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Mongolia Land of Nomads

Naadam

This annual sports festival Naadam is the most famous celebration across the country. It features the three manly sports: wrestling, archery and horse racing. Naadam is celebrated across the country and every town and village will hold its own wrestling, archery and horse racing contests. The official Naadam opening ceremony in Ulaanbaatar is quite spectacular. Riders dress as Chinggis Khan’s entourage lead the huge procession around the Naadam stadium, which features hundreds of adults and children dressed in costumes representing all Mongolia’s ethic groups. In Ulaanbaatar, wrestling takes place in the main Naadam stadium. Archery competitions are outside the stadium everywhere, while the famous, perilous horse races take place ourside the city.

Wrestling

Wrestling is the most national and popular of all Mongol sports. It is highlight of the Three Games of Men. Hinstorians claim that Mongol-style wrestling originated some seven thousand years ago. The technique and ritual of Mongolian wrestling is distinctly national. There are no weight categories or age limits in Mongolians national wrestling. The wrestlers wear heavy boots (gutuls), a very small tight-fitting loin cloth (known as zodog and shuudag), a pair of sleeves which meet across the back of the shoulders, resembling a tiny vestige of a jacket, and a pointed cap of velvet. The contestants come out on the leaping and dancing flapping their arms in imitation of an eagle. Each wrestler has his attndant herald. The aim of the sport is to knock your opponent off balance and throw him down, making him touch the ground with his elbow and knee. The loser walks under the raised arms of the winner in a sign of respect, and unties his vest, after wich the victor, again leaping and dancing, takes a turn round the flag in the center of the field. The victor is a awarded symbolic prizes – biscuits and aaruul, or dried curds; once he has tasted these, he offers them to his seconds and to spectators. Traditionally, either one thousand and twenty-four or five hundred and twelve wrestlers participate in the contest. At the national Naadam held in Ulaanbaatar, nine rounds are held. Those who lose in one round are eliminated from further rounds. A wrestler who beats five opponents in a Naadam is awarded the title of “Falcon”; one who wins seven rounds is given title “Elephant”. A wrestler become a champion by winning nine rounds and is given the title of “Lion”, and if he wins two years in row, he is called “Giant”. If a wrestler become a third-time champion at the Naadam, the attribute “Nation-wide” is added to his title, and the fourth time, he is styled “Invincible”. http://www.sunshine.mn/tours.html The winners of the tournament receive honorary titles and are also awarded various souvenirs. But for them, the main award is the truly nation-wide popularity and fame that they gain.

Horse-racing

This sport is also centuries old, dating back to the Bronze Age. The horses for the Naadam races are selected a month before the big day. They are then taken to an abequate pasture separate from the herd and trained. Race-horses are divided into several age groups: two, three, four anf five years old; over five years or adult horses; and stallions. The riders are aged from 5 to 12. Mongolian children of these ages are good riders, as both boys and girls have been riding since infancy. As the popular saying goes, “The nomad is born in the saddle”. Small saddles are made especially for children, but they usually prefer to ride without them. They are not only super riders, but also skillful tacticians. They know how to hold the horse back so it has enough strength to last the entire distance of the race. Competitions are not held on special racetracks, but right across the steppe, where riders are confronted with various abstacles such as rivers, ravines and hills. The distance varies according to the ages of the horses. Between 15 and 35 km. The riders are dressed in bright, colorful and comfortable cloths. On theirbacks are various symbolic pictures. Symbolic ornaments and designs also embellish the horse-cloth. The most exciting moments are the start and the finish. Before the beginning of the contest the young horseman ride round the starting point three times yelling the ancient call, “Giingi!”, a kind of war-cry. When all the horses step behind the boundary line, the starting command is given and the riders surge forward, setting in motion the long-awaited race. The winning riders do a full circuit of the stadium, each accopanied by a herald. The winning horse receives the honorary title “forehead of Ten Thousand Race Horses” and the five runners-up are awarded with prizes. They are popularly called the “Airag Five”. In accordance with tradition, the riders on the winning horses do three laps of honor, then ride up to the grandstand, and each child is offered a large bowl of airag-fermented mare’s milk-from wich he drinks and then pours some on the rump of his horse. The herald in turn, chants in poem-form the virtues of the horse its rider and owner. But there is also an interesting tradition in connection with the losers. Honor and praise of the winners of the race is to be expected; but the losers are also rewarded and honored. After the award ceremony for the victors, the racer who came in last is led up to the main stand with his young rider. But the spectators do not make fun of him. Instead they shout encouragement and try to give him confidence in himself. The national story-teller recites a special ode to the loser. The ode encourage him with words expressing faith in his future success. http://www.sunshine.mn

Archery

Ample information about archery can be found in leterary and historical documents of the 13th century and even before. It is an ancient sport of the Mongols which can be traced back to as early as 300-200 BC. According to historians, archery contests began in the 11th century. The Mongols use a compound bow, built up of layers of horn, sinew, bark and wood. When unstrung it is not straight, but curved. Archery in more archaic and ritualistic than other sports and posture. The target consists of a row several meters across, of small woven leather rings, some painted red, which are laid out laterally on the ground, the openings face upwards, providing challenging exercise in trajectory for the archers. In olden times, women did not participate in the contest, but in the last few decades they have started to do so. The distance is about 75 m for men and 60 m for women. Men shoot about 40 arrows and must score not less than 15 points and women shoot 20 arrows and must score at least 13 point using the same bow as the men. www.sunshine.mn When the arrow hits the target, a group of people standing near the target, acting as judges, raise the cry “Uukhai!” and make signs with their hands to indicate the result. The one who score the most points is the winner and the title of Mergen (Supermarksman) is bestowed on him or her.