Mongol Warriors, 2013
Each year during summer, Mongolia celebrates the Naadam. This week-long festivity celebrates the country’s independence from China.
While huge territories are given away to the highest bidder and while the successive governments destroy the nomad culture little by little, when comes the Naadam the whole country vibrates back in Genghis Khan times with traditional sporting events like Mongolian wrestling, archer competitions, horse racings, Kazakh eagle hunting…
The championships take place in the largest stadiums and are broadcasted on TV. Despite modern times and globalization, the Mongolian culture remains very strong. The events attract tens of thousands of spectators and a lot of participants who develop these old disciplines and make their warlike, mystical and religious culture continue. Besides, it is quite hard to take pictures of the competitors. They have all kinds of superstitions and malefic beliefs and are very afraid of evil spells and poisoning. Large sums of money are being bet on wrestling tournaments and horce racings, and in spite of the warriors’ obvious nobility, foul play is quite frequent and the art of war sometimes unfair.
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