Belt wrestling is a form of
wrestling
Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...
that is one of the oldest historically recorded
sports
Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...
. It involves two belted contestants aiming to
take
A take is a single continuous recorded performance. The term is used in film and music to denote and track the stages of production.
Film
In cinematography, a take refers to each filmed "version" of a particular shot or "setup". Takes of each s ...
each other over by grappling with a belt.
There are hundreds of national belt wrestling styles, but contemporary most widespread and internationally competed are
Alysh
Alysh () is a Turkic term for Central Asian folk wrestling or "belt wrestling" regulated by United World Wrestling.
Alysh is an upright wrestling style. Competitors wear trousers, jackets and belts, and must hold on to their opponents' belts at ...
and
Kurash 'HISTORY OF KURASH''
Kurash is an ancient type of upright jacket grappling which originated in the territory of modern Uzbekistan. According to the latest scientific research the age of Kurash is at least three and a half thousand years. Kurash is ...
, developed by the previously nomadic
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are a collection of diverse ethnic groups of West, Central, East, and North Asia as well as parts of Europe, who speak Turkic languages.. "Turkic peoples, any of various peoples whose members speak languages belonging t ...
of
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
.
United World Wrestling
United World Wrestling (UWW) is the international governing body for the sport of amateur wrestling; its duties include overseeing wrestling at the Olympics. It presides over international competitions for various forms of wrestling, including ...
recognized Alysh wrestling as the primary international belt wrestling style. It is regulated globally by the International Federation of Wrestling on Belts Alysh, the sport's governing body. Although the sport has been practiced for millennia, and local championships were held in various places of the world, it was until 2001 when
Bayaman Erkinbayev
Bayaman Erkinbayev (Баяман Эркинбаев, c. 1967 - September 22, 2005) was a top Kyrgyzstani lawmaker and parliamentary deputy, who was the driving force behind the riots in southern Kyrgyzstan that led to the overthrow of President Ask ...
started its international version, and it was called "Alysh". Until 2005, Rif Gaynanov and Bayaman Erkinbayev developed this style together, and then the ways separated. Two different styles appeared named "Alysh" and "Kurash" belt wrestling. Since then, the sport has been included in the
2013 Summer Universiade
The 2013 Summer Universiade, officially known as the XXVII Summer Universiade (russian: XXVII Летняя Универсиада), was held in the city of Kazan, Russia, the most northerly city ever to host a Summer Universiade. Over 10,400 un ...
program, recognized by the Asian Olympic Council, and contested at the
Asian Games
The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...
and
Asian Indoor Games
The Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (abbreviated as AIMAG) is a pancontinental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. It is organised by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and consists of Indoor and martial ...
. The sport's executives struggle to promote it to the level of an official
Olympic sport
Olympic sports are contested in the Summer Olympic Games and Winter Olympic Games. The 2020 Summer Olympics included 33 sports; the 2022 Winter Olympics included seven sports. Each Olympic sport is represented by an international governing b ...
.
History
Ancient times
Gilgamesh
sux, , label=none
, image = Hero lion Dur-Sharrukin Louvre AO19862.jpg
, alt =
, caption = Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assyr ...
engages in a form of belt wrestling with
Enkidu
Enkidu ( sux, ''EN.KI.DU10'') was a legendary figure in ancient Mesopotamian mythology, wartime comrade and friend of Gilgamesh, king of Uruk. Their exploits were composed in Sumerian poems and in the Akkadian ''Epic of Gilgamesh'', writte ...
in the
Epic of Gilgamesh
The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poetry, epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh ...
written around 2000 BC about a
king of Sumer
Lugal ( Sumerian: ) is the Sumerian term for "king, ruler". Literally, the term means "big man." In Sumerian, ''lu'' "𒇽" is "man" and ''gal'' "𒃲" is "great," or "big."
It was one of several Sumerian titles that a ruler of a city-state could ...
who lived around 2800 to 2600 BC.
One of the oldest recorded illustrations of wrestling is a
bronze
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
statuette, dated to around 2600 BC, found in 1938 at Khafaji, near
Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...
and now stored in the
National Museum of Iraq
The Iraq Museum ( ar, المتحف العراقي) is the national museum of Iraq, located in Baghdad. It is sometimes informally called the National Museum of Iraq, a recent phenomenon influenced by other nations' naming of their national museum ...
.
Chinese
Tangshu
The ''Old Book of Tang'', or simply the ''Book of Tang'', is the first classic historical work about the Tang dynasty, comprising 200 chapters, and is one of the Twenty-Four Histories. Originally compiled during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdo ...
chronicles also mention belt wrestling in the
Medieval China
The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding. Ancient historical texts such as the '' Book of Documents'' (early chapte ...
circa the 11th century. In the 11th century the scholar and philosopher
Avicenna
Ibn Sina ( fa, ابن سینا; 980 – June 1037 CE), commonly known in the West as Avicenna (), was a Persian polymath who is regarded as one of the most significant physicians, astronomers, philosophers, and writers of the Islamic G ...
wrote about this type of wrestling.
Present day
The International Federation
To accommodate the many variations of belt wrestling throughout the world, the philosophy of the new International Belt Wrestling Association (IBWA) founded in 2005 now headed by Mr. KHALIL AHMED KHAN of Pakistan has been simple and logical; it has adopted two sets of standard rules and a standard costume. Their reasoning is that some styles do not permit trips and some do. However, according to the new association, to compete without trips is called ‘classical style’ and with trips is called ‘free style’. The standard costume is an attractive feature, which allows for all styles to be completed so that no participant can conclude that his or her national style or costume has been slighted. IBWA unites all belt wrestling lovers in the world. Mr. Khalil Ahmed Khan is Chairman of Ad Hoc Advisory Committee Traditional Sports and Games, UNESCO and President of International Association of Traditional Wrestling Sports - IATWS. IATWS is a key partner of Traditional Sports and Games, UNESC
Ref. The newly created official platform by UNESCO Advisory Committee on TSG is the "
International Council of Traditional Sports and Games
International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations".
International may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011
* ''International'' (New Order album), 2002
* ''International'' (The T ...
br>
(ICTSG)has already awarded the membership to IATWS and IBWA. Belt Wrestling has been included in the First World Traditional Sports and Games Festival to be held in Astana- Kazakhstan 2021. The International Council of Traditional Sports and Games (ICTSG) is an international organization aiming to serve as an international platform for the preservation, promotion, and development of traditional sport and games (TSG) at the global level. It is the initiative of the UNESCO Advisory Committee and approved by UNESCO. These Games will be the first of their kind whilst giving a boost to tourism, local traditions, and culture of its Host Country. Anti-Doping in Traditional sports In today’s highly competitive sporting environment, athletes and athlete support personnel are under increasing pressure to do whatever it takes to win. ICTSG and UNESCO Convention against Doping in Sport are committed to preserve fair sport and to protect young people involved in traditional sports from the use of prohibited substances. Gender equality through Traditional sports Promoting gender equality and empowering women through traditional sports and games is one of ICTSG's main objectives. Khalil Ahmed Khan is President of the International Council of Traditional Sports and Games (ICTSG) and
Shammi Rana
Shammi Rana is a promoter of Traditional Sports and Games (TSG) from India. He was appointed Secretary-General of the International Council of Traditional Sports and GamesICTSG at 4th UNESCO Collective Consultation of Traditional Sports and Ga ...
is Secretary-General of the International Council of Traditional Sports and Game
(Ref)
The rules and variation of the rules
Different parts of the world have different variations on certain rules in the sport. As the name suggests, the central component of the sport is a simple device, such as a belt, an ordinary towel, or
girdle
A belt, especially if a cord or rope, is called a girdle if it is worn as part of Christian liturgical vestments, or in certain historical, literary or sports contexts.
Girdles are used to close a cassock in Christian denominations, including th ...
. For example, within Central
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
,
Kuresh wrestling of Turkic people is popular. It is distinguished by throwing an opponent by tearing him away from the floor or from the mat without using one’s legs. Such rules are usually specific to that particular region. As a result, the rules of the game can differ between continents or even countries.
Former Honorary President of the International Association of Traditional Types of Sports Rif Gainanov once stated, "This type of wrestling will always be interesting. Every nation has its own coloring. One nation should not impose its own rules upon other countries and should respect other cultures and their customs".
However, today it is necessary to understand the differences between:
1) the rules of national wrestling in every single country or region, of which there are surely thousands of variations;
2) and a common, well-defined system of belt wrestling rules, which makes it possible for athletes from around the world to come together in a competition as equals.
3) the belt wrestling has been accredited as a "Traditional Sports" by the UNESCO Advisory Committee on TSG.
The sport today
Today wrestling, as a national sport, cannot be ascribed to any single country. In a similar way, people generally do not refer to soccer as an English sport or basketball to be American. Belt wrestling does not have any national boundaries. It is unique and gathering more and more fans. The circle of contestants is widening considerably. This is a spectacular and democratic sport and one that does not require much financial expenditure. An important fact is that the International Belt Wrestling Federation considerably lessened the number of injuries received by contestants since the introduction of the new rules. As it was proved, the correction of this or that wrestling rules popularized this kind of sport. Nowadays world and continental championships are being held in different parts of the world.
The sport is developing rapidly and has become so prominent that
President Putin of Russia attended the 6th
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
in Ufa, the capital of
Bashkortostan
The Republic of Bashkortostan or Bashkortostan ( ba, Башҡортостан Республикаһы, Bashqortostan Respublikahy; russian: Республика Башкортостан, Respublika Bashkortostan),; russian: Респу́блик ...
, from 9 to 13 October 2007.
In America and Oceania the popularity of belt wrestling is no less than that in Iran, Turkey, Germany, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, Russia, Lithuania, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Togo, and Spain - countries which have already been the hosts of international competitions. This is how one more step towards the main aim - inclusion in the
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
– is being made. Several years ago, very few people knew anything about belt wrestling. Today, the International Association is getting applications for holding tournaments from all corners of the globe. This is no surprise as now the army of admirers of this kind of sport unites more than eighty countries of the world.
The IBWA is an organization that serves as an international platform under the leadership of its President Khalil Ahmed Khan for the popularizing and developing traditional wrestling/belt wrestling throughout the world irrespective of race and political followings. The Association takes part in the exchanging of know-how, knowledge, information, and data, referring to the traditional wrestling/belt wrestling which, in turn, contributes to its development and popularization on local, national, regional and international levels. Belt Wrestling as a sport is recognized by the
Asian Olympic Council from 2007 and is included in the program of Asian Martial Arts & Indoors Games 2017.
There are many types of traditional belt wrestling in the world, but by developing this sport's general rules under the leadership of Dr. Rif Gaynanov (†) former President, and Khalil Ahmed Khan current President of IBWA/IATWS became a real home for all types of traditional belt wrestling in the world and a common platform for developing and promoting new-old sport discipline – belt wrestling.
Today IBWA governs different belt wrestling disciplines: freestyle, classical style, female belt wrestling, beach belt wrestling, snow belt wrestling in five age groups: cadets, juniors, students, seniors, and veterans in 12 weight categories (7 for men and 5 for women).
All IBWA events are with the line of the
IOC
The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
vision which include seven components: sport – belt wrestling competition, culture – folklore youth festival and competition on local traditional wrestling style, science – scientific conference on developing and promotion of traditional sport and game, environment – tree planting action "
Plant-for-the-Planet
Plant-for-the-Planet is an organisation that aims to raise awareness amongst children and adults about the issues of climate change and Globalization, global justice. The Initiative also works to plant trees and considers this to be both a practic ...
" or
beach cleaning action "Creation" with art exhibition, sport for development and peace – training seminars between border conflict/post-war countries under the slogan "Play for Peace", healthy lifestyle promotion - Olympic mile "Fun Run", youth – youth leadership forum " New generation of leadership".
Belt wrestling is also one of the disciplines of the
Worldwide Nomad Games.
Asian Belt Wrestling Federation(ABWF) is continental body of International Belt Wrestling Association and International Association of Traditional Wrestling Sports.H.E. Khalil Ahmed Khan is President of Asian Belt Wrestling Federation and
Shammi Rana
Shammi Rana is a promoter of Traditional Sports and Games (TSG) from India. He was appointed Secretary-General of the International Council of Traditional Sports and GamesICTSG at 4th UNESCO Collective Consultation of Traditional Sports and Ga ...
Secretary-General of Asian Belt Wrestling Federation and Rapporteur of Traditional Sports and Games, UNESCO ABWF. The Belt Wrestling has been treated and accepted as the old traditional sports in the Central Asia region.
Amateur Belt Wrestling Federation of India Executive Board meeting of Amateur Belt Wrestling Federation of India was held under the Chairmanship of Dr. SM Bali, Joint Secretary Indian Olympic Association at Hotel Ashoka on 16/01/2017 and
Shammi Rana
Shammi Rana is a promoter of Traditional Sports and Games (TSG) from India. He was appointed Secretary-General of the International Council of Traditional Sports and GamesICTSG at 4th UNESCO Collective Consultation of Traditional Sports and Ga ...
, Secretary-General Asian Belt Wrestling Federation(ABWF).Dr. SM Bali was elected as President, Aman Kumar Sharma Vice President and Tarsem Sharma elected as Secretary-General of Amateur Belt Wrestling Federation of India
Competitions
Multi-sport events
Worldwide
*
Summer Universiade
The Universiade is an international multi-sport event, organized for university athletes by the International University Sports Federation (FISU). The name is a portmanteau of the words "University" and "Olympiad".
The Universiade is referred t ...
*
World Combat Games
The World Combat Games is an international multi-sport event featuring combat sports and martial arts. The games were founded by SportAccord (now known as the Global Association of International Sports Federations) as a way of bringing various m ...
*
World Martial Arts Masterships
The World Martial Arts Masterships is an international martial arts competition that has been held in the North Chungcheong Province, South Korea. A total of 2 masterships have been held, with the 2016 iteration being held in Cheongju, and the 2 ...
*
World Nomad Games
World Nomad Games ( ky, Дүйнөлүк көчмөндөр оюндары) are an international sport competition dedicated to ethnic sports practiced in Central Asia. The first three World Nomad Games were held in Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyzstan. The fo ...
*
World Wrestling Games
In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
Regional
*
Asian Games
The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...
*
Asian Beach Games
The Asian Beach Games, also known as ABG, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games have been organized by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). The Games are described as the second or third largest A ...
*
Asian Indoor Games
The Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (abbreviated as AIMAG) is a pancontinental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. It is organised by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and consists of Indoor and martial ...
*
Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games
Sub-Regional
*
Southeast Asian Games
The Southeast Asian Games, also known as the SEA Games, is a biennial multi-sport event involving participants from the current 11 countries of Southeast Asia. The games are under the regulation of the Southeast Asian Games Federation with supe ...
World Belt Wrestling Championships
Senior
The first edition of the championships in 2002 saw competition in the openweight, therefore only two events were contested (men and women.) The 2003' championships were subdivided into weight classes, but because of the rules of the host country no women competition was allowed. Since 2003 the prize money totalling several hundred thousand U.S. dollars was contested among participating teams. Since the 2005' edition onwards the championships were contested in freestyle (belts) and classic style (
kushaks.) The 2008' edition saw championships contested at an open-air competition area, on sand, in air temperature.
Чемпионат мира по борьбе на поясах 2008, Ломе, Того 18-22.11. :: Sporta-Klubi.lv
(in Russian)
=Alysh
=
=Kurash
=
=Goresh
=
=Multi-style
=
Open
Youth
Junior
Cadet
Belt Wrestling World Cup
Regional Championships
African Championships
Asian
European
Pan-American
http://ibwa-w.com/en/history
https://www.koresh-wrestling.org/category/results/
https://www.koresh-wrestling.org/events/
World Koresh Championship (Tatar koresh)
2015, Kazan, Russia, IV
World Goresh Championship
2016, Naberezhnye Chelny, Russia, III
http://ibwa-w.com/en/gallery/photos/photo_gallery133
References
; Notes
External links
*https://fbnp-rt.ru/en/about
*http://ibwa-w.com/en/history
*https://www.koresh-wrestling.org/category/results/
*https://www.koresh-wrestling.org/events/
2008 results
2016 results
*Amateur Belt Wrestling Federation India hold
meeting
{{Wrestling
Wrestling