Oil-wrestling tradition lives on as thousands gather for 664th Kırkpınar in Edirne

EDİRNE

Thousands gathered in the northwestern city of Edirne as the 664th edition of the historic Kırkpınar Oil Wrestling Festival came to a close on July 6, drawing thousands of spectators to the city for a weekend of fierce competition, deep-rooted tradition and passionate fanfare.

The final day of the event began with matches in the youngest categories before top-tier “başpehlivan” wrestlers, meaning chief wrestlers, took to the field.

Following the traditional draw ceremony, the fighters lined up to face their sparring partners in the blazing heat of the summer.

The aim is to overwhelm an opponent by using his strength and weight against him, to force him to the ground and to pin him on his back.

Legend has it that Edirne, the capital of the Ottoman Empire until the fall of Constantinople, has hosted the Kırkpınar tournament each year since 1357.

The story goes that two soldiers who were brothers wrestled each other to the death, thus the festival was born.

This year’s tournament followed a new competitive format introduced last year by the Turkish Wrestling Federation, which launched the Turkish Oil Wrestling League as a qualifier system for Kırkpınar.

Based on league performance, the top 32 wrestlers secured direct entry to the festival, while eight others joined after advancing through preliminary rounds.

As in previous years, the event attracted oil-wrestling fans from all over Türkiye, overwhelming the city’s accommodation capacity.

With hotels fully booked, many visitors set up tents around the famed Selimiye Mosque and in nearby parks and gardens, forming a makeshift community affectionately nicknamed “free palace.”

Some camped in tents, while others spent the night on cardboard mats under the open sky.

“It’s been our dream to come here,” said Nevzat Bozca, a first-time visitor from the western city of Manisa. “Once you arrive, it doesn’t matter where you sleep.”

A veteran attendee named Mustafa Kırık, on the other hand, noted that he has been coming from the northwestern city of Sakarya since 1982, proving that Kırkpınar is a tradition that keeps calling one back.