Ethnosport Cultural Festival

The Ethnosport Cultural Festival is a 5-day sport and culture festival held annually. Sporting and cultural activities of the Anatolia, Central Asia and the greater Turkic world, but also Japanese, Middle Eastern and other, are held.

Ethnosport Cultural Festival
Horse Archery
Falconry
AbbreviationEthnosport
Motto2018:The horse belongs to those who ride it and the sword to those who gird it on[1]
First event2016; 8 years ago (2016)
Occur everyAnnually
Last eventMay 2018
PurposeSport, Cultural revival
HeadquartersIstanbul
World Ethnosports Federation PresidentBilal Erdogan
WebsiteEthnosport Festival

For the festival, Yenikapi Square is transformed into a traditional looking Turkic- central Asian village with traditional tents, traditional sports fields and horse areas.[2][1] 150 horses were involved in the 2018 edition.[3]

13 of the tents are set up by different Turkic countries and communities with a 14th tent for Qatar in the 2018 edition.[3]

Traditional crafts and dance are among the workshops given in the tents around the festival grounds.[2] Over 880 athletes participated in the 13 ethnosports in the latest (3rd) edition.

Sports edit

 
Oil wrestling

As of the third edition there are 13 different ethnosports in which athletes compete in. These include aba wrestling, shalwar wrestling, brace wrestling, oil wrestling and mounted archery.

In the third edition, Yabusame (traditional Japanese horseback archery)[4] and falcon racing were also featured.[2]

Oil wrestling edit

Oil wrestling is a sport in which two opponents covered in olive oil wrestle each other. Due to the olive oil, gripping the opponent is made much more difficult and thus ads a level of complexity to the sport as compared to the non oiled Greco-Roman wrestling. It is said that it was practiced by the ancients 4500 years ago but it has at least been practiced since the Ottoman conquest of Rumelia.

Originally the wrestling would continue until one of the wrestlers is overpowered however later on a point system was added. At the first oil wrestling tournament which lasted for 3 days it is said that in the final round two brothers wrestled each other and neither one was able to outplay the other and they ended up dying of exhaustion. The Kırkpınar tournament continues today in their spirit.

The wrestling takes place on a grassy patch of earth which is designated as the (Turkish:Er Meydanı).

It is considered an inseparable part of Turkish culture.[5][6]

Shalwar wrestling edit

The opponents in this sport wrestle each other barefoot and wearing shalwars.[7][8]

Brace wrestling edit

(Turkish:KUŞAK GÜREŞİ) or (Crimean:küreş) [9][10]

Mounted jarid edit

A sport where Jarids are used on horseback.[11][12]

Mounted archery edit

Archery on horseback.[13][14]

Archery edit

[15][16]

Talus bone games edit

The game consist of players placing their goat or cow anklebones in the center of a circle and then knocking them out. There are 3 different variants that can be played to the game.[17][18]

Kökbörü edit

 
Kökbörü

(Kazakh:kokpar) kökbörü[19][20]

Aba wrestling edit

In this type of wrestling the wrestlers wear abes on their backs.[21][22]

Mas wrestling edit

Mas wrestling a.k.a. Ağaç Güreşi, literally 'tree wrestling' or Çubuk Çekme, literally 'rod pulling' is a Yakut national sport that is done on a flat, non-slippery, platform. In the middle of the platform there is a plank which is strongly fixed platform on its side. The two opponent sit on either sides of the plank with their feet on the plank and they put their arms forward and hold a rod together. Then using virtually all the muscles in the body and pull on the rod.[23][24]

Mangala edit

 
Turkish girls playing mangala, 1700s

[25][26]

Yabusame edit

 
Yabusame archer on horseback

[27][28][29]

Falconry edit

[30]

Organisation edit

The event is organised by the World Ethnosports Federation and sponsored by Anadolu Agency.[2]

Venue edit

 
Yenikapı Square, a visible bulge form along the natural borders of the Sea of Marmara

The 2018 event has taken place at Yenikapi, Istanbul.[1][31]

Slogan edit

Every year the festival has a new slogan. In 2018 it was: The horse belongs to those who ride it and the sword to those who gird it on.[1]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d "The Third Ethnosports Culture Festival begins in Istanbul…". ibb.istanbul. Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. 8 May 2018. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d Cakar, Ercan (13 May 2018). "Award ceremony closes Ethnosport Cultural Festival". ISTANBUL. Anadolu Agency. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  3. ^ a b "ETHNOSPORT CULTURAL FESTIVAL BEGINS". byegm.gov.tr. Directorate General of Press and Information. 9 May 2018. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  4. ^ "Ethnosport Cultural Festival features Japan's yabusame". News on Turkey. 10 May 2018. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  5. ^ "YAĞLI GÜREŞ" [Oil wrestling]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  6. ^ "YAĞLI GÜREŞ" [Oil wrestling]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  7. ^ "ŞALVAR GÜREŞİ" [Shalwar wrestling]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  8. ^ "ŞALVAR GÜREŞİ" [Shalwar wrestling]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  9. ^ "KUŞAK GÜREŞİ" [Belt wrestling]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  10. ^ "KUŞAK GÜREŞİ" [Brace wrestling]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  11. ^ "ATLI CİRİT" [Mounted jarid]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Archived from the original on 3 October 2018. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  12. ^ "ATLI CİRİT" [Mounted Jarids]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  13. ^ "ATLI OKÇULUK" [Mounted archery]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  14. ^ "ATLI OKÇULUK" [Mounted archery]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  15. ^ "Archery" [YAYA OKÇULUĞU]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  16. ^ "YAYA OKÇULUĞU" [Archery]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  17. ^ "AŞIK OYUNLARI" [Talus bone games]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  18. ^ "AŞIK OYUNLARI" [Talus games]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  19. ^ "Kökbörü". etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Archived from the original on 13 May 2017. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  20. ^ "KÖKBÖRÜ". worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  21. ^ "AŞIRTMALI VE KAPIŞMALI ABA GÜREŞİ" [Aba wrestling]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  22. ^ "ABA GÜREŞİ" [Aba wrestling]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  23. ^ "MAS GÜREŞİ" [Foot wrestling]. etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  24. ^ "MAS GÜREŞİ" [Mas wrestling]. worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  25. ^ "Mangala". etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  26. ^ "Mangala". worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  27. ^ "Yabusame". etnosporfestivali.com (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  28. ^ Sever, Hilmi (10 May 2018). "Ethnosport Cultural Festival features Japan's yabusame". Ankara. Anadolu Agency. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  29. ^ "Yabusame". worldethnosport.org (in Turkish). World Ethnosports Federation. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  30. ^ "Qatar falconry highlights Ethnosport Cultural Festival". Yeni Şafak. 10 May 2018. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
  31. ^ Ozturk, Elif (14 May 2018). "Pictures of the Day: 14 May 2018". Telegraph Media Group. The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 15 May 2018.

External links edit