Camel wrestling
While the Spanish have bullfights, and the Italians cockfights, and the
English go hunting with hounds, the Turks have camel wrestling. Camel wrestling
is now mostly restricted to the Aegean region
though it was once more widespread in Anatolia.
In the winter you will see elaborately saddled camels being paraded through
the villages with the owner extolling just how his camel is going to make
mince-meat of anyone rash enough to challenge his beast. The camels are
all fully grown bulls specially fed to increase their bulk further, and
the sight of them wrestling one another would seem to promise some spectacular
action.
In reality it doesn't happen and camel wrestling is more akin to comedy than to blood-sport. Bull camels normally wrestle and butt one another in a knock-out contest for precedence in a herd, and more importantly, precedence in mating. In the arena two bulls are led out and then a young cow is paraded around to get them excited. It's very easy to know when a bull is excited as streams of viscous milky saliva issue from his mouth and nostrils. Mostly the two bulls will half-heartedly butt each other and lean on the other until one of them gives in and runs away. This is the really exciting bit as the bull will often charge off towards the crowd, with the conquering bull in pursuit, and the spectators must scramble hurriedly out of the way. The antics of spectators trying to avoid a thousand kilograms (nearly a ton) of camel running towards them can lead to pure comedy and is the best part of camel wrestling. Miraculously there are few accidents. Occasionally two bulls will get down to it and actually try to wrestle one another, feinting in here and there, eventually locking a fore-leg inside the leg of the opposition and leaning on him to topple him over in a dromedary's version of a wrestling fall and pin.
The sport is a declining one as the cost of keeping, feeding and training a camel solely for competition doesn't come cheaply, and only a rich man can afford to do it. Large bets are wagered by owners and spectators alike, though how you tell just which camel won can be difficult to determine. What happens when they both run away? - it happens. It's worth going once just to see and it's quite nice to know that there isn't a lot of blood and gore involved in the sport, it's really quite gentle.
Today, there is a "camel wrestling league" in the Aegean region. You can watch the show around Mugla and in Selcuk, nearby Ephesus.
2011 - 2012 Camel League
- 20 November: Karapinar village in Salihli (Manisa), Akköy town (Denizli), Ömerbeyli town (Aydin), Tuzla village in Ayvacik town, Yazidere
- 27 November: Turanlar village in Germencik town (Mugla), Isabeyli town in Nazilli district (Aydin), Bayindir town
- 4 December: Selimiye town in Milas district (Mugla), Buldan town (Denizli), Buharkent and Biyikli towns (Aydin), Çardak town (Çanakkale), Zeytindag town in Bergama (Izmir), Belevi village in Selçuk town (Izmir), Adiloba village in Saruhanli district (Manisa)
- 11 December: Büyüktepe village in Çan district (Çanakkale), Armutlu village in Kemalpasa district (Izmir), Mumcular village (Bodrum), Umurlu town (Aydin), Çalisli village of Bagarasi town in Söke district (Aydin), Seferihisar district (Izmir)
- 18 December: Sariköy village in Gönen district (Balikesir), Kusadasi, Sarayköy district (Denizli), Ezine district (Çanakkale), Yayakent village in Kinik town (Izmir)
- 25 December: Bagyurdu village in Kemalpasa district (Izmir), Atça and Isikli towns (Aydin), Bozüyük town in Yatagan district (Mugla), Bergama town (Izmir)
- 1 January: Ortakent town (Bodrum), Incirliova town (Aydin), Demre town (Antalya), Karaagaç village in Gömeç town (Balikesir), Bayramiç district (Çanakkale), Zeytinova town in Bayindir district
- 8 January: Germencik town (Aydin), Yalikavak town (Bodrum), Ayvalik town (Balikesir), Lapseki town (Çanakkale)
- 15 January: Selçuk town (Aydin), Yatagan town (Mugla), Selimiye town (Mugla)
- 22 January: Ortaklar town Aydin, Burhaniye town (Balikesir), Sarayköy town (Denizli), Kumluca town (Antalya, Bodrum
- 29 January: Kösk town (Aydin), Bodrum, Harmandali town (Izmir)
- 5 February: Yenipazar town (Aydin), Torbali town (Izmir), Pelitköy town (Balikesir), Karaçulha town (Fethiye), Beymelek village in Demre town (Antalya
- 12 February: Kuyucak town (Aydin), Tire town (Izmir), Ayvalik town (Balikesir), Milas town (Mugla)
- 19 February: Çine and Nazilli towns (Aydin), Pinarbasi town (Izmir), Küçükkuyu town (Çanakkale), Karaagaç town
- 26 February: Bozdogan town (Aydin), Bagarasi town in Söke district (Aydin), Altinova district (Balikesir), Turgutreis town (Bodrum)
- 4 March: Sevindikli town in Nazilli district (Aydin), Selimiye and Bafa and Ören villages in Milas town (Mugla), Dörtyol town (Çanakkale), Ulucak town in Kemalpasa district (Izmir), Tuzla village in Ayvacik town (Çanakkale), Haydarli village in Koçarli district (Aydin)
- 11 March: Bayrakli and Ödemis towns (Izmir), Çan district (Çanakkale), Poyracik village in Bergama, Agaçköy village in Bayramiç district (Çanakkale)
- 18 March: Buldan district (Denizli), Emirhacili village in Salihli (Manisa)
- 25 March: Salihli district (Manisa), Yazidere village in Incirliova town (Aydin)