9 Sports that are no Longer in the Olympics
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Distance Plunging
- The event required athletes to dive into the pool and coast underwater without moving their limbs. After 60 seconds had passed – or competitors had floated to the surface, whichever came first – referees measured the distance the athletes had drifted.
- The gold medal winner was U.S. athlete William Dickey, although, it should be noted, only Americans competed in the event.
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Live Pigeon Shooting
- While competitors typically shot at disc-shaped targets called clay pigeons, the 1900 Games in Paris went with livelier targets – real pigeons
- Reportedly more than 300 birds were killed in the event.
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Rope Climb
- While competitors were originally judged on both speed and style, Olympian rope climbers competing in the 20th century merely had to race to the top.
- Arguably the most impressive win in the history of the event – which was taken off the program after the Los Angeles Olympics of 1932 – took place in St. Louis 1904, when U.S. gymnast George Eyser won gold despite having a wooden leg.
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Roque
- While croquet was given the heave-ho after the Paris Games in 1900, its American cousin "roque" found its way onto the 1904 Olympic roster in St. Louis. And this time around it was the Americans who were the only entrants, which is hardly surprising, as the game wasn't well known outside the host nation.
- The game helped pad the U.S.'s medal count but, in the end, roque followed in the footsteps of croquet and was dropped before the London Games in 1908.
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Dueling Pistols
- The Wild West may have made the confrontations famous, but pistol dueling made an appearance at the Olympics, during the unofficial 1906 Intercalated Games held in Athens. Confusingly, the event consisted of no actual dueling as individuals merely shot at plaster dummies dressed in frock coats from a distance of 20 or 30 meters.
- It may sound bizarre, but an Australian poll held before Sydney 2000 found that 32% wanted to see the sport revived at the Summer Games.