British Weird Sports

Tuesday and is open to any female competitor over 18

years old. Each competitor has to flip their pancakes twice during the race and once more on the finish line. This picture is from the mid-1950s but the race dates back to 1445. The next one will be held on February 9 2016

on the Isle of Man. Participants from all over the

world take to the water to race – with the winner being the competitor who finishes the course or covers the furthest distance without sinking. The event is organised by the Castletown Ale Drinkers’ Society, which donates all the money raised to local charities. The next one is in May 2016

from all over the world gather at the top of

Cooper's Hill in Brockworth, Gloucestershire, for the annual cheese-rolling competition. They are watched by thousands of spectators as they tumble down the 200 metre slope - which has a 1:1 gradient in parts - in hot pursuit of a Double Gloucester cheese. The winner gets to keep it. Injuries, including broken bones, are common. The next event is on May 30 2016

heritage as a centre of the wool trade with a

gruelling competition known as the Woolsack Races. The custom of racing up a steep hill carrying a heavy sack of wool dates back to the 17th century. The next event is on May 30 2016

to celebrate the best of British eccentricity and sporting ineptitude

at the Chap Olympiad. In the jousting – a traditional test of a gentleman’s mettle – horses are replaced with Boris bikes, lances with furled umbrellas and shields with briefcases. Other sports include Beach Volleybowler, the Corby Trouser Press Challenge, Breadbasketball and Aunt Avoidance. The next event will be held on July 16 2016

contestants use a variety of ingenious methods to try to

persuade worms to come out of the ground. The world record was set in 2009, when a 10-year-old girl managed to entice 567 of the wriggly creatures up from the soil. The event is in late June, with the 2016 date yet to be announced

Man vs Horse Marathon which began in June 1980 following

a conversation in the bar of the Neuadd Arms Hotel. The landlord overheard two men discussing the relative merits of men and horses running over mountainous terrain and decided to put this to the test. The next event is on June 11 2016

Derbyshire. The event dates back over 100 years when local

villages competed against each other in the summer for fun. Chickens are raced over a 15-metre track and given three minutes in each heat to cross the finish line. Fighting between hens is strictly forbidden and can result in disqualification. The races take place at the Barley Mow pub in the village on the first Saturday in August

the throwing of a large wooden pole. It is said

to have developed from the need to toss logs across narrow chasms to cross them. A caber is typically 19 feet 6 inches (5.94 m) tall and weighs 175 pounds (79 kg). This competitor is pictured at the Braemar Royal Highland Gathering, which will next be held on September 3 2016