Many of the sports that we follow and play today have developed over many decades, sometimes even centuries, into the international favourites that they are today. And while there are plenty of different sports and events to choose from for the modern sport love, there are also a few handfuls of historic sports that were not able to hold on their popularity, and ultimately faded into extinction.

Pistol Duels

Believe it or not, old fashioned pistol duels were once a popular sport that was played mostly by the rich and elite, and anyone that felt they had been scorned. In fact, it was such a beloved pastime that it was actually named as an official Olympic event for a time in the early 1900s. Needless to say, it didn’t take long for people to start questioning whether it was a good idea to allow people to bring live firearms to social gatherings, and the event was eventually scrapped not long into the new iterations of modern Olympics.

Pankration

Practised primarily by the ancient Greeks, pankration can be seen as the forefather to the MMA fighting that has gained popularity in recent years. The main difference between the two is that pankration’s fighters did not adhere to quite as many strict rules as the athletes of today, meaning that the fights could quickly turn incredibly violent, and it was not uncommon for one of the participants to die in combat. The only two rules that they were obliged to follow were: no biting, and no attacking the opponent’s eyes.

Venatio

Venatio is a term used to describe the fighting that took place between gladiators and animals. The gladiators in question were often no more than normal arena men that were forcefully pitted to fight against a wide range of different and extremely dangerous animals, from elephants to lions. While it may seem like the animals would have the upper hand, the human fighter would almost always come out successful thanks to their usage of spears and shields. Another form of venatio, however, saw criminals forced out into the arena grounds without any weaponry, where they would quickly fall prey to the aggressive animals they were faced with. A distance past from our current world of high speed internet, online casino Malaysia, and home deliveries…

Gladiator Fighting

Perhaps the most well-known type of combative fighting from history, gladiators were venerated warriors that would usually meet their demise in one of the massive Roman amphitheatres. Gladiators were large, imposing, and extremely strong warriors that would eat very well and train almost every day, as the most success they found in the arena, the better their quality of life. Gladiator fights are notoriously gory, with many of the combatants being soldiers from the many wars that Roman was involved in during its history, meaning that these were men that were not just battle hardened, but knew how to properly make use of their weaponry. Death was always inevitable, and it was very common for slaves to be forced to take part in these barbaric battles.