Mongolia: Celebrating Nadaam | EurasiaNet.org

Mongolia: Celebrating Nadaam | EurasiaNet.org: "Every year in July Mongolians mark Nadaam, the national festival featuring what locals call “eriin gurvan nadaam,” or the “three manly sports” of wrestling, horseracing and archery.

The festival dates back to the times of Genghis Khan, who supposedly introduced the competition as a means to keep his soldiers in fighting form during times of peace. This year’s national Nadaam festival was dedicated to what Mongolians claim as the 2,222nd year of Mongolia’s statehood."

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Naadam: Mongolia’s summer horse festival | Asia News – Politics, Media, Education | Asian Correspondent

Naadam: Mongolia’s summer horse festival | Asia News – Politics, Media, Education | Asian Correspondent: "About an hour and a half northeast of Ulaanbaatar Mongolia, the Bayan Goliin Dugang  Naadam took place in the countryside the first week in July.  Naadam is a UNESCO World Heritage designated festival representing Mongolian culture.  After driving through the city to the outskirts, we went on an informal dirt road that traversed the steppes.  As our car neared a large campsite, a group of horses rushed past with their young riders on top followed by trucks and motorcycles.

“They’re going to the turning point,” said a Dutch friend who has lived in Mongolia for over a decade.  The races are long-distance and take between 16-30 kilometers to complete, depending on the race."

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Naadam: 12 Must-See Photos From Mongolia's 'Three Games of Men' Festival | Asia Society

Naadam: 12 Must-See Photos From Mongolia's 'Three Games of Men' Festival | Asia Society: "Naadam is the biggest festival of the year for Mongolians. Although the event incorporates Mongolia's traditional nomadic, sporting, and military cultures, the three-day festival formally celebrates the Mongolian Revolution of 1921 and the nation's independence from Chinese occupation. Each Naadam festival kicks off with a grand procession featuring dancers, horse riders, athletes, musicians, and monks.
The festival's local Mongolian name, "eriin gurvan naadam," is translated as the "three games of men." That is, archery, horse racing, and wrestling. Whereas horse racing and archery competitions have gradually incorporated women participants over the years, wrestling continues to be a highly male-dominated sport."

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Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan - Long race to danger for Mongolia child jockeys

Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan - Long race to danger for Mongolia child jockeys: "Just before little Baasanjav Lkhagvadorj was lifted onto a horse for a race across Mongolia’s open steppe last week, he asked his father to bless him with a kiss. Minutes later the seven-year-old was killed in a fall, the latest in a rising toll among the country’s child jockeys.

As Mongolia’s biggest national festival, Naadam, begins on Thursday, controversy is mounting over the way unprotected young riders are risking injury and even death.

Horses are at the core of Mongolian culture – there are dozens of words for the colours of an equine coat, and children learn to ride almost as soon as they can walk.

Horseracing is one of the “three manly sports” – along with wrestling and archery – that make up the Naadam celebrations, where the races are among the longest in the world, up to 28 kilometres (17 miles) depending on the age of the horse, four times the length of Britain’s Grand National."

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Mongolia's Junior Genghis Khans Face Rising Risks

Mongolia's Junior Genghis Khans Face Rising Risks: "Just before little Baasanjav Lkhagvadorj was lifted onto a horse for a race across Mongolia's open steppe, he asked his father to bless him with a kiss.

Minutes later the seven-year-old was killed in a fall, the latest in a rising toll among the country's child jockeys.

As Mongolia's biggest national festival, Naadam, begins on Thursday, controversy is mounting over the way unprotected young riders are risking injury and even death.


Mongolia's jockeys start young. Photo: Reuters
Horses are at the core of Mongolian culture - there are dozens of words for the colours of an equine coat, and children learn to ride almost as soon as they can walk."

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5000 Mongolian folk dancers gather at Sukhbaatar Square

5000 Mongolian folk dancers gather at Sukhbaatar Square: "This year almost 5,000 traditional dancers from 21 aimags and the City have gathered at Sukhbaatar Square to perform a Mongolian folk dance in the effort to hold a Guinness World Record for the folk dance which represent Mongolians unique culture and heritage from the ancient days.

The Mongolian ethnic folk dance is undivided part of Mongolians` character, feature and personality.

The Mongolian folk dance involves over 4000 motions whereas gymnastic involves 2000 motions.

Mongolian folk dancers, including over 10 ethnic groups dressed in their own traditional costumes, have gathered  to set the Guinness World Record with the unique cultural heritage. These 5000 dancers will conduct a huge performance.
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