Lauren
In between rounds of archery, don’t make your way toward the venue’s bar or you may find yourself with more than a light buzz. The World Archery Executive Board has banned the use of alcohol at archery competitions, treating alcohol use with the same penalties that apply to other banned substances under the World Anti-Doping Code.
While it’s a no-brainer that being drunk and shooting arrows is not the safest combination, regulations ban any amount of alcohol during a competition, and archers can be subject to testing.
Why does the World Archery Executive Board treat in-competition alcohol use like doping?
Because it is!
Alcohol can steady an archer’s hand, giving them an unfair edge during a competition, making it a performance-enhancing drug for the sport. So while this rule might seem strange, it actually makes perfect sense.
Archery is not the only sport that has some interesting rules. Here are a few other sports that have rules that might seem a bit strange:
Basketball: Shattering the glass of a backboard
Crazy dunks are a fun way to rev up the crowd and even shift the momentum of a basketball game; however, sometimes dunking a ball can actually cost the scorer’s team some points. This is thanks to the NBA’s backboard shattering rule, which states that shattering a backboard will result in a technical foul.
This rule might seem crazy, but it was deemed necessary after NBA legend Shaquille (Shaq) O’Neal’s rookie season in 1992. During this season, Shaq destroyed two backboards, leading the NBA to add additional supports in order to protect the players.
With these extra supports in place, anyone who could possibly shatter a backboard during a game would have to be doing so intentionally, earning them a technical foul.
Golf: Forgetting to sign your scorecard
Although there are plenty of actions that can get golfers in hot water during a golf tournament, one of the easiest ways to get disqualified is actually by not doing something: signing a scorecard.
That’s right. If you are a golfer, and you forget to sign your scorecard before turning it in, you may just be disqualified from the tournament under rule 6-6b. While this rule might seem harsh, and it has cost players dearly during tournaments, it is actually an important rule.
Golf heavily relies on accurate score reporting. When the marker and the golfer record scores throughout the tournament, signatures verify that both parties have double-checked to make sure the score marked for each hole is correct, and they make it clear that a golfer is not choosing to withdraw from the tournament.
Tennis: Dropping your hat
While many people know that a tennis player can lose a point if their hat touches the net during a match, a lesser-known rule is that if a player’s hat falls off, their opponent can immediately call a let and request to restart a point.
This rule was instated because a falling hat can be distracting, and it can cause a hindrance to the game. While this rule makes sense, it can make a significant difference during a match. Take it from Andy Murray, who had to replay a point after his hat fell on the ground during the 2012 US Open.
The next time you gear up to play tennis, make sure your hat is secure on your head!
From Olympic race-walking, which requires competitors to keep one foot on the ground at all times, to polo, which requires all players to use their right hand to play with the mallet, there are many crazy sports rules out there.
Before you play another sport, make sure you are up-to-date on all of its rules, no matter how strange.
