Britain's Independent has produced a map of the world, sorting countries by which sport they are "best" at, and it produced some weird results for the Middle East.

The UAE's top sport? Ice hockey. Say what?

Yes, based on how the Independent compiled its list, the UAE's top sport is ice hockey. That's because the Emirates' squad was ranked 44th internationally last year in the International Ice Hockey Federation, higher than the country was ranked in any other international sporting federation.

Other weird results include regional heavyweights in handball – Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain – and field hockey – Oman.

Iraq's top sport is baseball – which could be a reflection of the years of American occupation.

Source: Indy100.
Source: Indy100.

Here's the full list, via the Independent's Indy100 site:

Egypt - Handball (35th)

Palestine - Basketball (75th)

Lebanon - Rugby League (20th)

Syria - Basketball (72nd)

Jordan - Basketball (29th)

Iraq - Baseball (68th)

Kuwait - Handball (29th)

Saudi Arabia - Handball (34th)

Qatar - Volleyball (47th)

Bahrain - Handball (26th)

United Arab Emirates - Ice Hockey (44th)

Oman - Field Hockey (31st)

Yemen - Football (177th)

Check out Indy100 for world rankings and an interactive map.

Surprised that the UAE has a national ice hockey team? We were too, but they do, and they aren't bad.