scissors International World Championship
Your favorite childhood game is also a competitive sport that culminates in an annual International World Championship. Competitors face off against each other in a best of three throws match. Play continues this way until the semi-finals and finals, where players play a best of five series of best of three throws.
Competitors claim that there is a lot of skill involved in playing rock-paper-scissors. Some players have tells that hint at what they are about to throw. Others may move their fingers slightly in preparation for their upcoming throw. Guessing what your opponent is going to throw or fooling them into incorrectly guessing what you are about to throw can make competitive rock-papers-scissors mentally intense.
5. Redneck Games
The Redneck Games are held annually in East Dublin, Georgia. They started as a response to comments that the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta would be hosted by a bunch of rednecks. The games consist of about a dozen different contests including seed spitting, the mud pit belly flop, the armpit serenade, and toilet seat throwing.
The Redneck Games now attract about 10,000 people each year. Only a lucky few go home with a trophy, which is a crushed and mounted Bud Light can.
4. Pig-Squealing Championship
You might expect this championship to be held in the deep south, but it's actually an annual event based in France. Contestants dress up as pigs and compete to try and imitate the grunts and oinks of the four defining stages of a pig's life: birth, suckling, mating, and slaughter. The winner receives a butchered and cured pig.
3. Nude Ant Hill Sitting Competition
Details are sketchy, but our research leads us to conclude that there are several nude ant hill sitting competitions. Most of these can be found in Finland. The rules are simple: the person who can sit naked on an ant hill for the longest wins.
2. Wife Carrying World Championship
The annual Wife Carrying World Championship in Sonkajärvi, Finland has gotten a lot of press coverage as of late. The 13 year old event consists of male contestants trying to carry their female partners through an obstacle course in as short amount of time as possible. If the female partner is dropped, a 15 second penalty is assessed. Several carrying strategies can be used, including piggyback and fireman's carry. A strategy called Estonian style consists of having the female partner hang upside down off the male's shoulders, facing his buttocks. Presumably this strategy has become more and more popular due to the domination of the event by Estonian contestants.
Prizes are also rewarded for the most entertaining couple, the strongest carrier, and the best costume.
1. Kudu Dung Spitting World Championship
London recently held a Kudu Dung Spitting World Championship. For those less worldly among us, a Kudu is a type of African antelope. Whichever contestant spits a piece of dung the farthest is declared the champion. The distance is measured from the spitter to where the dung comes to rest, not where it lands. The world record is believed to be 15.56 meters.
It is not uncommon for dung spitting contests to be held in parts of Africa. If you go on a safari, your guide might even challenge you to a dung spitting competition.
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