You probably think of snowboarding, skiing, figure skating, and ice hockey when you think of winter sports. However, a slew of unique activities is associated with this time of year, from a marathon near the North Pole to shovel racing. ET Magazine takes a look at a few of them:
Skijoring
The sport, pronounced ski-touring, involves a skier being pushed around hurdles and jumps by a horse with a rider, or even a pack of dogs, or a snowmobile. The races range in length from 5 to 20 kilometres. The sport is held in Norway, the United States, Canada, Germany, and Russia and is thought to have started as a form of transportation in Alaska and Scandinavia.
Swimming on the ice
The sport takes place in 5 degrees Celsius or colder seas, and it lasts up to 1.6 kilometres. It is held in the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, South Africa, Scotland, Germany, and Poland, among other countries.
Wok Racing is a racing team based in Wok.
Participants sit on round-bottomed Chinese woks instead of shovels and accelerate down bobsled tracks, similar to shovel racing. There are two types of wok racing: one-person wok racing and four-person wok racing, in which four woks are placed on a sledge. One-person races can reach 100 km/h, while four-person races can reach 120 km/h. Wok racing began in 2003 as part of a TV event in Winterberg, Germany.
Sailing on the Ice
Ice sailing or ice yachting, like skijoring, was a mode of transportation in the 17th and 18th centuries on the Gulf of Riga and the canals of the Netherlands. The sport began in the United States in the 1860s and 1970s, then migrated to Europe, where it waned in popularity after World War II but remained popular in North America.
Kayaking in the snow
Snow kayaking, sometimes known as snow boating, made its debut in Lienz, Austria, in 2002. Enthusiasts use a kayak and a paddle to descend a slope. Last year, the Winter Games Association of Jammu & Kashmir organised a 10-day workshop in Gulmarg to give Indians a taste of the sport.
Climbing on the Ice
Ice climbing, like rock climbing, is one of the most dangerous sports on the list. Ice climbing has been pushed for inclusion in the Winter Olympics by the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation.
Curling
Curling, a 400-year-old Scottish sport, has been an official Winter Olympics sport since 1998, albeit the inaugural curling event took place in the 1924 edition. Curling is a sport similar to bowling in which players must slide a round stone with a handle towards a target that resembles a bull’s-eye.