as a giant cotton bud), they attempted to cause the other to fall from their platform within the 30-second time limit. This could be achieved with either an offensive or a defensive strategy, although some contenders were disqualified if they made no attacking move towards the Gladiator. If either competitor touched their opponent, their opponent's pugil stick or platform with anything other than the padded ends of their own pugil stick, this led to an automatic loss. Losing a pugil stick also resulted in an automatic loss. Contenders scored 10 points for knocking the Gladiator off or 5 points for remaining on their platform for the duration. The event returned in the revival series with the same rules and scoring system, but now played above water rather than crash mats. The event was known as Joust in the US series. Gauntlet First appearance: series 2, 1993 – heat 6 Last appearance: series 10, 2009 – final A contender had to "run the gauntlet" by passing Gladiators armed with ramrods. Originally played with three Gladiators, Gauntlet became one of the staple events after a revamp in series 3 in which the contenders had to run a narrower gauntlet against five Gladiators, the second and fourth having power pads to slow the contenders down. Contenders were forbidden from crawling or grappling with the Gladiators or their equipment. In series 2, contenders scored 3 points for each zone completed, plus one bonus point for the fastest time. From the quarter-finals onward, they scored 10 points for the fastest time and 5 for second fastest. From series 3 to 6, 10 points were awarded for finishing in under 20 seconds and 5 points for under 30 seconds. In series 7 and 8, contenders scored 10 points for finishing, otherwise 1 point for each sector completed. In series 9 and 10, contenders scored 2 points for each Gladiator passed, plus a bonus 2 for breaking the wall of bricks at the end. Gladiators could only interact with the contender if they were in their designated zone, and had to cease the instant the contender had reached the white line marking the edge of that territory. Gladiators were also forbidden from holding and pinning the contenders, or from pushing them out of the gauntlet (in contrast to the American series, where this was allowed and would result in the contender losing the event). Gauntlet returned in