The new Canarian Wrestling season is now underway. And for tourists who want to get to grips with the archipelago´s most traditional sport we´ve got a full rundown of all the senior fixtures for the season ahead.
Lucha Canaria – or Canarian Wrestling – is the de facto national sport of the islands. And these tradtional contests date back to way before the Spanish conquest of the Canaries in the 1400’s.
The roots of wrestling are now a little lost in the sands of time. Some observers suggest that the sport was first introduced to the island as a result of trade with the Roman Empire. Whose citizens had a famous appetite for the sport.
Whilst others suggest that wrestling was imported by Berber tribesmen, the ancient ascendants of the Guanche, who populated the Canaries at the time of the Spanish invasions.
Either way there are certainly acounts of the sport dating back to this period which indicate that the Guanche would often grapple in order to resolve conflicts, such as disputes over land rights.
The conquistafdors evidently found this custom so novel that they were soon staging demonstrations at the Spanish court for the amusement of King Juan of Castille during the 1420´s.
And soon the best wrestlers were being lauded as sporting heroes – the David Beckham´s of their day – whilst the best moves and holds were chronicled and recorded. As a result the sport was enthusiastically adopted by the Spanish who came to live in the Canaries and continued to remain enmeshed in island life. With bouts often the traditional centerpiece of most fiestas and celebrations for centuries to come.
Despite the sports longevity it surprisingly remained totally unregulated right up until the 1940´s – which basically meant that rules and the number of participants were simply agreed before the start of a bout.
But the codification of the sport helped it gain greater acceptance with the upper classes – who for a time considered it a somewhat vulgar practice – so in turn smoothing it’s evolution into a professional sport with a proper governing code and body, the Canarian Wrestling Federation.
Today, bouts take place between two teams of 12 men aside – traditionally within a sand circle called a Terrero. Traditionally, combatants used to wear a uniform consisting of a short-sleeved shirt and trousers (calzón) that are rolled up at the middle of the thigh. Today the shirts are more modern, displaying each teams colours – but the rolled shorts remain, as this is an important gripping point for many of the sports key moves.
As in Sumo, the wrestlers adhere to a code of honour and mutual respect that involves formally greeting each other with a handshake and bow prior to each bout. The combatants then lean into each other’s right shoulder, grasp their opponent’s shorts with their right hand and place their left hands palm down on the ground.
This is the classic opening stance of Lucha Canaria. At a signal from the referee the bout begins and both wrestlers attack. Each wrestler is basically aiming to throw his opponent to the floor. Bouts are fast and furious – usually over within a couple of minutes maximum – and the loser is the wrestler who is forced to touch the ground with any part of his body, other than the soles of his feet.
The overall objective in competition is to beat all of 12 wrestlers on the other team at least once. Unlike other codes there are no weight divisions – instead the combatants are graded by their merit and ability. Any wrestler felled twice is out of the competition. So there is a great deal of strategy involved as each team works out which of their team members should take on which opponent.
For more information visit the Spanish language website of the Federacion de Lucha Canaria Lanzarote
All of the fixtures outlined below start at 9.00pm with the home team named first. Ask for the Campo de Lucha and any local will be able to point you in the right direction.
01-11-07Tinajo v Playa Honda
02-11-07Union Norte v San Bartolomé
03-11-07Tias v Yaiza
08-11-07San Bartolome v Tias
09-11-07Playa Honda v Union Norte
10-11-07Tao v Tinajo
15-11-07Union Norte v Tao
16-11-07Tias v Playa Honda
17-11-07Yaiza v San Bartolome
22-11-07Playa Honda v Yaiza
23-11-07Tao v Tias
24-11-07Tinajo v Union Norte
28-11-07Yaiza v Union Norte
29-11-07Tinajo v Tias
30-11-07Tao v Yaiza
01-12-07Playa Honda v San Bartolome
06-12-07San Bartolome v Tao
07-12-07Yaiza v Tinajo
08-12-07Tias v Union Norte
13-12-07Union Norte v Yaiza
14-12-07Tinajo v San Bartolome
15-12-07Tao v Playa Honda
20-12-07Playa Honda v Tinajo
21-12-07San Bartolome v Union Norte
22-12-07Yaiza v Tias
10-01-08Tias v San Bartolome
11-01-08Union Norte v Playa Honda
12-01-08Tinajo v Tao
17-01-08Tao v Union Norte
18-01-08Playa Honda v Tias
19-01-08San Bartolome v Yaiza
24-01-08Yaiza v Playa Honda
25-01-08Tias v Tao
26-01-08Union Norte v Tinajo
