Ssirum

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Ssirûm, or Korean wrestling, has a very ancient origin. This is recorded at the pictures that are painted on walls in the ancient graves in Korea.

This kind of wrestling has formed in Korea. It was practiced on the occasion of local days of public enjoyment that are established by custom. The fights carried on among the strongest young men in villages. A man, who had remained on feet till the end, won. He obtained the title changsa ("the athlete" or "the strong man") and he received an ox.

As Korea industrially developed, this type of wrestling has become the real sport. It has a support in the form of the teams of professional sportsmen coming from colleges and universities and in the form of the organizations organizing the national Championship Ssirum Changsa and many competitions in the whole country.

Two fighters fight on the sand inside a circle. Two competitors are put on "satpa" - a piece of cloth that fastens a waist and thighs round. With use of the force of hands, of legs and of back, a competitor directs his efforts to turn over an opponent until he will fall. There exists techniques, in which a competitor does not use his own force, but he takes advantage of his opponent's force against him.

The typical wrestler of ssirum has suitable physical state of body: from 1,80 to 2 m of height and from 100 to 150 kg of weight. The fights can seem slow at first sight, but in reality they are very dynamic: they attract many persons thanks to the surprising rapidity with which a fighter overturns an opponent upside down and thus he reaches the victory.

Li Man-ki is one of the most worth mentioning professional sportsmen in this sport. In the eighties of the 20th century, he gained many times the title changsa (jangsa) and he has caused the interest of this sport.

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