Chechen Wrestlers

Saw this article in the NY Times today about the importance of wrestling in Chechen (Chechnya) culture.  Through numerous wars taking place in the region along with the various changes of politics and policies, wrestling retains its importance among the people.

In Chechnya, the tiny and mostly sealed-off land where male fitness and martial courage are celebrated and codes of honor are passed down through generations, sports that pit one man against another in a contest of strength, skill and stamina have an intensive following. Young Chechen men learn judo, and to box and to wrestle. In wrestling circles in particular, Chechens are regarded as among the best in the world.

Wrestling, male fitness, and martial courage are so ingrained in the culture and recognized as a means of expression, that the Russians, according to the article, repressed it:

In the Soviet period, Chechen athletes say, most Chechen wrestlers were blocked from the most prestigious events, and prevented by Communist officials from reaching the Olympics.

“I myself was a candidate for the Montreal Olympics,” said Vakha Chapayev, a deputy minister for sports in the current pro-Kremlin Chechen government. “They would not take me. It was like in the past when a Chechen could not become a general in the army.”

Further down in the article, it talks about how these days, Chechens push to compete against Russians in head to head sports competitions.

There are a number of interesting social issues taking place in this article.  One can view it on many levels: a greater push for one’s manhood to be recognized, a retention of a cultural practice, a yearning for self-expression.  What I appreciated most–even more than the athletic challenges that these young wrestlers are presenting to the Russians–is the self-confidence that comes from mastery.  You could look at this on an activist level and say that part of the modus operandi of these Chechen wrestlers is that they do one thing,  they do it very well, and they use it to affect society.  The skill of wrestling, like all skills, can be a means of pushing the envelope in a particular field of human achievement, and the rest of the world, or at least the rest of society, takes notice when people achieve.

Keep in mind too that it isn’t just the young wrestlers who are pushing the movement.  The older leaders who are pushing the politics and arranging the competitions are also responsible.  In many ways, it’s a society rallying around and promoting one group with a highly developed skill set.

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