French seaweed collector Alain Jourden retained one of the world's lesser-known sporting titles at the weekend -- that of champion snail spitter, propelling the tiny creature a total of 9.38 metres.(AFP/Fred Tanneau)
Posted on 08/02/2004 8:27:40 AM PDT by ChuckShick
Frenchman crowned world champion snail spitter
MOGUERIEC, France, Aug 2 (AFP) - A French algae fisherman retained one of the world's lesser-known sporting titles at the weekend - that of champion snail spitter, propelling the tiny creature a total of 9.38 metres (31 feet).
Alain Jourden, 43, beat back the challenge posed by 110 pretenders from 14 countries including Belgium, Britain, Germany, Italy, Spain and Sweden, but failed to surpass his own world distance record of 10.4 metres.
"Wind conditions were not favourable," said one of the organisers of Sunday's event, which drew 2,000 spectators to the tiny Brittany port of Mogueriec, located near the town of Roscoff.
Competitors roll the live snail in their mouths to be sure it is propelled at precisely the correct angle, take a running start along a sandy 20-metre track and expectorate. A maximum of three attempts is allowed.
Jourden told AFP he had trained hard for a week before the competition, carrying out "several spits a day".
A British competitor broke his country's record, spitting the tiny snail a total of 5.82 metres.
Records were also set among Swedish contestants (4.08 metres), women spitters (4.10 metres) and children under the age of 10 (three metres).
© AFP
I thought the French ate them not spit them out. Why can't the French conduct a more manly competition...like cow chip throwing?
Zut alors! I gotta see that!
and we thought their best days were behind them!
Enfin! Une victoire qui fait honneur a la belle France, a redemir elle a la honteuse de la Tour de France!
Wow! look at that S-Car-Blow!!
A perfect activity for a Frenchman to be good at.
Where was PETA when this was going on?
Shortly after the event the French surrendered to PETA...
breaking news bump!
sea-weed collector and champion snail spitter... he's definitely going places.
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