Tug-of-war was an official Olympic sport and featured at the Games in Paris 1900, St. Louis 1904, Athens 1906 (Intercalated Games), London 1908, Stockholm 1912 and Antwerp 1920.

Tug-of-war was always contested as a part of the athletics program, although it is now considered a separate sport. The Olympic champions were as follows: 1900: a combined Swedish/Danish team; 1904: an American club team representing the Milwaukee Athletic Club; 1906: Germany/Switzerland; 1908: a British team from the City of London Police Club; 1912: Sweden; and 1920: Great Britain. Unfortunately, Australia never participated in the tug-of-war event at an Olympic Games.

Tug-of-war is no longer on the Olympic program, but the following of the sport is still strong – there is an international federation with 35 member countries, including Australia.

Many people would love to see some of the old sports re-introduced to the Olympic Games, and tug-of-war is one of the favourites because it is entertaining and fun.