Camel Wrestling a Major League Sport in Turkey

By HARMONIE TOROS
.c The Associated Press

SELCUK, Turkey (Jan. 22) - It was the battle of the giants: Cobra versus
Thunder, furry neck to furry neck, using every trick in the book to wrestle
the other to the ground. Cobra tried to lock Thunder in a scissor move, while
Thunder countered by tying his neck around Cobra.

It took 20 sturdy Turks to divide the two as a crowd of more than 10,000
cheered on a favorite winter pastime: camel wrestling.

The judges ruled Sunday's competition a draw between the two nearly one-ton
animals.

For more than 100 years, camel wrestling has drawn crowds in western Turkey
during the winter months - camel mating season and a time when farmers have
little to do on their fields. ``I learned to love this from my father, and
now I bring my son,'' Ibrahim Soysal said at Sunday's match, oblivious to the
large white stains of camel saliva on his jacket.

Male camels naturally fight for their females during mating season - their
readiness to do battle visible in the white froth coming from their mouths,
the tension in their hind legs and their tails whipping at their backs.
``Crazy Camel'' from Umurlu won't fight without his scantily clad beloved,
Emine, prodding him on. Emine wears just a carpet covering her hump - in
sharp contrast to the male wresters, bedecked in huge bead-embroidered
saddles, veil-draped headdresses and fluorescent pompoms swaying on the
sides.

But, for all the glory, wrestling camels never consummate their lust during
their fighting careers; sexual activity would diminish their determination to
fight. For a winner to be declared, one of the camels has to run out of the
arena, cry out of frustration after being dominated by the opponent, or fall
to the ground. Most matches end in ties because their owners fear their
prized camels could be harmed. During matches, the camels' mouths are tied to
keep them from biting each other.

Sunday's gathering in Selcuk, the largest camel-wrestling festival in Turkey,
gathered 96 fighting camels. Smaller festivals are organized across the
Aegean from December to March. Winners at Sunday's competition received a
machine-made carpet and all participants were given about $30 for
transportation - nowhere near the minimum $1,500 per year it costs to
maintain a camel. A good wrestling camel costs $20,000 on average, with
camels from Iran especially valued.

But owning a good fighter is a sign of power, and many village leaders buy
them to emphasize their positions. ``He won!'' exclaimed Ahmet Uza, standing
by his camel ``Master of the Universe.'' ``It's important for the family and
the village to win,'' added Uza, wearing the eight-cornered flat cap, leather
boots and jacket, and tweed trousers traditionally worn by camel owners.

It's also sheer fun, say camel owners and spectators. The matches are
accompanied by traditional music and entire families set up barbecues on the
hills overlooking the arena, feasting on beef, chicken and camel sausage
washed down by raki, Turkey's strong anisette alcohol. ``This is the best
kind of entertainment,'' said Selami Onder, who grows apples and peaches in
the village of Yapildak.

Residents hope that camel wrestling will increase winter tourism to the
region and officials in Selcuk, a small Aegean town just a few miles from the
ancient Greek city of Ephesus, hope to attract thousands of tourists in the
coming years.

George and Andre Maliasinski of Raleigh, N.C., were on hand for the weekend's
festivities. ``This is something very traditional,'' said George Maliasinski,
a biology professor, as he watched camel owners proudly parading their
animals Saturday for judges to elect the ``handsomest'' camel.