Something with a new rhythm is coming to the Olympic Games.

On Dec. 7, the Associated Press reported that the International Olympic Committee has added breakdancing to the medal events program at the 2024 Paris games. Yes, breakdancing.

Why you may ask? And can breakdancing even be considered a sport?

To the latter I answer, yes, because if it requires training, routine and some bit of perspiration, it can be a sport. If running is a sport, breakdancing can be a sport. Plus, capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian martial art, uses elements of dance, acrobatics and music, so there is some precedent of dance being linked into a sport.

To the former, the inclusion of breakdancing, according to the AP’s report, is a part of the IOC’s attempt to use urban events as a lure for young audiences for the Olympic Games. Breakdancing, or breaking as it will be officially called at the Olympics, is not alone in this endeavor, as the IOC has also approved sport climbing, surfing and skateboarding for the Tokyo Olympics next year.

Breakdancing may seem like an odd choice for the Olympics for some, but the Games in fact have not been shy to  unconventional competitions, which it has done since the very beginning when the “Modern Games” started in 1896.

Perhaps the most famous example is tug of war, which was presented as a track and field sport at not one, but 5 Olympic Games (1900, 1904, 1908, 1912 and 1920). According to Business Insider’s article, “The 10 Weirdest Olympic Sports of All Time,” tug of war’s Olympic runs brush with controversy occurred in 1908, when the U.S. team protested that the gold medal recipients, Great Britain, wore illegal footwear.

Other sports to make Business Insider’s list include the swimming obstacle race (I agree with their sentiment that they’d love to see Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte attempt this one), club swinging (its simplicity is in line with tug of war), solo synchronized swimming (if you are like me and confused how that works, the “synchronized” part comes from how well the athlete performed to their selected music) and live pigeon shooting (I am glad this one only appeared once.)

Keep in mind these are also only the official sports. The potential to find a sport that is both weird, but charming expands if you include the demonstration sports that tend to take a backseat to their medal-giving counterparts. This a shame because they usually are a popular sometimes lesser known, sport of the host country.  Some of my favorites are dog sled racing (1932), dueling (1932), cycle polo (1908) and gliding (1932).

However, the granddaddy of these weird and wonderful demonstration sports has to be the 1900 Olympics in Paris, which included ballooning, cannon shooting, fire fighting, kite flying and life saving, to name a few. Note that these were not “official” demonstration sports, but the precedent had to start somewhere, right? And with that kind of a program, it is no wonder that the demonstration games became a lasting aspect to the Olympics.

That is until 1994, when the Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer became the first of both the Winter and Summer games not to include official demonstration sports. Let’s hope that these weird and wonderful events make a return somewhere down the line.