Monty Python and mince pie, the Queen and afternoon tea: the British have so much to offer that one can only envy them.

They are also uncrowned world champions in inventing absurd competitions: every year, crowds of suicidal jokers threw themselves down a steep slope in southern England while rolling cheese. They rush after the cheese wheels that they had previously pushed down the mountain with their own hands.

Oxford students became pioneers of extreme sports with the “Dangerous Sports Club” before the word even existed: they boldly flew kites from volcanoes, drove through an ice channel in a shopping cart or through white water in bed.

The lovers of cold, stinky brew gather in the small town of Llanwrtyd Wells for the legendary “Bogsnorkelling” (swamp snorkeling) to struggle through a 55 meter long swampy ditch in the peat bog of Wales.

And the “ferret legging,” which was once extremely popular especially in Yorkshire, involves putting a live ferret into your pants (which are tied at the bottom) and keeping it there for as long as possible – wearing underpants is forbidden . With its button eyes and cuddly fur, a ferret looks quite cute, but it has very sharp teeth and likes to eat meat.

As if all of this wasn't bizarre enough, women in the town of Olney, located about 100 kilometers northwest of London, run after their pans every year. They do this voluntarily and regularly, every Shrove Tuesday at 11:55 a.m. - and have done so since 1445.

Surprised by the church bells

At least that's what the legend behind this strange competition says. “This year a woman is said to have lost track of time while making pancakes,” explains David Phillipson over the phone. “When the church bells rang and announced the service, the lady, completely surprised, ran towards the church with her pan in her hand,” said the retired tax officer.

The 70-year-old holds one of the central honorary positions in the town of Olney, which has a population of 6,000: for six years he has been chairman of the “Olney Pancake Race Committee”, a club that organizes the pancake race in the town every year.

In addition to the story of the wasted housewife, there is another variant: it traces the tradition of the competition back to an ancient bribery ritual. »The woman could have deliberately carried the pancake to the sexton so that he would ring the bell faster and the holiday would begin earlier. “You don’t know for sure,” says Philippson and laughs.

Shrove Tuesday is traditionally the day on which Christians use up sweet or fatty foods in preparation for Lent, which begins the next day before Easter - with pancakes being a quick and easy solution.

According to Phillipson, the race has been held since the 15th century: “There is written evidence of this tradition dating back to the time of the Wars of the Roses,” says the pensioner proudly.

Winner kisses Sexton

The rules have not changed significantly over the centuries. The basic rule is: All residents of Olney over the age of 18 who have lived or worked in the town for at least three months are allowed to take part.

You must wear a skirt and bring a pan and pancakes; They are provided with an apron and headscarf. As soon as the church bell rings, the competitors start running, maneuvering the pan along the almost 380 meter long route.

At the starting point (the pedestrian crossing at the Olney market) and at the destination (the church door of St. Peter and St. Paul), the women have to lift their pancakes up without an accident and turn them around.

"It's not as easy as it might seem," says Phillipson. When she arrives at the church, the winner kisses the sexton - a service follows for everyone.

The fastest egg dish sprinter in Olney is currently receiving 100 pounds, while second and third place can look forward to 50 and 25 pounds, respectively.

Several cities in the United Kingdom have copied the Olney Pancake Race. And every year in London, teams from the British House of Lords and Commons as well as press representatives compete in a charity pancake race: the Rehab Parliamentary Pancake Race.

From a quirky regional race to an international happening

In Olney the tradition defied crises and changes of kings, droughts, rebellions and epidemics. However, competition came to a standstill during the devastation of World War II.

In 1948, Reverend Ronald Collins, the local priest, revived the old custom. Much to the delight of the residents of Liberal, Kansas, 7,500 kilometers southwest of Olney. They discovered the footage of the pancake race in the US magazine “Time” and decided: We need that too – the quirky regional contest mutated into an international happening.

Since 1950, women in the USA have been running like mad after their pans - sometimes faster, sometimes slower than their sisters on the other side of the pond: year after year, bitter competition rages between Liberal and Olney.

Organizers and fans of the competition regularly fly back and forth between the two cities to visit, give gifts and cheer each other on.

And this year? Did America defeat the motherland of the Pancake Race. “With a lead of just three tenths of a second,” snorts Phillipson, slightly contrite.