World Egg Throwing Championships returns to Swaton

The real skill is in the catching, say organisers

Teams from across the world are taking part in the World Egg Throwing Championships in Lincolnshire.

Participants will be hoping to beat the current world record of 309ft (94.3m), which was achieved by a team from New Zealand in 2016.

However, Andy Dunlop, president of the World Egg Throwing Federation, admitted participants “rarely come anywhere close".

The annual competition, first staged in 2004, was taking place on Sunday at the Swaton Vintage Day.

A challenger takes aim at human target Joel Hicks

The main event involves an egg being thrown to a 'catcher' standing, initially, 33ft (10m) away. The distance is then increased.

Mr Dunlop said the roots of the event can be traced back to the 12th Century when local monks were given land to build a church by a river in a place now called Bridgend.

The monks encouraged the villagers to attend their church by giving an egg to each worshiper, he explained. When the river was too high for the villagers to cross, the monks would throw the eggs across the water to the villagers.

Mr Dunlop said the skill was in the catching.

“That's really entertaining," he added.

The event has its roots in the 12th Century when monks would toss eggs at locals to eat

Mr Dunlop said: “It's the ability to catch this missile, which can be travelling at speeds of 120mph."

Another event at the championships uses a Trebuchet: a type of catapult that uses a rotating arm with a sling attached to the tip to launch the eggs.

However, Mr Dunlop warned an egg is likely to explode in mid-air if thrown any faster than 120mph (193km/h).

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