Japanese wrestler moves to Senegal to master ancient martial art

Record ID: 1729427

  • Title: Japanese wrestler moves to Senegal to master ancient martial art
  • Date: 14th June 2023
  • Summary: THIES, SENEGAL (MAY 13, 2023) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF JAPANESE WRESTLER, SHOGO UOZUMI, WRESTLING OPPONENT IN SENEGALESE 'LAAMB' STYLE UOZUMI AND SENEGALESE WRESTLERS DOING JUMP SQUATS UOZUMI AND OTHER WRESTLERS DOING LUNGES MEN WRESTLING UOZUMI DANCING WITH OTHER WRESTLERS (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) JAPANESE WRESTLER, SHOGO UOZUMI, SAYING: "I just finished practice today with the
  • Embargoed: 28th June 2023 07:57
  • Keywords: africa asia feature freestyle greco-roman human-led japan laamb lifestyle martial arts olympics senegal sports thies tokyo travel wrestling
  • Location: THIES & SAINT LOUIS, SENEGAL
  • City: THIES & SAINT LOUIS, SENEGAL
  • Country: Senegal
  • Topics: Africa,Sport,Wrestling
  • Reuters ID: LVA001763605062023RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: In a dusty alleyway surrounded by brick buildings, Japanese wrestler Shogo Uozumi lay face-first in the Senegalese sand after having been thrown in the air by an oversized opponent.
    A moment's pause, then he rose, dusting off and rejoining the conclave of wrestlers wearing little more than loincloths.
    Resuming his stance, Uozumi smiled.
    He had left Tokyo behind, and was now committed to mastering Senegalese wrestling and imparting his knowledge of the Olympic wrestling styles on those willing to learn.
    "Every time I practice, I feel myself getting stronger," he said, catching his breath. "I feel a lot of joy and growth."
    Senegalese wrestling, or 'Laamb', evolved from a post-harvest pastime to the country's national sport.
    Anchored in ancestral war rituals, it blends physical combat and acrobatics, with victory marked by an opponent's back meeting the ground.
    Uozumi discovered the style during a trip to Senegal with Japan's aid agency in 2017.
    Similar cultures of hospitality, known as Teranga in Senegal and Omotenashi in Japan, captivated him also.
    Since relocating to Senegal full-time in 2022, Uozumi has taken up residence with a community of wrestlers in Thies, Senegal's third largest city.
    He has also set up an academy of three dozen students who he's helping prepare for the 2026 Youth Olympics.
    "He showed me what it means to commit oneself, to leave one's country without being well paid, knowing that he would only have enough to live on, to develop our sport," said Cheikh Badiane, Laamb wrestler and one of Uozumi's closest friends.
    "I would help him whatever it cost me."
    At a national wrestling competition last month in Saint-Louis, Senegal's colonial capital, hundreds jostled for views as Uozumi and Badiane coached their wrestlers from the sidelines.
    One of their students even went home with the silver medal in her weight class.
    "Senegalese people live together, with their families, and they all support each other in this way," Uozumi said upon returning to Thies. "That's my kind of culture."
    (Production: Kouam Joel Honore, Ngouda Dione, Cooper Inveen)
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