Hold your breath for underwater hockey
Forget the hockey field — underwater hockey played at the bottom of a swimming pool is making waves! Players wear snorkel masks and fins, using short, curved sticks to push a weighted puck into the opposing team’s goal.
Each team has six players and no goalkeeper. Players must hold their breath while chasing the puck, surfacing only when they need air. Matches last 30 minutes, divided into two halves.
Originally called octopush, the sport was invented in England in 1954 to help divers stay fit during winter. Though still relatively unknown, it has fans around the world. Hong Kong recently hosted a tournament that brought together players from across Asia, testing their stamina in a sport some describe as “physical hell”.
Venomous snake found in a bedroom
An extremely venomous eastern brown snake was found hiding behind a pet mouse’s cage in a young girl’s bedroom in Queensland, Australia.
Snake catcher Stuart McKenzie captured the snake after being called to the home. Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 shared a video of the rescue on Facebook.
The snake, one of the world’s most venomous species, was safely released into a wilderness area. “No mice were harmed in the making of this video,” the post said.
Cuban zoo fights to keep its animals alive
Staff at Cuba’s National Zoo are struggling to care for nearly 1,000 animals during a crisis that has left many people struggling to find food and other essentials.
Due to fuel shortage, workers are having difficulty in reaching the 345-hectare park, 20 kilometres from Havana. Many now travel by bicycle, scooter or electric motorbike to ensure the animals receive food and water.
The zoo is an important international conservation centre, home to vulnerable and endangered species, including rhinos, hippos and jaguars. But shortages of meat, medicine and water have taken a heavy toll. Food is being rationed as meat becomes harder to obtain, while power cuts lasting up to 30 hours make food storage even harder.
Belgium’s quest for the perfect fries
Belgium is taking its love for fries to the next level with a TV competition to find the country’s best chip shop! The show, La meilleure friterie, pits 12 fry shops against one another, with judges visiting establishments across French-speaking Belgium to find perfectly crispy, golden fries.
Belgium has around 4,600 specialised fry shops, and some fans are so enthusiastic that they attend filming dressed as giant cones of fries. However, the competition has also sparked debates over sauces and even faced a voting glitch. In Belgium, winning the title could mean a big boost in business — proving that the humble potato can be a serious matter!
Published in Dawn, Young World, October 31st, 2026
