[Stardust]

[Image: http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1638905/thumbs...-large.jpg]

Sword swallowing is 4,000 years old -- and it's still cutting edge.

"It's one form of entertainment that can't be dated," sword swallower Dan Meyer told The Huffington Post. "It's been 4,000 years of doing the impossible."

Meyer is now trying to do something almost as difficult. He's raising awareness about this incredibly difficult skill with World Sword Swallowers Day. Held annually on the last Saturday of February, World Sword Swallowers Day is a day when sword swallowers take center stage at 13 Ripley's Odditoriums around the globe.

"We have 42 confirmed, and there are two people who may attempt to swallow their first sword in public," he said. "The high point is at 2:22:14 local time, when all the sword swallowers swallow their blades simultaneously."

Sword swallowing is so difficult that there are only a few dozen professional sword swallowers in the world. It's a small amount, but a big increase since Meyer went pro in 1997.

"There were less than a dozen back then," he said. "It's growing."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/22...weird-news