Issue date: 16 Jul, 2008
Wrestling as a traditional sport is one of the oldest games know. It was practised in the Olympic games of ancient Greece and was a training technique for gladiators in the Roman times. This issue is devoted to the Lucha Leonesa, Lucha Canaria and Palo Canario.
The Lucha Leonesa, also known as Aluche, is practised in the north-western region of the province of León. Its origins go back to the friendly disputes between farmers and stockbreeders where two contenders played off against each other and used different tricks to bring down each other. The game is played in an 8 to 12 diameter circle of tall grass with the players wearing shorts, bare footed and a leather belt to which they have to hold to compete. Points can be scored for a full Fall, which occurs when one wrestler holds both his opponents' shoulders on the mat simultaneously, or by a mid Fall, which is when a wrestler lets go of the belt or touches the mat with his chest or side. Wrestling can be practiced in twos or by teams and in this last case there are three varieties: light middle or heavy weight. The Lucha Canaria takes place in a sand pit with two concentric circles 10 to 12 meters in diameter. The fight is called agarrada and the object is to make their opponent touch the sand with any part of their body, except the feet. Wrestlers wear loose shorts of a very tough resistant material to allow the opponent to grip them. They use different techniques called mañas to throw their opponent off balance using hands, legs, hips or a mixture. It is a sport played in teams of 12 to 16 wrestlers. The Palo Canario is a traditional sport of stick fighting practiced in the Canary Islands. It involves the combative use of a slender stick that is wielded in both hands, and is characterized by extremely fluid and skilful means of attacks and defense. Sticks can be 3 meters long, medium sized (palo canario) or 60cm short. The Palo Canario may be described as a form of stick fencing between two players that stand sideways in “cuadras” and changed from one cuadra to another as the opponent does. The stick is moved in circles by continuously twisting the wrist and holding the stick with both hands. The technique is passed on from one generation to the other and is very popular in Gran Canaria and Tenerife. The issue is made up of a souvenir sheet of three stamps and vignettes depicting different scenes of wrestling.
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