An Italian Ghost Town Will Host the Hide-and-Seek World Championship

In the 1960s, the Italian village of Consonno was destroyed to make way for what was meant to become Italy’s version of Las Vegas. Those plans never panned out, and now the ghost town is about to serve a much different purpose: hosting this year’s Hide-and-Seek World Championship, Quartz reports.

Consonno’s numerous hills and hiding places made it an alluring setting for the organizers of the competition. “Looking at those fields we immediately imagined they’d be perfect to play hide and seek!” organizing team member Giorgio Moratti told Quartz.

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The structures in the desolate village are left over from a development project spearheaded by entrepreneur Mario Bagno. After demolishing the ancient, rural town in the foothills of the Italian Alps, Bagno erected a nightclub, a zoo, and a luxury hotel to attract tourists. The spot was a hit until a landslide buried the road connecting it to the nearest town.

The village has since been abandoned, but on September 3 and 4 it will become a destination once more. The Hide-and-Seek (or nascondino) World Championship claims to be “the first and only championship of hide and seek in the world.” The event originated in 2010 and has gained enough popularity to receive interest from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Committee. Unfortunately, the campaign to make it an official Olympic sport didn’t go anywhere, so as of now the World Championship continues to be the activity's most prestigious competition.

[h/t Quartz]

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