Wrestling

You would be wrong if you thought that wrestling involved oversized musclemen performing staged fights in a ring to the sounds of heavy metal music.

In fact, as one of the world's oldest and most prestigious sports, it was included in the first Olympic Games which took place in Greece during 776 B.C.

According to Ho Yan-kit, chairman of Hong Kong Wrestling Federation (HKWF), it is a sport that requires practitioners to be quick and clever rather than strong. Wrestling is a highly technical form of martial arts even though it does not involve spectacular kicks and punches.

'Wrestling is a wushu [martial art] that comes from the heart, which means your consciousness is more important than your body movements,' Ho said. 'About 70 per cent of wrestling is about mastering techniques and only 30 per cent involves your strength.'

There are at least 40 variations of wrestling practised around the world. The three most common forms of wrestling are Greco-Roman style, freestyle and Chinese style.

Ho said Greco-Roman wrestling originated from ancient Greece, where wrestlers were anointed with olive oil and were not permitted to trip their opponents or grab their legs. Freestyle wrestling a variation on the Greco-Roman style that involves some footwork.

Chinese style wrestling, during ancient times, was a 'compulsory subject' for the emperor's body guards, who were not allowed to carry weapons. One of the most prominent streams of Chinese style wrestling is Mongolian wrestling, which is similar to sumo wrestling.