12 SCORE BOARD
2012
www.airasia.com/travel3sixty
ODE TO ODD BALLS
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You have been regaled with bits and bytes from the big games in sports. Now, read all about the strange games that also fall under the same category as sporting events.
SERIOUSLY... THESE ARE SPORTS TOO!
You may not take these events seriously but don’t ever mention that to the participants of these championships!
Retro running
Finger wrestling
RETRO RUNNING It’s all about running... backwards. You may argue that our bodies are not programmed to move backwards, let alone run backwards, but it’s apparently very beneficial. Ancient Chinese have prescribed walking and running backwards as a means to stay in shape and lessen injuries for years. It was only picked up as a sporting event in America in the 20th century. There are various Retro or Backward Running events happening yearly worldwide. www.reverserunning.com FINGER WRESTLING History has it that Finger Wrestling, or fingerhakeln, was how Bavarian men settled disputes in the 17th century, where the two men would hook their middle fingers into a loop of a strong string, and tug as hard as they can. Whoever pulls the other to his side, wins. It remains a celebrated annual championship in the German region, although it never caught on in the outside world. Every year, over 150 strong men make their way to Schnaitsee, Chiemgau, in the heart of Bavaria for the chance of putting their middle finger to the test. www.thelocal.de URBAN GOLF Take a swing in the streets
Urban golf
for a change! This is Urban Golf, where the greens is the actual city landscape, the course hazards are street fittings, drains, potholes and lampposts. The first Urban Golf championship was organised by the Shoreditch Golf Club where the streets of London served as an 18 hole, par-72 open tournament landscape in 2004. The golf clubs used in Urban Golf is very much the same, but with specially designed balls. www.urban-golf.com
million USD is the largest payout made in one particular sport; the amount given out at the UEFA European Football Championship 2012. The breakdowns of the payout included a staggering USD5.625 million awarded should the team lose in the finals. Source: www.forbes.com
87,711 is the maximum seating capacity of the National Stadium Bukit Jalil in Malaysia, making it the largest stadium in Southeast Asia, the 25th largest in the world, and the 9th largest football stadium in the world. Source: visual.ly
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percent of respondents from an online survey felt that Freestyle Motorcross athletes are the toughest of all action sports athletes, compared to 26.1% for skateboarding, 18% for snowboarding, 11.8% for BMX, 7.7% for surfing and, only 4.4% for freeskiing. Source: www.krush. com/blog
WORDS: EFI HAFIZAH HAMZAH
SPORTS FLASH
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Part-time model Tihana Nemcic was appointed to coach Croatia’s men’s football team in October 2012. The gorgeous 24-year-old finalist at the Miss Croatia Sport competition in 2008 insists that her appointment is not a publicity stunt.
TRAVEL 3SIXTY˚
Former world champion boxer, Amir Khan, and his brother fought off six gang members attempting to carjack his Range Rover in the wee hours of the morning in Birmingham, England, The robbers learnt the hard way to not mess with the champ’s wheels.
21-year-old Sri Lankan, Abdul Karim, was fined Sri Lankan Rupees 1,000 (approximately USD7.50) and handed a one-month suspended jail term for breaking and entering and, offering sex to Australian cricketers in their hotel rooms during the World Twenty20 tournament in Sri Lanka.
Australia’s Red Bull race car driver, Mark Webber, was given a private dance lesson by Korean pop sensation PSY to his hit tune, Super Gangnam Style, while attending the Korean Formula One Grand Prix. Source: www.foxsports.com.au Sept and Oct 2012