Welly throwing, also known as welly hoying, welly wanging and boot throwing, is a sport in which competitors are required to throw a Wellington boot as far as possible. The sport appears to have originated in the

West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Gloucesters ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in the 1970s, and rapidly became a popular activity at village fêtes and fundraising events across Britain. The sport is now played in many different countries, including Australia, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand and Russia.

Rules

Depending on local custom, different rules are applied to the sport. In parts of

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, for example, the boot is filled with water before being thrown. Some competitions allow a run up before releasing the boot, while others require the throw to be made from a standing position—which may be enforced by making the thrower stand in an empty dustbin. In

Welbury Welbury is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England. It is about south of Appleton Wiske and north of Northallerton. The village is mentioned in the Domesday book (1086) as having 6 Geld units for tax ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

, the size of the boot thrown must be large enough to comfortably fit the foot of the thrower. Other competitions specify the size of the boot and the manufacturer.

Associations

A number of associations have been formed to govern the sport, including the International Boot Throwing Association (based in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

), the World Welly Wanging Association (

Upperthong Upperthong is a village approximately above sea level, near the town of Holmfirth in Holme Valley, approximately south of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. History The name Upperthong may derive from Old English 'uferra' (upper) + ' thw ...

, UK), the World Welly Throwing Association (

Settle Settle or SETTLE may refer to: Places * Settle, Kentucky, United States * Settle, North Yorkshire, a town in England ** Settle Rural District, a historical administrative district Music * Settle (band), an indie rock band from Pennsylvania * ''S ...

, UK), the World Wellington Boot Throwing Association (

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, UK) and the New Zealand Boot Throwing Association ( Taihape,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Records

The first world record throw recognised by

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

was , set by Tony Rodgers in Wiltshire, UK, in 1978, using a size 8 Dunlop "Challenger" boot. The current world records are for men, set by Teppo Luoma of Finland in 1996, and for women set by Sari Tirkkon, also of Finland and also in 1996.

Gumboot day

Gumboot Day is a celebration in Taihape, in

. It occurs the Tuesday after

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

, and has been a regular event since 1985. It is a celebration of all things to do with gumboots, and includes the gumboot throwing contest. The aim of the festival is to break the world record for the longest gumboot throw. It is a family event, which includes a number of other competitions such as the best-dressed gumboot and ‘shoot the loop’ with gumboots. Gumboots can also be tossed skyward on any day of the year in the official Gumboot throwing lane located in the 'Outback', just behind Taihape's main shopping centre. In 2019, a

mental health Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It likewise determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making. Mental health ...

care fundraiser was held on Gumboot Day.

References

{{reflist, 30em

External links