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NATIONAL WRESTLING AND THE HISTORY OF ITS DEVELOPMENT
Jenis Khudaybergenov
Assistant lecturer, Nukus branch of the Institute of Retraining and Advanced Training of
Specialists in Physical Education and Sports under the State Academy of Sports of Uzbekistan
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15771267
Abstract.
This article discusses sports and national wrestling.
Keywords:
wrestling, sport, physical education, sports activities.
Wrestling, which has become a universal value from a national value and has captivated the
world's attention today, has a deep history as a spiritual value and sport. The material evidence found
as a result of research, studies, archaeological scientific searches and observations by historians,
paleontologists, philologists and philosophers confirms that wrestling is at least 2.5-3 thousand
years old1. In the 4th century, agile acrobats were very popular among the peoples living in Central
Asia. Agile, physically very tough drummers, screaming symphonists went to countries such as
Greece, Byzantium and Iran, where they showed their amazing and dangerous games, various circus
scenes of clowns and jesters, irrigated with sharp satire and laughter, the games of jugglers flying
like arrows and incredible wrestlers, the lively dances of wooden legs and horse games, the deep
meaning of words and verses of the musicians, the exercises adapted to these games.
In ancient times, the community imposed certain obligations on its contemporaries in the
field of physical education. Young girls and boys were required to have such skills as agility,
endurance, agility, determination and courage that were necessary in life. According to the
information given in the "Oynoma", during the Sassanid period, children of nobles lived in their
parents' houses until the age of 6, and after reaching the age of 7, they were transferred to state
education, placed in special schools at the disposal of the rulers, and studied in these schools until
the age of 19. People who were famous for their knowledge and bravery served as mentors in these
schools. Most importantly, special attention was paid to the issue of physical education of children
in these schools2. The great scholar Ibn Sina divides physical education into two.
The first type is the actions that a person performs in the process of work, and the second is
special physical education. The five-volume "Al-Qanun" contains a description of the structure of
the human div, the etymology of diseases, teachings on a healthy lifestyle, and instructions for
treating diseases with the forces of nature and medicines. Ibn Sina's ideas about preventive measures
are of particular importance. He takes care of people's longevity and teaches them the necessary
procedures for living a healthy life and strengthening their health throughout their lives. He
considers choosing food appropriate for age and health, eating and drinking in moderation, keeping
the div clean, and performing physical exercises to be the means of longevity. Ibn Sina especially
emphasized long and fast walking, wrestling, and horse riding among various exercises. According
to Ibn Sina, the main goal of exercises is to improve blood circulation, breathing, and metabolism
in the div. In works such as “Shahnoma”, “Qobusnoma”, “Zafarnoma”, “Boburnoma”, which are
considered masterpieces of Eastern literature, bright drawings about the lives and appearance of
wrestlers, colorful images and descriptions that decorate their spiritual world are presented.
Alisher Navoi was also fascinated by wrestling, the wrestling competition that spread its
popularity to seven climates. Therefore, in many works, he wrote down amazing and incredible
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events and scenes about the life and activities of wrestlers. In a special “Holoti Pahlavon
Muhammad” (biography) dedicated to wrestlers, he mentioned that the genius creator, the unrivaled
wrestler of his time, Pahlavon Muhammad, in addition to the art of wrestling, perfectly mastered
religious and secular sciences, including astronomy and mathematics, chemistry and philosophy,
literary and art criticism, law and other knowledge. He especially emphasized that he created famous
melodies such as "Chorgoh", "Segoh", "Panjgoh", and had a high taste and knowledge, especially
in the field of poetry. Since the great wrestler and hero Pahlavan Muhammad, who did not neglect
the art of wrestling, had a subtle understanding of poetry, poets of that time were eager to show new
works to him first and seek advice. Pahlavan Muhammad was also an accomplished physician. He
debated medical issues with famous physicians of his time, Mawlana Qutbiy, Mawlana A'loulmulk,
and Mawlana Abdusalom, and the physicians naturally put the wrestler's treatment methods into
practice in their works. They noted that Pahlavan Muhammad's manners, generosity, innocence,
sincerity, courage, hospitality, and honesty were great qualities inherent in wrestlers.
Amir Temur, who built a powerful empire in his time, was not only a great statesman, an
enlightened ruler, and a capable commander, but also a strong wrestler who perfectly mastered the
science of wrestling. Therefore, he attached great importance to the role of wrestling in training the
youth of the country, raising them to be patriotic, capable, and mature individuals. In Sharafiddin
Ali Yazdiy's "Zafarnoma" and Alisher Navoi's "Nasoyim ul-muhabbat", interesting information is
provided about hundreds of unique Uzbek wrestlers during the time of Sohibkiran Amir Temur,
such as the wrestler Bobohoki (originally from the Shibergon region in northern Afghanistan),
Uchqara Bahodir (originally from the Khatirchi district of the Navoi region), Abbas Usman Jolayir
(originally from the Karakul district of the Bukhara region). In Samarkand, the center of ancient
Sogdiana, the Navruz holiday has always been celebrated with folk performances. Representatives
of the people, artists, bakhshis, singers, hafiz, drummers, dancers demonstrated their art. At these
holidays, the people watched the performances of drummers and especially the races with great
interest. But not every holiday was without wrestling. As a result of the competitions, one of the
wrestlers every year received the title of Sogdiana wrestler. During the holidays, this wrestler sat in
a prestigious place and invited everyone who wanted to compete to compete. Usually there were
many applicants. Sometimes the fight between the main wrestler and opponents worthy of him in
strength lasted even for several days. The wrestler who defeated his opponent in the fight was
considered the winner of the next year. In addition, there is a lot of information that wrestling
competitions were always held in Samarkand during the days of the Eid al-Adha holiday and
attracted a large audience. Oral folklore also provides valuable information about the sport of
wrestling. From such sources, we can get information not only about the existence of wrestling in
the past, but also about its characteristics, conditions and techniques of wrestling. National wrestling
is also reflected in fairy tales.
For example, the wrestler Hirs used a technique called “qogma”. Even now, wrestlers use
this technique. Only this technique is called the “supurma” method today. The epic poem
“Alpomish” occupies a special place among the works of folk art. The epic poem depicts the
competition of wrestlers, their ability to use strength, agility, endurance, and bravery in the field of
fighting techniques in an artistic way. From the wrestling scene depicted in Alpomish, it can be seen
that wrestlers had special clothes and belts, that the fight was not limited in time, and that grabbing
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their opponent by the belt was considered the main method. Mominjon Muhammadjonov’s book
“Turmush urinihlari” provides information about how the local people loved wrestling: Ahmad
wrestler Tolipboy oglu, who lived in the Chakar mahalla of Tashkent, had not a single wrestler left
in Central Asia who had not fought and defeated. At that time, in 1895, the world-famous German
wrestler Reppel came to Tashkent and amazed all the spectators by showing his wrestling skills in
the circus. He weighed 8.5 pounds (133 kg), and he could lift an 8-pound iron bar with both hands
and a six-pound iron bar with his shoulders. This wrestler, hearing the reputation of Ahmed, decided
to fight him. The twenty-eight-year-old Ahmed agreed to the fight on the condition that whoever
fell and got injured would be punished. That day, the circus was full of spectators. The two wrestlers
fought, and Ahmed knocked Reppel to the ground with a spinning top. After that, Ahmed's fame
grew again.
From the examples given, it is clear that, thousands of years ago, there was a wrestling with
a sufficiently developed and clearly formed classification and system of methods in Uzbekistan, and
even then there were two types of wrestling: grabbing the opponent's waist in advance according to
the rules, and grabbing the opponent voluntarily. In both the first and second cases, grabbing the
opponent's leg with the hand was prohibited. These two types of wrestling are technically similar to
modern wrestling and belt wrestling. The Uzbek people have long considered wrestling as a means
of physical education. The people respected wrestlers-wrestlers, who embodied strength, endurance,
willpower and courage, the moral purity of the working people.
Wrestling competitions were held on religious and family holidays, and sometimes on
ordinary days during free time. These competitions were widely held on the days of the Navruz
holiday and were held as a mass national championship. The competitions were attended by
wrestlers from different cities and villages. When choosing a pair of wrestlers, their weight was
determined by eye. Before the competition, the wrestlers used exercises such as massaging and
stroking the div as exercises to write the rhythm of the legs. The wrestlers competed in traditional
clothing. According to the Fergana rules, wrestlers fought in cotton robes, while according to the
Bukhara rules, wrestlers wore a cotton-free avra tunic. In both wrestling, the wrestlers' waists were
tied with belts. Wrestlers sometimes wore mahsi and fought mostly barefoot. This type of wrestlers'
clothing has been preserved to this day. In the past, Bukharacha kurash, that is, Kurash, was
practiced in the territories of Bukhara, Khorezm, Samarkand, Kashkadarya, Surkhandarya, Jizzakh
regions and the Republic of Karakalpakstan, and Ferganacha kurash, that is, belt wrestling, was
practiced in the territories of the Fergana Valley, Tashkent, and Syrdarya regions. Historical
wrestlers of Uzbekistan can be divided into three large groups: 1) Sipohi (valued) wrestlers - who
wrestled and fought (for example, wrestler Bobohoki); 2) Goshtingir (wrestler) wrestlers - who only
wrestled, were engaged in science, enlightenment and artistic creation, and belonged to the Sufi
order (such as Pahlavan Mahmud and Pahlavan Muhammad); 3) Ustoz wrestlers - who did not
wrestle or fight, but trained hundreds of wrestling students (such as Usullikota, Chokurdamota).
Training in national wrestling is a purposefully organized pedagogical process aimed at
forming a system of skills and competencies, the main characteristic of which is knowledge of the
theory of national wrestling and its teaching methods, as well as the wrestler's competitive,
refereeing, pedagogical, and organizational activities.
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