Wife-carrying championship? Meet the world’s strangest contests
Around the world, fearless contenders step up for bragging rights in contests that test nerve, endurance and sheer absurdity. They roll, crawl and sweat their way through the world’s oddest challenges, each one stranger than the last, and that’s exactly what keeps audiences coming back. The crowds love it, not for the medals, but for the fun of watching chaos turn into tradition.
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The spirit of playful competition spans continents. In England, participants tumble after wheels of cheese, while in Finland, couples race through obstacle courses in gravity-defying style. Others take endurance to extremes, proving that pride can outlast comfort when fun is on the line.
Cheese-rolling in England
Each spring, thousands gather on Cooper’s Hill in Brockworth, England, to chase a rolling wheel of Double Gloucester cheese down one of the country’s steepest slopes. The annual cheese-rolling race sends competitors sprinting, slipping and tumbling down the 590-foot hill as the 7-pound wheel reaches speeds reportedly up to 70 miles per hour. The first person to reach the bottom wins the cheese and often a few bruises to go with it.
The event remains free to enter and open to anyone over 18 who is brave enough to stand at the top and run after the cheese. The slope’s loose rocks and nettles make it nearly impossible to stay upright, but that hasn’t stopped participants from traveling from around the world to take part. It is a mix of chaos, tradition and determination that turns a simple wheel of cheese into a symbol of British eccentricity and endurance.
The Finnish wife-carrying race
Every summer in Sonkajärvi, Finland, couples from around the world gather for one of the most unusual races in sports. The Wife-Carrying World Championship began in 1992 and challenges male competitors to carry their female partners across an 830-foot obstacle course filled with water traps, sand pits and wooden barriers. The goal is simple: cross the finish line first without dropping your partner.
The contest tests strength, balance and teamwork as pairs choose their own carrying style, from the traditional piggyback to the Estonian method, where the woman hangs upside down with her legs over the man’s shoulders. Safety rules require helmets for the wives and belts for the carriers.
The minimum weight requirement is about 108 pounds, and anyone lighter must add weight with a rucksack. Winners skip medals or cash prizes and instead take home the wife’s weight in beer, a tradition that keeps this Finnish race both demanding and entertaining.
Sauna endurance in Finland
Heinola, Finland, once hosted one of the world’s toughest endurance contests. From 1999 to 2010, the Sauna World Championships tested who could withstand extreme heat the longest inside a sauna heated to about 230 degrees Fahrenheit, with judges adding water to the stones every 30 seconds. The last competitor able to leave the sauna unaided won.
Participants had to sit upright with their thighs and buttocks on the bench; touching the skin was prohibited, and a thumbs-up check showed they were still in their senses. Any slip or attempt to cool off meant disqualification.
Separate divisions for men and women drew contestants from many countries, with Finns often dominating the field. The city discontinued the event after the 2010 finals, following the death of a Russian contender, and later announced it would no longer organize the competition.
Race through the Waen Rhydd bog
Llanwrtyd Wells in Wales hosts one of the strangest athletic contests on record each summer in the heart of the town. The World Bog Snorkelling Championships challenge nearly 200 participants to race through a 120-yard trench cut into the Waen Rhydd bog, a wetland home to frogs, newts and otters. Using snorkels and flippers, competitors must complete two laps without using traditional swimming strokes.
The event began in 1976 and became an official world championship a decade later. What started as a local stunt has grown into an international spectacle, attracting athletes and thrill-seekers from across the globe. For many, the appeal lies in the absurd mix of endurance, humor and muddy chaos that defines this one-of-a-kind competition.
The fearless ferret challenge
Ferret-legging may be one of England’s strangest endurance contests. The event, which began in Yorkshire during the 1970s, reportedly started among coal miners looking for a test of bravery and tolerance. Competitors secure the bottoms of their trousers at the ankles, drop two live ferrets inside and tighten their belts to keep the animals in place.
The rules are simple but brutal. Participants are not allowed to wear underwear, and the ferrets must have all their teeth and remain fully awake. The challenge ends only when the participant releases the animals, with the winner being the one who lasts the longest without giving up. The strange sport remains a curious relic of British eccentricity and small-town endurance.
Contest for the funniest faces
The World Gurning Championship turns funny faces into serious competition. Held each year at the Egremont Crab Fair in Cumbria, England, the event is part of one of the world’s oldest fairs, tracing its roots back to 1267. Contestants compete to make the most distorted and hilarious facial expression, known as a gurn, without using their hands or any props.
The goal is simple: whoever can twist their face into the most shocking transformation wins the world title. The centuries-old contest continues to draw big crowds and keeps this quirky English tradition alive through humor and community spirit.
Celebrate the world’s oddest wins
Across the world, unconventional contests keep tradition and humor alive in unexpected ways. From muddy trenches to rolling hills, each event turns human curiosity and competitiveness into a community celebration. What matters isn’t the victory but the willingness to join in, a reminder that fun and connection remain at the heart of even the strangest challenges.
Jennifer Allen is a retired chef turned traveler, cookbook author and nationally syndicated journalist; she’s also a co-founder of Food Drink Life, where she shares expert travel tips, cruise insights and luxury destination guides. A recognized cruise expert with a deep passion for high-end experiences and off-the-beaten-path destinations, Jennifer explores the world with curiosity, depth and a storyteller’s perspective. Her articles are regularly featured on the Associated Press Wire, The Washington Post, Seattle Times, MSN and more.