Young people in Tu Ky love traditional animals

Special Class

From early morning, members of the An Thanh Commune Ethnic Wrestling Club (Tu Ky) gathered at the An Thanh Kindergarten yard to warm up and begin the exercises in the lesson plan that the club's Headmaster had prepared.

Excited after a week of studying, the weekend is the opportunity for students to immerse themselves in the joy of the sport they are passionate about and love.

Nguyen Bao Minh, 14 years old, from An Thanh commune, was born into a family with many famous wrestlers of Tu Ky such as Nguyen Van De and Nguyen Thanh Sen. His father, Nguyen Van Huy, was also a famous wrestler of Van To commune wrestling arena. Since childhood, Minh has loved traditional wrestling and was always fascinated when watching his father compete. When he learned that the An Thanh commune Traditional Wrestling Club was established, he immediately asked his parents to let him study. Thanks to his hard work, Minh has made a lot of progress and was evaluated by his teacher as one of the students with potential.

As for Pham Van Hoang Long, 12 years old, also from An Thanh commune, he came to traditional wrestling completely by chance. When the club was launched, Long and his classmates asked their families for permission to join.

“I really like traditional wrestling because it is a sport that demonstrates both strength and dexterity. Moreover, I know that this is a traditional sport of our ancestors, especially a sport typical of our hometown Tu Ky,” Pham Van Hoang Long happily shared.

These are two young wrestlers of the An Thanh Commune Ethnic Wrestling Club. Established in September 2023 with only 11 members, the club now has 35 members participating in regular activities. The club not only attracts members in An Thanh Commune but also in some other communes such as: Chi Minh, Van To, Hung Dao.

The current club president is Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Tung, a wrestler from An Thanh commune. Mr. Tung has been thinking about establishing this club for a long time.

Growing up from the wrestling camp of Van To commune, Mr. Tung has been following traditional wrestling for more than 20 years. His seniors such as Nguyen Hung Manh, Nguyen Hung Hoang... are shining examples for Mr. Tung to strive to follow. Thanks to that, after many years of pursuing, Mr. Tung has won many big prizes when participating in the provincial wrestling festival, becoming a famous wrestler in the "wrestling ring" of Tu Ky district as well as Hai Duong province. Mr. Tung often takes advantage of the weekends to practice and teach traditional wrestling techniques to the members of the club.

Preserve identity

Having a passionate and enthusiastic young generation to play the role of successor is not easy for traditional culture. National wrestling is no exception. In Tu Ky, the young generations following their ancestors to pursue and preserve this unique sport, although not many, have lit up hope for the future.

According to Mr. Tung, the first important thing to attract members to participate is to promote the meaning and cultural beauty of national wrestling. Then, to reassure parents about sending their children to participate, Mr. Tung has prepared a suitable lesson plan. “When joining the club, students will be trained in basic techniques for a long time and thoroughly. Only when the coach feels that the students have mastered the basic knowledge will they continue to teach advanced techniques as well as let them compete to improve their level,” said Mr. Tung.

Mr. Do Trong Ha, Deputy Director in charge of the Cultural Information Center of Tu Ky district, said that the establishment of the first ethnic wrestling club in the district is an important step in preserving and promoting this sport - a typical cultural feature of Tu Ky district.

Over the years, Tu Ky district has affirmed its brand in traditional wrestling by always achieving high results in provincial competitions. Notably, at the Traditional Wrestling Competition of Hai Duong province at the Con Son - Kiep Bac Spring Festival this year, Tu Ky won 5 out of 7 gold medals in all weight categories, ranking first in the whole delegation. At the same time, it has defended the top position of the competition for 5 consecutive years, an achievement that no other unit has achieved.

However, the current difficulty of this sport is that it has not been widely developed, because it is a special sport. Many localities have not really paid attention to or invested in developing traditional sports...

More regrettably, the wrestling furnace in Van To commune - considered the cradle of traditional wrestling in Tu Ky district - is no longer in operation. Wrestlers are now temporarily participating in activities at the Traditional Wrestling Club of An Thanh commune.

“In the coming time, all levels and sectors need to allocate funds and invest in facilities not only for traditional wrestling but also for other sports. There needs to be a development project to turn traditional wrestling into an OCOP product associated with tourism, thereby creating conditions to maintain regular activities. At the same time, it is necessary to honor and have preferential treatment for athletes who continuously achieve high results at provincial tournaments," said Mr. Do Trong Ha.