Unusual Sports: Hornussen in Switzerland
By Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw
Dating from 1564, Hornussen is a Swiss sport, in which a puck is lashed by one team with a stick sending it flying at speeds up to 300 kilometres per hour, whilst the other team, at a distance of between 100 and 300 metres away, tries to stop it from landing on the ground, using heavy flat wooden shovels.
Each time the puck lands untouched on the ground, a penalty point is incurred by the defending side. The side with the fewest penalty points is the winner.
The sport gets its name from the puck, known as a hornuss or hornet, because of the sound that it makes as it whizzes through the air.
4,500 players took part in the 40th National Hornussen Festival, which was recently held in Hochstetten, some 30 kilometres northeast of the Swiss Capital, Berne.
The sport has now embraced modern technology, with each shot being recorded live on a smartphone app, with clips shared on TikTok!
The winning team is rewarded with a crown of oak leaves, a ceremonial cowbell or a bull’s horn.
The President of the National Hornussen Association, Adrian Tschumi, remarked that:
“For us, it’s our Olympics.”
The event, which begins with cannon fire, takes place every three years.
Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw may be contacted by e-mail at ‘
