Traditional oil wrestling festival begins in Edirne

EDIRNE

The 663rd Kırkpınar Oil Wrestling Festival has kicked off in the northwestern province of Edirne with the newly determined preselection system for the first time in its history.

The historical festival, inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List, is being held with a league system for the first time this year. The 852 wrestlers who are qualified to compete in the festival will put forth a great effort to make their way to the top.

While 32 wrestlers are guaranteed to rank among the 40-person quota set for the chief wrestler's category, the remaining eight will be determined as a result of the preselection matches in the Sarayiçi field of contest.

Meanwhile, chief wrestlers have issued a united statement, objecting to the new preselection process and demanding the rectification of the mistake.

"We, as the chief wrestlers, would like to inform you that we have decided not to wrestle in order to protest the arbitrary preliminary elimination arrangement organized by [The Turkish Traditional Wrestling Federation] TGGF, which disregards our Oil Wrestling tradition and prevents the chief wrestlers from competing in Er Square [the Sarayiçi field of contest], which has never occurred in our history of oil wrestling before," read the joint statement.

While the authorities maintain their silence about the issue, the main program of the festival is set to commence with the traditional welcoming ceremony of Kırkpınar Agha Seyfettin Selim on July 5, followed by the presentation of a wreath to the Atatürk Monument.

Following the singing of the National Anthem and the Kırkpınar Anthem, the cortege will proceed to the wrestlers' cemetery, where they will lay flowers and pray for the souls of Kara Emin and Adalı Halil, legendary chief wrestlers of Türkiye.

After the occasions, the wrestling competition will start off with the matches of small-sized wrestlers in the meadow meticulously prepared beforehand.

The historical wrestling competition will proceed with the wrestling matches on Saturday [July 6], followed by an evening concert.

The last day of the Kırkpınar festival, July 7, will mark the finale of the competition, with the chief wrestler’s final wrestling match pursued by the award ceremony.