The Olympic programme has always changed. Surfing, skateboarding and sport climbing debuted at Tokyo 2020, while breaking joined at Paris 2024.
But those sports look fairly conventional compared with some of the events contested during the early years of the modern Olympics.
There was once Olympic underwater swimming. Horses competed in a long jump. Motorboats raced for medals. Tug of war was an official event.
And then there was live pigeon shooting.
Underwater Swimming
At Paris 1900, swimmers competed to see how far they could travel underwater.
Frenchman Charles de Vendeville won after covering 60 metres beneath the surface.
Competitors earned points based on both distance and time underwater, which made it very different from modern swimming events.
It never appeared at the Olympics again.
Horse Long Jump
Paris 1900 also featured an equestrian long jump.
Belgium’s Constant van Langhendonck won the competition riding Extra-Dry. A horse high jump was held as well.
Neither event survived.
Modern Olympic equestrian sport eventually settled around jumping, dressage and eventing, but for a brief period apparently simply seeing how far a horse could jump seemed sufficient.
Live Pigeon Shooting
This is probably the most uncomfortable event on the list.
At Paris 1900, competitors shot at live pigeons rather than clay targets. Hundreds of birds were reportedly killed during the competition.
The event was never repeated.
The 1900 Games were unusually chaotic, and historians still debate the exact Olympic status of some competitions held alongside the Paris Exposition. Even so, live pigeon shooting remains one of the strangest events associated with Olympic history.
Motorboat Racing
Motorboating appeared at the London Olympics in 1908.
The races were badly affected by weather, and only one boat finished in each event.
That was the beginning and end of Olympic motorboat racing.
Given that the Olympics largely revolve around human athletic performance, a sport heavily dependent on machinery was probably never going to become a permanent fixture.
Tug of War
Tug of war sounds more like a school sports day event, but it was part of the Olympics for several editions.
Teams competed by trying to pull their opponents across a line, essentially using the same rules most people would recognise today.
It survived until the 1920 Olympics before disappearing from the programme.
Compared with horse long jump and underwater swimming, it almost seems normal.
Plunge for Distance
Plunge for distance appeared at St. Louis 1904.
Competitors dived into the water and then tried to travel as far as possible without taking another stroke.
In other words, it was a swimming event where the aim was not to swim.
Unsurprisingly, it did not become a long-term Olympic discipline.
Rope Climbing
Rope climbing was once part of Olympic gymnastics.
Athletes climbed vertically suspended ropes, with competitions judged by speed or the height reached.
It appeared at several early Games before disappearing as gymnastics became more standardized around the apparatus we know today.
Anyone who had rope climbing in school PE may have more respect for this one than most.
Obstacle Swimming
Paris 1900 also included a 200-metre obstacle swimming race in the River Seine.
Swimmers had to climb over and swim underneath obstacles during the race rather than simply racing through open water.
It sounds surprisingly modern when compared with today’s popularity of obstacle races and adventure sports.
But Olympic obstacle swimming lasted only one Games.
Why Were Early Olympic Sports So Strange?
The modern Olympics were still developing their identity.
The first Games were held in Athens in 1896, and there was much less consistency around which sports and events belonged on the programme.
Paris 1900 was particularly experimental, with competitions taking place over several months alongside the Exposition Universelle.
Some ideas became permanent Olympic sports.
Others gave us horse long jump.
The Olympics Are Still Changing
New sports continue to arrive.
Skateboarding, surfing and sport climbing joined the Olympic programme at Tokyo 2020, while breaking debuted at Paris 2024.
Los Angeles 2028 will introduce flag football and squash, while cricket and lacrosse return after very long absences.
So an Olympic sport does not necessarily stay forever.
Sports can appear, disappear and occasionally come back decades later.
Still, it is difficult to imagine underwater swimming or horse long jump making a comeback anytime soon.
And that is probably for the best.
