Schwingen Makes a Comeback

When it comes to national pastimes, America has baseball, many other countries have soccer, but when it comes to the mountainous country of Switzerland, they have something different altogether. They have Schwingen.

Schwingen is a form of Swiss wrestling that dates back hundreds of years. At first glance, Schwingen appears to be very similar to the Japanese sport of sumo wrestling, but it is in no way culturally related. In Schwingen, two opponents grapple each other and try to force the other person onto his back amidst a large pile of sawdust. This feat is accomplished by grabbing special handholds sewn into leather shorts which are worn over clothing. These shorts look much like Lederhosen without suspenders, but they have the special grips sewn into the thighs and belt loop. Schwingen wrestlers are required to always have at least one hand gripped onto one of these loops as they seek to get their opponents’ backs to touch the ground.

Though having once waned in popularity, Schwingen is now making a comeback both in Switzerland and on the shores of Turtle River Lake. Last summer, villagers and counselors alike from the German, French, and Italian Language Villages got to try their hands at this Swiss sport in the Helvetia Swiss program. Though a sandy beach replaced the sawdust ring and there were towering pines instead of snow-capped Alps, villagers still used authentic Schwingen shorts and learned from Swiss counselors sharing their national pastime.

Interested in learning about the culture and languages of Switzerland?  Try one of our Swiss Helvetia programs!

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