1. Breakdancing
Known as 'Breaking', this combination of sport and art is one of the newest events to enter into the 2024 Paris Olympic games. The athletes follow an intricate routine consisting of ‘Top Rock’, ‘Down Rock’ and ‘Freeze’ moves.
Known as ‘Breakers’, the athletes compete against each other head-to-head in these categories, all with a live DJ playing. The energy is electric. The performances? Even more so.
2. Skateboarding
Inspiring a new wave of fashion and culture in the late 20th century, Skateboarding is another new entry. Skateboarding first made its debut in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
The competitors must face two tests of skill: ‘Park’ and ‘street'. 'Park’ aims at tricks and technical prowess, versus ‘Street’ places athletes into a typical urban environment filled with obstacles. This niche sport is filled with twists and turns!
The youngest athlete this year, China’s Zheng Haohao competed at eleven years old!
3. Dressage
Dressage first began as an ancient battle tactic of training horses, but since the 19th century, this has become a mainstream sport. The performance combines dance with horse riding. Dressage has existed for centuries, but many new fans are baffled by this 'weird sport'.
Even Rapper Snoop Dogg became obsessed with the 'dancing horses'. This year, he shocked fans and attended the 2024 Olympics wearing full dressage attire. Dressage is a deceptively complex sport. One of the most famous moves involves the horse performing a 'canter pirouette', which involves spinning on the spot like a ballet dancer.
This year, Australia's Mary Hanna was the oldest Olympic athlete to take part, at sixty nine years old.
4. BMX Freestyle
Similar to Skateboarding, competitors in BMX freestyle must complete an obstacle course showcasing various different tricks. Based on a set of complex rules, these moves are scored between 0.99 and 99.99.
µþ°ù¾±³Ù²¹¾±²Ô’s&²Ô²ú²õ±è;Charlotte Worthington became the first woman to win gold in BMX freestyle, during the 2020 Olympics.
5. Water Polo
This intense and demanding game, added to the Olympics in 1900 combines swimming ability with precise coordination. The sport involves racing for the ball and scoring goals much like a football match.
However, unlike a football match, these athletes face the challenge of moving through and treading water – an exhausting process.
Water polo is the fifth most popular Olympic sport within the united states - who took home the bronze medal this year.
6. Modern Pentathlon
Modern Pentathlon joined the Olympics in 1912. The primary goal of the Pentathlon is to identify a ‘complete’ athlete, with five sports making up this event. These are: showjumping, fencing, swimming and a combination of running and shooting known as a 'laser run'.
To be successful in this sport, one must harness incredible athleticism but also adapt to different challenges. This leads to many memorable moments of sportsmanship and sometimes, even catastrophic failures.
7. Surfing
When you think of surfing, you think, 'sea, sun and sand'. Lounging by the waves, a seagull cawing in your ear, somewhere in a tropical paradise...it is paradise. But for the 2024 Olympic games, how could this happen in the bustling metropolis of Paris?
It didn't. This year, the Olympics revealed Tahiti as the location for Olympic surfing. The competition was fierce and the waves were humongous (up to twenty feet high)!
Not only was the atmosphere beautiful, but this was also the furthest an Olympic event has been held from its host city. The competitors had to travel over ten thousand miles from Paris to reach their destination!
Here at the WEA, we are passionate about self-improvement, and fitness is one of the best ways to enhance your life.
Through this list, it's important to remind yourself that no sport is too weird, and any path to fitness is possible. Perhaps for the 2028 Olympics, there will even be a Lightsabre Duelling event!
Make a step towards your fitness, health and wellbeing goals and dive in to some of the exercises we have on offer! Sports are great for physical and mental health. From seated yoga to dance classes, we have a huge variety of health and wellness courses for you. Who knows where it could take you?
