Mongolian Wrestling (split from "Hakuho's rice promotion&quot

[Akinomaki 28,073]

A Mongolian sumo experiencing festivity in Daegu, South Korea yesterday. 5 pics

http://www.chosunonline.com/svc/zoomin.html?contid=2013071500594&no=0

[aderechelsea 106]

since this topic came up, i would like to ask if there are any videos of the recent naadam online. I think i am developing a serious interest in mongolian wresting.

i think it was ~9 years ago that i decided i will go to Mongolia during a naadam to watch it, when i do my road trip to Northern Asia, but i was either lazy or i just did other things or i just spent my money on different kind of trips.

The goal still remains though and i was thinking of doing a "mongolia/northern china/southern russia and then Japan" trip while trying to be in Mongolia in July and then Japan by September for the Aki basho.

If i won't do it in the next 2-3 years please remind me not to bother you again with my unfulfilled goals (Laughing...)

[Surabuyan 6]

Looking for a Mongol Bokh club in Ulaanbaatar. Please recommend me something. Almost 3 months here without serious training, I am getting weak and fat...

120 kg, 194 cm, 33 years old.

[Blue_Wolf 21]

[wanderer 159]

[yorikiried by fate 1,585]

Cool stuff. They could improve on the venue, though. Giant video screens, cheerleaders in steel cages, the Rolling Stones etc.

[wanderer 159]

Not included in the video, we have some entertainment of sorts.

The longest standing traditional form of entertainments are Mongolian folk songs, 'long songs'. These long, and often boring fights take place under constant stream of long songs. If you haven't heard about Mongolian 'long songs', this is one of the unique folk arts from Mongolia, very beautiful form of singing.

Beginning of rounds 3,5,7 feature calling of the titles and honors of the high ranking wrestlers by professional people - zasuul (Sort of like Sanyaku dohyo-iri). This is another form of long singing. The titiles and honors are very traditional, and beautiful. If someone reached a certain rank, he will be awarded an official title. Then if he repeats the same winning record his title is decorated. It goes on and on. As a result there can be wrestlers with 10+ decorations on top of their title and all his honors must be called out before the spectators making this process easily 4-5 mins long. Dai Yokozuna usually have the longest titles which may sound like:

Ever remembered, long lasting, ever rising, sharp and gentle, gallant, bespoken by all, the absolute and never fading, ..., loved by all, triple world champion in amateur sumo, unprecedented, peerlessly strong, born upright, world stomping, suplex throwing, ..., grandma loving, ..., pacifier of minds, soars like an eagle, flies like an angel, etc... Dai Yokozuna!

After calling out his titles and decorations, the zasuul will declare Yokozuna's intentions in the upcoming fight: The ever sharp Yokozuna is calling you lowly wrestler in front of the spectators and will show the people for once and all how he will grab you, how he will manhandle you, and how he will defeat you! Behold!

The lowly wrestler on the opposite side (we also have east and west side) will declare his unflinching desire to defeat the Yokozuna through his zasuul: You called me out, so know your word! I will fearlessly challenge you, in front of all this people, and will race through all my techniques, and show for once and all that I am a worthy wrestler, and I am the one who will be victorious!

So it is a spectacle of sort.

Cheer leaders, and Rolling Stones are yet to be added, but we do have our throat singers, and contortionists perform during the breaks.

Edited July 17, 2013 by wanderer

[aderechelsea 106]

you understand you are killing me here. I love Mongolian wresting .... it's official now.

it's like wrestling/sumo/judo and WWE in one huge pile of awesomeness.

thanks a lot for the translation of the honours they announce. Priceless. (Applauding...)

[wanderer 159]

you understand you are killing me here. I love Mongolian wresting .... it's official now.

it's like wrestling/sumo/judo and WWE in one huge pile of awesomeness.

thanks a lot for the translation of the honours they announce. Priceless. (Applauding...)

I guess you take my translations with little grain of salt. More knowledgeable person could post official translations here. But I hoped to give you an overall idea how it is like during the naadam, how long standing is this tradition and how naadam is more of a festival rather than a UFC type death match.

[Asojima 2,364]

I guess you take my translations with little grain of salt. More knowledgeable person could post official translations here. But I hoped to give you an overall idea how it is like during the naadam, how long standing is this tradition and how naadam is more of a festival rather than a UFC type death match.

Your commentary is much appreciated. It is obvious from the videos that there is a lot of interesting pageantry that accompanies the matches. We only get glimpses of a small part of it that lead us to wonder, "What was that all about?" The more details we get, the more enjoyment we can get from the videos. (Sign of approval...) (Sign of approval...) (Sign of approval...)

[wanderer 159]

Snippet from a Mongolian movie about some love story from 18th century. The singer himself is a Ulsiin Nachin (Falcon, maegeshira equivalent). This is Mongolian long song, which is an integral part of Mongolian wrestling and everything Mongolian.

Mongolian long song has been adapted in many contemporary music styles such as folk rock, techno etc. by multiple international bands and orchestra. One french techno band had 2 year contract with a Mongolian singer and produced some amazing music, which was critically acclaimed mostly in Europe.

So, emjoy!

[aderechelsea 106]

I guess you take my translations with little grain of salt. More knowledgeable person could post official translations here. But I hoped to give you an overall idea how it is like during the naadam, how long standing is this tradition and how naadam is more of a festival rather than a UFC type death match.

no grain of salt here ... i appreciated all of the translations and enjoyed the fact that i can understand more things of the whole naadam.

now really .... i will be there once in my life. Hopefully sooner rather than later.

[wanderer 159]

If reports in Mongolian papers are true Hakuho obtained permission from Sumo association to compete in Tuv Aimag provincial naadam, his father's home province. He will leave for Ulaanbaatar immediately after the basho.

[aderechelsea 106]

and i hope he was not injured today.

if the reports are correct (and why wouldn't they) It would be interesting to see him fight seriously or at least semi-seriously in a naadam.

Edited July 18, 2013 by aderechelsea

[wanderer 159]

I am concerned with something quite different. It might be that his farher is gravely ill and he wanted to fulfill his father's wish before he dies. Otherwise I don't see why he would want to do this, and why Sumo association would give permission.

[p2501 15]

I am concerned with something quite different. It might be that his farher is gravely ill and he wanted to fulfill his father's wish before he dies. Otherwise I don't see why he would want to do this, and why Sumo association would give permission.

Do you have anything that supports that or are you purely speculating? May be it is just Hakuho looking to broaden his training, looking for new challanges, trying to promote mongolian wrestling, ...

[krindel 671]

If reports in Mongolian papers are true Hakuho obtained permission from Sumo association to compete in Tuv Aimag provincial naadam, his father's home province. He will leave for Ulaanbaatar immediately after the basho.

Maybe today's injury (unless its very mild) will put an end to such plans...

[wanderer 159]

I am concerned with something quite different. It might be that his farher is gravely ill and he wanted to fulfill his father's wish before he dies. Otherwise I don't see why he would want to do this, and why Sumo association would give permission.

Do you have anything that supports that or are you purely speculating? May be it is just Hakuho looking to broaden his training, looking for new challanges, trying to promote mongolian wrestling, ...

I am just speculating. It just sounds weird to me that Sumo Association will ever let this kind of thing happen. One possible explanation is that being very traditional entity, Sumo Association understands gravity of the issue if Hakuho's father is gravely ill and wants to see his son compete in naadam just once. After all Munkhbat Avarga (Dai Yokozuna Munkhbat) is such a symbolic figure, legends have been told about him, such and such. It may seem quite natural and understandable to Sumo people that such request can be considered. If this is the case I really do respect thinking of Sumo Association. Yokozunas understand Yokozunas situation may be. Otherwise it just seems unthinkable to me that Sumo Association would let its top Yokozuna compete in totally alien tournament.

I am just speculating.

[Asashosakari 14,539]

That brings up a question - what's the injury rate like at the naadam or in Mongolian wrestling in general?

[Masumasumasu 902]

Will Hakuho wear one of those outfits?

[wanderer 159]

Will Hakuho wear one of those outfits?

Firstly, Yes, it is a rule, just like mawashi in sumo. Secondly, you wouldn't be able to do real wrestling without that outfit, no way.

[Masumasumasu 902]

Will Hakuho wear one of those outfits?

Firstly, Yes, it is a rule, just like mawashi in sumo. Secondly, you wouldn't be able to do real wrestling without that outfit, no way.

I don't understand. What does 'real wrestling' mean? How does the outfit enable a person to wrestle?

[wanderer 159]

That brings up a question - what's the injury rate like at the naadam or in Mongolian wrestling in general?

It actually is very rare. Most injuries happen during the year long training, conditioning or small tournaments not at naadam.

The only injury that I know happened at naadam is somewhere around year 2000. The last Dai Yokozuna left standing at the end of that naadam looking at his record breaking 13th yusho with upcoming new Yokozuna. The battle ensued for about 2:30 hours. Towards the end, the young Yokozuna violently severed Dai Yokozuna's shuudag grip (mawashi grip) using his knee, not unlike knee kick from UFC, but to the arm. After that the battle concluded quickly. The next day the Dai Yokozuna was seen wearing an arm cast. His forearm bones were split and cracked.

Edited July 18, 2013 by wanderer

[wanderer 159]

Will Hakuho wear one of those outfits?

Firstly, Yes, it is a rule, just like mawashi in sumo. Secondly, you wouldn't be able to do real wrestling without that outfit, no way.

I don't understand. What does 'real wrestling' mean? How does the outfit enable a person to wrestle?

Vast majority of tricks in Mongolian wrestling depend on the grip from the outfits. That means vast majority of wrestlers wouldn't even consider it as legit if they don't have the outfit. Imagine sumo wrestlers wearing skin tight outfits from free style wrestling. How they can do real sumo?

Edited July 18, 2013 by wanderer

[wanderer 159]

and i hope he was not injured today.

if the reports are correct (and why wouldn't they) It would be interesting to see him fight seriously or at least semi-seriously in a naadam.

The State Naadam concluded on July 12th, resulting in a new Yokozuna, who had title of Lion (ozeki) and took his first yusho this year. But it is still naadam season, every province, and even big corporations are organizing their naadam. New and upcoming wrestlers try to impress everyone during these mini naadams. Mongolia has 21 provinces, so we are talking about at least 21 provincial level naadams, lots to be seen, and lots to be talked about.

Short but beautiful Mongolian summer will be filled with lots of naadams until mid August and lots of airag (very nice drink from fermented horse milk).

One thing I discovered lately is that foreigners can compete in these provincial naadams. State naadam so far does not allow anyone from another country, not even ethnic Mongols from Inner Mongolia of China or Russian Federation. It has something to do with State Naadam being associated with founding of first Mongolian Tur (Statehood) 2222 years ago, founding of Great Mongol Empire 807 years ago, independence from Manchu Empire 102 years ago etc. Kind of protocol related thing.

Edited July 18, 2013 by wanderer