Socks Kill in Knitting Tournament

About 150 people were knitting for their lives last month in what organizers call the “bloodiest extreme knitting tournament” around. Based on the dorm staple Assassins, Sock Wars challenges contestants to “kill” targets by knitting and sending them socks, the Wall Street Journal explains. “I wanted a wicked edge to it,” says the contest’s creator, irritated by “the whole ‘knitting is the new yoga’ cliché.”

Each knocked-off knitter sends the unfinished footwear, along with the ID of the target, to the assassin for completion. The competition, which attracted 800 participants (six men among them) from around the globe, has even spawned an imitator called Death by Socks. Next year organizers hope to attract sponsors. For now, there’s no prize money—the winner gets a pair of socks. (More knitting stories.)