Humans are competitive by nature, that’s why they enjoy each activity more by making it into a competition. There are plenty of strangest competitions out there, some of which are incredibly dangerous. But, here’s a selection of top ten out of several unusual, weirdest, Bizarre and strangest competitions around the world. After reading this top list you admit that people can compete on everything. Enjoy! this list of the top ten strangest competitions.

10 Strangest Competitions You Have To See To Believe

10. The Championship of Extreme Ironing

The first Championship on extreme ironing was held in 1997 in Leicester, Great Britain. The participants of this extreme action had to iron a couple of things in the most dangerous places – on the mountain, on the ice or in the water. The winner should not only possess skills of rock-climbing or a scuba diving, but also be able to iron shirts.

9. The Championship on Crawling

1122 children took part in the first “Marathon of Toddlers” which was held in 2005 in Colombia. Children at the age from 8 till 18 months desperately crawled on a 5-metre distance. It is not surprising that not all participants reached the end of a distance. This event was arranged by the Ministry of Health to support the sport and a healthy lifestyle.

In 2008 thousand men and women there were on ankles in a mud in struggle for the main prize of the annual 10th Football Championship in the mud. This grandiose event was held in Finland, in a natural mud bog which especially for this event transformed into 22 game fields of size 60х35 meters.

Every game lasted 2 periods 25 minutes of each. In the Championship on 6 players 340 commands have taken part in everyone. Externally, the game more like a dirty carnival – sneakers and socks rewound by an adhesive tape, long dresses, white hospital gowns, supermen, tight shorts, ties, pink wigs- participants were willing to do anything to seize the main prize.

7. The Championship of Throwing Eggs

The throwing of eggs is serious sports competition which is held around the world. The championship on throwing eggs annually passes in Sutton, Great Britain, since 2006. The championship includes 4 competitive disciplines with generous cash prizes.

6. The Championship on Climbing to Palm Trees

Independence Day in Indonesia is on August, 17th. This day is celebrated by traditional folk festivals, fireworks and various competitions. Climbing palm trunk – this is the hardest competition, which is attended by a team of 4 people.

To climb on absolutely smooth, oiled trunk is an uneasy problem. Some teams form a sort of ladder, clambering on each other’s shoulders. At the top of the trunk there are prizes – from towels, clothes and other practical trifles to mountain bicycles and cash certificates. The above a trunk, the more expensively a prize – such is a principle. If any team gets to the top too fast, the organizers pour water over the participants, so that they had to prove their skills again.

5. Feet Wrestling

The first World championship on Feet wrestling was held in 1976 in one pub in Derbyshire, Great Britain. Participants converged with their big toes in a life and death! In 1997, the organizers even applied for the inclusion of the sport in the list of Olympic disciplines. However, this idea was not adopted. By the way, feet wrestling- is a pretty dangerous sport, which often results in sprained ankle and broken toes.

4. Championship on Inflating Hot Water Bottles

18-year-old Jamal Tkeshelashvili certainly was not joking if threatens to tear you, as a hot water bottle! After all he became the winner of the championship on inflating warmers in 2009. In total Jamal managed to burst 3 heaters: one for 23 seconds, the second – for 16 seconds and the third just in 13 seconds. He inflated one warmer with the person sitting on it! Thus, the young man from Georgia put a new world record on inflating warmers (13 seconds compared to the previous record 51.98 seconds).

3. The Championship on Whistle

Today for whistling at seeing a pretty girl it is possible to obtain slap in the face if only you are not in small town Irvinstown. In 2009 there also held the first championship in Ireland on “the wolf” whistle. The participant who was able to express his admiration of the fair sex by means of whistles better than others received the grand prize! By the way it was the local butcher Stephen Millar.

2. Marathon on High Heels

Strangest Competitions of Races on heels are held in many cities like Sydney, Paris, Amsterdam and even in Moscow. However residents of Milan were luckier than others, because they fought for a pair of elegant, luxury sandals from Manolo Blahnik itself!

300 participants of this competition had to cover a distance of 80 meters on the heels of not below than 7 cm and no thicker than 1.5 cm. All these sacrifices were worth the grand prize. By the way, at the end as many as three winners left the race in magnificent luxury sandals!

1. The Championship on Unemployment

Crowds of people, who lost their workplaces as a result of an economic crisis, are not going to hide in their homes and complain about their bitter fate. On March 31st, 2009 a group of unemployed people gathered in New York to take part in the so-called Olympic Games of the Unemployed. Such idea came to mind of one programmer who was recently sent resignation. 20 Olympians took part in the competition disciplines called “Accuse the Boss”, throwing the office phones, office boxing and “You are discharged”.

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From the ancient Greek Olympics to a low-key game of cards, humans by nature have always explored countless ways to test their mettle against a competitor. As modern society reinvents itself, new waves of bizarre and wacky contests continue to appear on the horizon and evolve—some of which you may be surprised to learn actually exist.

Here are 10 quirky contests that give people the chance to give in to their need to compete!

Related: 10 Extreme Sports From History

10 Mobile Phone Throwing

Forget javelin or discus—traditional field events are so outdated when it comes to the Mobile Phone Throwing World Championships. Originating in the Finnish town of Savonlinna in 2000, the inaugural event was organized by the translation company, Fennolingua. The aim was to encourage people to vent their frustrations by hurling mobile phones while also supporting a recycling drive. Luckily no prized mobiles were smashed into the turf as sponsors provided a range of recycled phones.

As the competition continued annually in Finland, launching mobiles through the air expanded into an international sport. Throwers of all ages can now be found at track and field venues throughout Europe and globally competing in national titles.

The Mobile Phone Throwing World Championships are judged on two main categories—Original/Traditional: An over-the-shoulder toss measured for distance, and Freestyle: Judged on aesthetics and artistic impression. Taco Cohen, a 19-year-old circus performer from the Netherlands, won the freestyle gold medal at the 2007 championships. His performance included both juggling and acrobatics and really wowed the judges. And the current world-record holder from Belgium threw his phone a whopping 110 meters (360 feet) at the championship held in Belgium in 2021.^[1]

9 Toilet Paper Wedding Dress Contest

It may sound like a game at a bridal shower or children’s party, but the Toilet Paper Wedding Dress Contest is a bona fide event held in New York each year. Entrants create a gown and headpiece using only toilet paper, tape, glue, and needle and thread. Images of mummy-inspired dresses may spring to mind; however, the results are actually stunning, designer-level creations. Twelve finalists are selected from photo entries, and their designs are shipped to New York City (no doubt with a large “Handle With Care” sticker). A runway show then features the finalists’ creations with a $10,000 first prize awarded to the winner.

The catwalk sights at the Toilet Paper Wedding Dress Contest include toilet-papier-mâché bodices, crocheted toilet paper, and flowers and beads molded with glue. You’re not likely to look at these crisp, fitted masterpieces and guess that they originated from the humble toilet roll.^[2]

8 Hobby Horsing

Hobby horsing has captivated a niche group of girls in Finland and is now gaining momentum in other countries. So what happens at the annual Finnish Hobby Horse Championships? Just imagine equestrian events but using a stick-handled hobby horse instead of a real horse (the type that appeared in Enid Blyton novels or on the children’s show Romper Room). Today’s versions used by hobby horsers are upgraded models with soft material heads.

Enthusiasts are generally pre-teen and early-teen girls who do not view Hobby Horsing as a cutesy pastime but as a genuine sport. The equestrian event sees girls riding their hobby horse through a course, leaping over hurdles, and taking on a canter-type gait. For competitors in the dressage ring, it is about elegant prancing movements to music while keeping the upper body still.

There is a sense of community among hobby horse devotees, incorporating a range of students, coaches, judges, and local competitions. The origins of hobby horse events are somewhat mysterious as Finnish teenagers created the movement privately. However, online message boards discovered by filmmaker Selma Vilhunen in 2012 were the catalyst for her 2017 documentary The Hobby Horse Revolution.^[3]

7 High Heel Drag Queen Race

It is admirable that drag queens can navigate stages in their lofty heels, let alone take on a three-block running race. Yet that is what happens every year at the 17th Street High Heel Race in Washington DC, an event that prides itself on celebrating LGBTQI diversity and freedom. The pre-Halloween race sees entrants lining up in high heels and vibrant drag costumes in front of huge crowds. Apart from a handful of hardcore runners who have been training in heels, most seem happy with a jovial clomp down the street.

Today the race has evolved from random fun between friends in the 1980s to being organized by the Mayor’s Office in Washington DC. It has also inspired high heel racing for a cause in other parts of the world. Hopefully, there are always a few first aiders on hand to help with any sudden free falls and sprained ankles.^[4]

6 Ugliest Dog Contest

Thankfully, the prized pooches have no idea about the title of this contest and can scamper away with their heads held high. The World’s Ugliest Dog Contest has been held annually at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, California, since the 1970s. It aims to promote rescue, love, and adoption for all dogs—no matter how they look.

The idea was the brainchild of Petaluma local Ross Smith, who initially created the contest as a small-town event for children. He had no idea the competition would reach the heights it later achieved, with global media attention for the unique collection of prize winners.

Two recent victors rose from rescue dogs to take home the coveted title: Zsa Zsa, a gnarly-toothed English Bulldog with a tongue almost reaching the ground; and Scamp the Tramp, a dreadlocked, bug-eyed pooch whose coat cannot be tamed by any pet products. These much-loved dogs went from being homeless to heading on a trip to New York for media appearances.^[5]

5 Air Guitar Playing

It would be fair to assume that an actual guitar is required for a guitar-playing contest, but not when it comes to the flamboyant Air Guitar Championships. “Airheads” (as they are affectionately known) strut on stages across the world pretending to play guitars before hundreds of people—only these are guitars of the invisible kind. Audiences delight in the spectacle of rock and heavy metal music, flashy costumes, and boldly performed riffs and stage moves.

The holy grail of air playing is the Air Guitar World Championships held in Oulu, Finland (I see a pattern emerging here!) each August. Here, winners of national competitions bring their performance and attitude to the world stage. Another chance to secure a place is through the “Dark Horses Qualifying Round,” a wildcard event held the night before the final. The championship comprises two rounds: A chosen song performed for 60 seconds and a surprise song performed for 60 seconds. Props can be used, providing they are not instruments, with “air roadies”‘ allowed—but no backup bands. Ironically, the air player who wins the title takes home a custom-made, hand-carved guitar.

While the concept of air guitar playing is not new (Joe Cocker famously air-riffed at Woodstock in 1969), it gained momentum in casual settings throughout the seventies and eighties. The first Air Guitar World Championships were held in 1996 as part of the Oulu Music Video Festival and have been going strong ever since. Conceived by Finnish musician Jukka Takalo, the event promotes world peace and equality, using the slogan “Make Air Not War.”^[6]

4 Bed Racing

It turns out that beds are not just for sleeping but also for country racing. Each June, the Yorkshire town of Knaresborough, UK, hosts the Great Knaresborough Bed Race. After a parade featuring decorated beds and runners (with a different theme each year), it is time to remove all bed decorations and get racing. Ninety teams of six runners scale grassy inclines and village streets while guiding a passenger on a bed with wheels. The passenger wears a helmet and calls out directions and encouragement to the runners like a coxswain in a rowing race. The competitors weave and wind around scenic Knaresborough before the whole team swims the bed across the icy River Nidd to the finish line.

Before you imagine a massive bed in any of these scenarios, all racing beds are built and engineered by teams (and their consultants) to fit specific measurements and wheel sizes. Many handymen in the region get involved in the bed designs, while dressmakers work on costumes for the teams. Since 1966, the lively race has been following the same 3.8-kilometer (2.4-mile) course and raising funds for charity. The event was originally run by the Knaresborough Round Table, with the baton passed to the Knaresborough Lions Club in the 1990s.

Rain, hail, or shine, bed racing enthusiasts turn out each year for this challenging but fun-loving event. The race has never been called off despite the unpredictable Yorkshire weather. However, in 1972 and 1998, the river crossing had to be abandoned due to torrential rain flooding the River Nidd.^[7]

3 Chess Boxing

Who would have thought the words chess and boxing would ever appear together? Chess Boxing, however, is the ultimate paradox in modern sport. Competitors alternate between rounds of chess and boxing, with each round lasting three minutes. After each chess round, the noise-canceling headphones come off, and the gloves go on as the table is wheeled out of the ring. Winning can be achieved by checkmate, knockout, or points scored, with no time for stalling shenanigans in the rapid chess rounds. Being skilled at both disciplines is obviously mandatory—a boxer unable to mastermind moves with rooks, bishops, and the like or a chess player with no jabbing expertise is just not going to cut it. I wonder if there are two trainers in each Chess Boxer’s corner: a sparring coach chewing gum with a towel around his neck and a shrewd, ex-chess champion scanning the board proceedings.

Chess Boxing initially emerged in the early 2000s as performance art. Dutch performance artist, Iepe Rubingh, adapted the idea from the work of French comic book writer Enki Bilal. In 1992, Bilal published The Nikopol Trilogy, which featured a fantasy Chess Boxing Championship. A decade later, Rubingh pioneered the transformation from art to sport.

The Chess Boxing World Championships were first held in Amsterdam in 2003 and have since been hosted annually in various countries. There are also many national championship competitions throughout the world. In mid-2020 (at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic), London Chessboxing streamed the first-ever pay-per-view Chess Boxing event to a global audience.^[8]

2 Santa Claus Championships

The novel Santa Claus World Championships (also known as Clau Wau) are held at the Samnaun Ski Resort in Switzerland each November to mark the beginning of ski season. Since 2001, teams of dressed-up Santas have hit the slopes to compete in a two-day round-robin of festive-inspired events.

One of the most difficult challenges, as agreed upon by Santa enthusiasts, is the chimney climbing event. Entrants scale a towering brick structure with a present in hand to be delivered down the chimney when they reach the roof. The adventurous Santas are also kept busy with sleigh driving, a snowmobile rally, gingerbread decorating, and a mechanical reindeer rodeo.^[9]

1 Extreme Ironing

When thinking about adventure, the mundane task of ironing does not spring to mind. Unless, of course, you are an “Extreme Ironer”—someone who packs up their ironing board and sets off to remote locations to…well, iron clothes. The sky is literally the limit for “ironists” (as they are referred to), some of whom have extreme-ironed on the edge of mountains, sky-diving from planes, and turning up on all matter of buildings and landmarks. Not to be outdone by the sky ironists, others have taken to the water to iron while water skiing, canoeing, or scuba diving.

Extreme ironing made its humble beginnings in a back garden in Leicester, UK, in the late 1990s. Creator Phil Shaw decided to start ironing in his yard one day to relieve the monotony, explaining to his confused housemate that he was “extreme ironing.” Before long, Phil (using the nickname “Steam”) and his housemate Paul (using the moniker “Spray”) became pioneers of extreme ironing adventures while convincing friends to join them.

In 1999, Steam embarked on a successful international tour to promote extreme ironing, and in 2002, the first Extreme Ironing World Championships were held in Munich, Germany.

Thrill-seeking ironists have been pushing the boundaries worldwide ever since, both as solo competitors and in team events. The Guinness World Record for “The Most People Extreme Ironing Underwater” was set in March 2011 by the De Waterman Diving Club in the Netherlands, with 173 people ironing underwater for 10 minutes.^[10]

Athletes don’t get banned for no reason. The common denominator for all bans is cheating. For various reasons, some athletes cheat and, by doing so, ensure that the competition is skewed in their favor. This insults clean athletes who have spent years dedicating themselves to their chosen sport only to find that the playing field isn’t level.

Some athletes cheat for glory and some for money, but you have to wonder how they could feel satisfied when they know they “competed” unfairly.

There are few, if any, sports free from cheats who often use sophisticated methods to get around the rules. The authorities have to be equally sophisticated. So let’s look at ten athletes who were banned from competition.

10 Fred Lorz

Fred Lorz won the marathon at the 1904 Olympic Games held in St Louis, Missouri. Or so people briefly thought. He started the race with the best intentions but pulled up after nine miles because he was exhausted. His manager picked him up in his car and drove him the next 11 miles. In 1904, cars weren’t particularly fast, but Lorz’s vehicle was fast enough to outstrip the rest of the field. He managed to finish the marathon under his own power and, not surprisingly, broke the finishing tape ahead of the competition.

The race attracted many spectators, and many saw Lorz and his manager driving by. The witnesses were quick to tell officials who confronted Lorz with the truth. He admitted the deception but claimed that it was a practical joke.

Not impressed, the officials awarded the race to the runner-up, Thomas Hicks. Hicks’s trainers had dosed him twice with strychnine to control muscle contractions during the race and had carried him part of the way—so he wasn’t a worthy winner either. In fact, Hicks was too weak to collect his medal and never competed again.

9 Ben Johnson

The rivalry between the American sprinter Carl Lewis and the Canadian Ben Johnson was one of the fiercest in athletics. Before 1985, Lewis was undoubtedly the world’s best 100-meter sprinter, but that year, Johnson beat him after losing their eight previous meetings.

In 1987, at the World Championships in Rome, Johnson beat Lewis again to become the world-record holder, setting the best time ever. Lewis hinted that certain gold-medal winners were taking performance-enhancing drugs.

At a pre-Olympic meeting in Switzerland, Lewis won with Johnson in the third position. Lewis claimed nothing could stop him from winning gold at that year’s Olympics in Seoul. He didn’t win; Johnson did, even bettering his own world record.

A subsequent urine test revealed that Johnson had taken an anabolic steroid called stanozolol. Johnson and his trainer claimed that they had to use drugs because everyone else did. It finally came out that Johnson had used steroids since 1981. He received a ban for his trouble.

8 Marion Jones

Marion Jones’s career in athletics was always tainted by accusations that she used performance enhancers right from the beginning. Perhaps this was not entirely her fault. From a very young age, her trainers pushed drugs at her.

In the early 1990s, the teenage Jones was banned for four years for missing a drug test. She claimed that she had never received the test notification, and the authorities lifted the ban.

In 2006, a urine sample tested positive for the performance-enhancer Erythropoietin, but as a second test showed a negative result, there was no further action.

In 2007, Jones admitted to taking steroids and, as she had lied to federal authorities, a court sentenced her to six months in jail. The athletic authorities deleted all her records, and she received a suspension.

7 Sinning Soccer Player

Sports betting is an enormous industry, and many of us wager a few dollars, test our knowledge, or try our luck. Nowadays, sophisticated controls monitor betting activity to try and discover suspicious results or trends. Back in the 1960s, things weren’t so advanced.

Jimmy Gauld had spent most of his soccer career playing in the English leagues for lower-tier clubs. Although he never made the big time, he knew many people and decided he could make quite a bit of money by fixing matches. But he would need inside help.

At a former club, Gauld had gotten to know David Layne, who was now playing for Sheffield Wednesday. Gauld asked Layne to choose a match they could bet on and ensure the outcome. Layne roped two other players—Peter Swan and Tony Kay—into the deal. The syndicate picked a match that Wednesday would lose 2-0, with the three players ensuring the result. It wouldn’t be an unusual score, so it wouldn’t attract attention. But also, as the score was reasonable, the winnings were not very large.

Ironically, the result was 2-0, but the other team won the game fair and square. The Sheffield Wednesday players didn’t have to do anything untoward.

Gauld extended his activities to other teams, involving other players, but his activities quickly came to light. He sold his story to a Sunday newspaper and named the three Sheffield Wednesday players involved in fixing one match. All the players involved received jail sentences and a ban from professional soccer.

6 Rob Sloan

Known as Britain’s most beautiful marathon, The Kielder race attracts athletes from all over the world. A good finishing position or time is a badge of honor.

It wasn’t surprising then that in 2011, Steve Cairns was happy to be placed third as the runners were well into the second half of the race. Cairns knew he wouldn’t be able to catch up with the two runners in front of him, but he had opened quite a gap between himself and the pack behind him. He was running comfortably and confident that he could keep going and clinch an honorable third place.

The race seemed to play out as Cairns expected. The front runners placed first and second, and Cairns crossed the line in third place. Imagine his surprise when the marshals announced his fourth place position. Cairns asked who had come in third, and the marshals (who could only see the last section of the course) pointed at Rob Sloan. Cairns knew him as the winner of a 10k race the previous day and asked when he had overtaken him.

In fact, no runners could remember Sloan, and there were no photos that showed him running. Sloan didn’t collect his medal and never appeared at an event again—not that he would be allowed to.

5 Boris Onishchenko

Boris Onishchenko, a member of the Soviet team, had taken part in the 1968 and 1972 Summer Olympics. It was now 1976, and Onishchenko was on the team again.

Britain was in the gold medal position in the pentathlon after the first event. The second event was fencing, and Britain and the Soviet Union faced each other in what was sure to be a closely fought event.

In fencing, sensors in the weapon (an épée) depress when the fencer hits its target. The target then registers a strike and, therefore, a point. The British team complained that Onishchenko was scoring points without hitting anything. A close examination of the fencer’s épée showed that it had a trigger that Onishchenko could press to register a hit.

The authorities banned him for life, the Soviet Communist Party expelled him, and he got a personal reprimand from the Soviet leader.

4 Ekaterini Thanou

The Summer Olympics in 2004 took place in Athens, and the Greeks had a strong contender for a medal in the 100 meters in Ekaterini Thanou. There was intense competition, but with the home crowd urging her on, Thanou had a very good chance of winning.

The day before the opening ceremony, the authorities summoned Thanou and her training partner to take a routine drug test. They didn’t turn up. Instead, they booked themselves into a hospital and claimed they had had a motorcycle accident. The pair immediately came under suspicion because this was their third violation that summer. Thanou withdrew from the games. A Greek commission quickly concluded that no accident had occurred, and the pair had staged the whole thing as an excuse.

Thanou was suspended from athletics. When she returned to competition in 2006, she never regained a competitive level, and crowds booed her when she appeared.

3 Petr Korda

Korda was a very good tennis player. He reached the world rank of number 2 in February 1998 and was one of the favorites for that year’s Wimbledon tournament. Although he was only 30, Korda had announced that he would retire. He had won the Australian Open in 1998; perhaps he wanted to add a Wimbledon title before he stepped away from tennis.

Whatever his reasons, Korda tested positive for the steroid nandrolone after his quarter-final match. A long process of appeals ran its course, and the International Tennis Federation banned him for 12 months in September 1999. He did compete in more tournaments in his native Czechoslovakia after his ban ended, but his career at the top was over.

2 Luis Suarez

Luis Suarez is one of the world’s top soccer stars. A truly gifted player, he started his career in his native Uruguay with local side Nacional. He soon moved to Europe, where he played for some of the best clubs in Holland, England, and Spain. He moved from the Dutch side Ajax to Liverpool, then on to Barcelona, before moving to Atlético Madrid. He is now finishing his professional life back at Nacional. Certainly a star, but a controversial one.

A Dutch newspaper called Suarez the “Cannibal of Ajax” after his club suspended him for biting an opponent. Once at Liverpool, Suarez earned a ban for racially abusing a Manchester United player. Then, in 2013, he returned to putting teeth into his game. He bit a Chelsea player and received a 10-game ban for his trouble.

When he moved to Barcelona, he couldn’t start the 2014 season with them because he was serving another ban—this time for biting an Italian player at that year’s World Cup.

Suarez showed good taste but should never have been allowed to continue playing.

1 Dennis Mitchell

Dennis Mitchell, a track and field athlete, had a successful relay and sprinting career. But, in 1998, he ran into trouble. The International Association of Athletics Federations handed him a two-year ban after a test showed a high testosterone level in his sample. His explanation didn’t cut much ice with the board.

Mitchell claimed that his wife’s birthday had fallen just before the test. To celebrate, he had drunk five beers and made love to her five times; it was not, he said, surprising that the test showed too much testosterone. It’s perhaps surprising that he could walk, let alone run.