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Traditional people ’s sport When the Swiss Wrestling and Alpine Festival takes place every three years, Switzerland’s national sport of Swiss wrestling very much finds itself in the spotlight. Its one-time shadowy existence has long since been a thing of the past. Swiss wrestling is becoming ever more popular with children and adults, the young and old, and people from bothmur- ban and rural areas. Thousands of fans visit Swiss wrestling and mountain festivals. Interlaken 1805 At the first recorded Swiss wrestling tournament at the Unspunnenfest festival in Interlaken in 1805, a clash between the city folk (Turnerschwinger) and the rural population (Sennenschwinger) ensued. Both types of Swiss wrestler still exist to this day. Following the Unspunnenfest competition, further Swiss wrestling events were held at irregular inter- vals. They took place without clear regulations, and it is also likely that they did not take the shape of large public festivals. As far back as the nine- teenth century, the unofficial title of Schwingerkönig (Swiss wrestling champion) was already awarded to the country’s strongest Swiss wrestler. There is little historical record of how this title was determined. From a national game to an elite sport Although Swiss wrestlers were viewed as elite sports- men from an early stage, the sport was officially referred to as a «national game» until 2010. With the professionalisation of the sport, Swiss wrestling has also been assigned ever more importance by the general population, and the Swiss Wrestling and Alpine Festivals are now among Switzerland’s most popular and biggest public festivals. Adherence to (unofficial) Swiss wrestling etiquette is the responsibility of visitors. Absolutely do: visit the festival refreshment outlets, try minced meat and macaroni and a hazel- nut croissant, come in casual leisurewear or even better in an edelweiss shirt, bring your own The following must be mid-morning snack, act in a sportsmanlike and observed respectful manner (e.g. handshakes as also seen from the Swiss wrestlers themselves), take your seat for the first round with Swiss punctuality and stay until the final round. Absolutely do not: arrive in an overly elegant suit or attire, throw bottles or other objects, boo the referees or Swiss wrestlers, complain about disputed decisions, take an umbrella or sunshade into the arena or leave rubbish lying around. The round starts as soon as both Swiss wrestlers have gripped the Schwingerhosen (Swiss wrestling pants) of the opponent («Grifffassen»). The Swiss wrestlers wear short pants made from drill over their clothes. Swiss – The aim is to get your opponent on his back. Once you have done so, you have won. The victory is deemed valid if the victor holds his opponent with wresting at least one hand on the Swiss wrestling pants and his opponent is touching the ground with both shoulder blades or at least two-thirds of his how it works back. If there is no winner by the end of the round, the round is «gestellt», i.e. declared a draw. As you might expect from a traditional Swiss sport, After the decision has been made, the result is sealed Swiss wrestling attaches great importance to with a strong handshake and the winner wipes friendliness. The opponents greet one another with the sawdust from the loser’s back – an expression of a polite handshake. This is also a sign of mutual fairness. respect. Matches take form of a duel, and in Swiss wrestling a bout is referred to as a «Gang» or round. These rounds are held on an area with a diameter of 7 to 14 metres, covered with around 23 cubic metres of sawdust. A round normally lasts five minutes; the duration is determined by the referees. Swiss wrestling does not permit throat grabs, There is thus no predefined programme and no headbutts or the building up of pressure by exerting draw. And there are also no weight classes leverage against joints. Shorts, doping, throwing in Swiss wrestling. In principle, anyone can face the opponent onto his head (straight into the ground), anyone – only Swiss wrestlers from the same eye gouging, striking or refusing to fight are also sub-associations and clubs are not put up against forbidden. one another at the start. At the Swiss Wrestling and Alpine Festival, a certain number of Swiss wrestlers are eliminated after four and six rounds. In the Schlussgang (final round), the two Swiss wrestlers with the highest number of points after seven rounds fight for the title of champion. The Schwingerkönig is ultimately the Swiss wrestler with the most points. The approx- imately best 15 % receive an Eidgenössischer Kranz (federal wreath) and can from this point on call themselves Eidgenossen. The referees decide who faces who (Einteilung). The strongest Swiss wrestlers often face one another in the first round. New pairings are made after each round. Scoring For various offences such as passiveness, intentional In Swiss wrestling, the referee trio score both the delays or dangerous grips, the referee can winner and loser of every round. deduct a quarter of a point from the offending Swiss wrestler. The Swiss wrestler who has collected the most points in total upon the conclusion of the eight rounds is declared Schwingerkönig, receives a bull and becomes a Swiss VIP. 10.00 points Victory with Plattwurf 9,75 points Normal Victory Draw following an attractive 9.00 points fight Draw following an unattractive 8.75 points fight Lost, but given a strong perfor- 8.75 points mance with a great deal of risk Lost, without a good attack 8.50 points or chance Prizes The Schwingerkönig receives a bull, referred to in Swiss German as the Gewinner-Muni, a splendid creature weighing around 1,200 kilograms. Monetary equiva- lent: approximately CHF 20,000. Other living prizes that go to the Böse (wicked ones): horses, foals, cows and calves. However, the animals are in most cases sold back to the owners. There is also the Gabentempel (gift temple), which contains an abundance of valu- able prizes. The Swiss wrestlers choose a prize in the order of their performance. And there is a great deal to choose from, with almost everything a Swiss wrestler’s heart could desire being available: lawn- mowers, cowbells, power saws, toolboxes, wine, vouchers for long-distance trips, grandfather clocks and much more. Bur The Bur is the most popular throw for ground fighting. The attacker fixes his opponent’s knee in place with his left leg and then grasps For onto the Swiss wrestling pants in the gap -alls: up to the belt with his right hand. This means knowOverview of the most the opponent’s ability to move is already quite restricted. Now the attacker just has important wrestling moves to force his opponent fully onto his back: this works best with his right hand combined Switzerland’s national sport really isn’t with a rotating movement. so simple. In Swiss wrestling, there are more than 300 different grips and throws. To ensure you have an overview and Backwards Brienzer The attacker fixes his opponent’s foot in can impress everyone with your specialist position with his own foot. With a rotating knowledge, we provide you here with movement, usually combined with a head grip, he is then forced backwards. In contrast anoverview of the most important and to the forward Brienzer, the backwards impressive throws that are used Brienzer turns backwards. It is seen far more rarely than the forward variant. most frequently. Forward Brienzer Fussstich The attacker grasps his opponent’s belt over The attacker feints a turn with a body swerve. his shoulder, hooks his leg around his oppo- With his right foot, he then turns his opponent nent and grabs his opponent’s upper arm with over his left foot. This throw is also possible his other hand. The attacker now only has from the other side but is primarily performed to lift his opponent’s leg with his own and lean on the right-hand side. forward. The forward Brienzer is one of the most effective weapons of Swiss wrestlers who find themselves at a physical disadvantage. Hüfter The miracle weapon for smaller Swiss wrestlers: the attacker suddenly moves his buttocks to Gammen the left and turns his opponent onto his back As a spectator, you will often see the Gammen. over his own backside. An important part It is a classic attacking throw. The attacker of fixing yourself in position for this throw is hooks his left leg around his opponent’s right to grip the right upper arm of your opponent leg or vice versa. If the attacker now also with your left hand. This throw can also be ob- pushes forward from his upper body, his op- served in other combat sports such as judo ponent will lose his balance and fall to the and wrestling. ground backwards. The Gammen is especially likely to succeed if the opponent is smaller. Kurz Wyberhaken We now come to the most frequently used The aggressor attacks his opponent with a throw. The Kurz is the first standing throw Gammen. He then clamps his opponent’s leg learned by beginners. This grip is also so popular between his own legs and lifts the diagonally because it can be performed in many ways. positioned leg up. The opponent’s freedom With the most common variant, the attacker of movement is therefore restricted and it makes a body swerve to the left. He then puts is almost impossible for him to turn out of his left leg between the legs of his opponent this position. Incidentally, where the name before rotating to the right with a firm grip.

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