Sport

Tug of War: Is this the military's oldest sport, still thriving more than a century after WW1?

Is Tug of War the military's oldest sport?

We know it's been around since the First and Second World Wars, but how old is Tug of War, and why does the military compete in it?

Squadron Leader Gareth Davies, who is a competitor and coach in RAF Tug of War, said: "The history of tug of war goes way, way back.

"In defence, it's quite difficult to track its conception," he added.

Tug of War was played right back in the First World War and is still played among the services today.

Marine Kai Lish, from the Commando Helicopter Force (CHF), is based at RNAS Yeovilton and competes for the Navy team.

"The sport itself is one of those hidden gems where everyone just overlooks it until you actually do it, and then people start to enjoy it," he said.

24072025 Navy tug of war team at RAF Cosford front right Marine Kai Lish, from the Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) RNAS Yeovilton Credit BFBS
Navy tug of war team at RAF Cosford, with Marine Kai Lish at the front right

Captain Gaz Wyatt, who is the Secretary for the Army Tug of War, explains where the sport started: "From the Army's perspective, it used to be when troops pulled the guns into battle with ropes and horses.

"If the horses couldn't pull them, the troops would pull them all. Then they devised the idea to pull against each other.

"The Navy used to, due to having lots of ropes on the ship, have tug of war battles between themselves," he added.

24072025 First Photo of RAF Tug of War Team in 1918 Credit Squadron Leader Gareth Davies
The RAF tug of war team pictured in 1918 (Picture: Squadron Leader Gareth Davies)

The first known photograph of the RAF's tug of war team was taken towards the end of the Great War in 1918, and Sqn Ldr Davies now has that picture.

"I can, with confidence, confirm that RAF tug of war is at least 100 years old.

"There was hobnail boots, leather boots. It was done quite a lot more aggressively," he said, describing how the game used to be played back then.

The Army Tug of War team of 2nd Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment (Picture: Squadron Leader Gareth Davies)
The Army Tug of War team of 2nd Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment (Picture: Squadron Leader Gareth Davies)

As the First World War came to an end, it's believed that, in 1918, Inter Services Tug of War was born.

Tug of War as a sport has been found to date back to Ancient Egypt, Greece and China and there's also evidence of it in 12th-century India.

It was a very popular sport used to train warriors and was called hook pulling.

Tug of War was also once an Olympic sport, featuring in five Olympic Games from 1900 to 1920, although the 1916 Games were postponed because of the First World War.

Great Britain won the last-ever Olympic Games Tug of War in 1920 in Antwerp.

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