Inuit Wrestling
Traditional Inuit wrestling in a firm grip behind the back. According to the Canadian federation, it is still practised in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.
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Training
Who It Suits
Organisation & Competition
What the style is built from
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About Inuit Wrestling
Inuit wrestling is a traditional wrestling of the Inuit. The Canadian national federation Wrestling Canada Lutte says that the Inuit in the Canadian Arctic have practised it for thousands of years and the tradition continues in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. According to its rules, wrestlers stand chest to chest with hands joined behind the opponent's back and try to put the opponent down in the embrace. Besides wrestling, there is a wider range of Inuit games. The Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada says that these games are played in all circumpolar countries, in Canada, the USA, Greenland and Russia, and serve survival, entertainment and celebration. According to the Atlas, pulling and pushing games strengthen the body for hunting. At the Arctic Winter Games, athletes compete in Arctic Sports disciplines, for example high kicks, knuckle hop, arm pull and head pull. Per the official 2024 technical package, wrestling is not among them. According to its own website, the Games first took place in 1970 in Yellowknife.
History
The Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada says Inuit games serve two main purposes, survival and entertainment or celebration. It says they are played at events such as the sun's return after a month of winter darkness, a young hunter's first catch, a child's birth, the death of a family or community member and a successful hunting party's return. Wrestling Canada Lutte writes the Inuit have wrestled since time immemorial and the tradition continues in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.
How it differs
The Arctic Winter Games rules describe arm pull and head pull as arm and head pulling contests, and wrestling is not among the Arctic Sports disciplines. The World Eskimo Indian Olympics discipline list, according to the National Park Service, does not include wrestling either and lists, for example, high kicks, stick pulls, knuckle hop and walrus pull. Wrestling Canada Lutte describes a separate standing Inuit wrestling.
Technique
According to the 2024 Wrestling Canada Lutte teaching material, wrestlers stand face to face, chest to chest, in an over and under grip, with one arm under the opponent's arm and the other over it, and hands joined behind the opponent's back. The head stays on the side of the upper arm. The aim is to put the opponent on the ground in the embrace, and whoever breaks the grip loses. Tripping and backward-arching throws are forbidden, the hands must stay on the back and there is no time limit.
Training
Wrestling Canada Lutte recommends starting instruction on the knees and only then moving to standing. Its material is intended for coaches in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut who want to introduce a wrestling program. The Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada states that knowledge of the games is passed on mainly informally and orally.
Competition
The official Arctic Sports technical package for the 2024 Arctic Winter Games lists, among others, the one-foot and two-foot high kick, the Alaskan high kick, the kneel jump, knuckle hop, head pull and arm pull. In arm pull, opponents sit facing each other, hook arms at the elbow and try to straighten the other's arm, and the best of three tries wins. In head pull, they lie face down facing each other with a loop on the head and pull their heads back. According to the package, the rules are based on traditional customs of Arctic peoples, and a team has at most 18 competitors and 4 coaches.
Today
CBC News reported in July 2024 on a community Inuit wrestling event in Ulukhaktok in the Northwest Territories, attended by children, youth, adults and elders and co-organized by the N.W.T. Amateur Wrestling Association. The International Journal of Circumpolar Health states that eighteen-year-old Inuit wrestler Eekeeluak Avalak won Nunavut's first gold medal at the 2022 Canada Summer Games. The Atlas calls the Arctic Winter Games and the World Eskimo Indian Olympics important meeting places for athletes.
Did you know
According to its own website, the Arctic Winter Games originated in 1969 and first took place in 1970 in Yellowknife with teams from Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Alaska. Greenland and northern Quebec joined later, and they also hosted the Games. In 2020 the Games were canceled because of COVID-19.
Frequently asked questions
What does Inuit wrestling look like?
According to the Wrestling Canada Lutte rules, wrestlers stand chest to chest with hands joined behind the opponent's back and try to put the opponent on the ground. Whoever breaks the grip loses.
Is Inuit wrestling contested at the Arctic Winter Games?
The official Arctic Sports technical package for 2024 does not list wrestling among the disciplines. Competitions include arm pull and head pull, among others.
Where is Inuit wrestling practised today?
Wrestling Canada Lutte states that the tradition continues in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. CBC News reported in 2024 on a community Inuit wrestling event in Ulukhaktok.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.