South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"

By Awan Achiek
Thousands of wrestling fans gathered at Aluak-luak payam of Yirol West County of Lakes State on Saturday to witness a rare wrestling competition between Rumbek East and Yirol West Counties.
The wrestling aimed to promote a culture of peace, unity, and reconciliation among the communities of the State.
The match attracted thousands of spectators, including government officials who were treated to a spectacle of giant wrestlers.
The game ended 11:3 in favor of Yirol West, who were crowned champions of Saturday’s peaceful match.
Lakes State was mired in rampant communal violence characterized by cattle raiding, revenge killings, and road ambushes.
Gen. Rin Tueng Mabior, Governor of Lakes State, said wrestling is a unifying factor that brings people together to build strong social cohesion, and reconciliation.
“All people of Lake State are present here; they are very happy, and living in peace, and God willing, peace will prevail,” Mabior said while gracing the match on Saturday in Aluak-Aluak payam.
Mabior said the wrestling attracted and brought together communities of eight counties with their neighbors.
“This is the beginning of Christmas and the beginning of New Year celebrations, and all civilians in the state are very happy, and we hope 2025 will be the year of peace and development,” he said.
He urged the communities to embrace peace and tranquility among themselves.
“The wrestling is the only thing that can unite people, as you have seen, and hereby calling for the unity of our people, and we want to tell people of South Sudan that Lakes State is peaceful,” he said.
The match was attended by the state minister of youth, the finance minister, the commissioner of Rumbek East, the executive director of Aluak-Aluak Payam, the commander of SSDPF, and others.
Wrestling is a very popular sport among the Dinka, Mundari, and Lotuko communities.
The sport is seen as an avenue for bringing warring communities to coexist in peace.
The Mundari, Dinka, and other Nilotic tribes are cattle-oriented, and they practice wrestling as part of their culture and tradition.
They have seasonal initiation ceremonies, a stage of passage to adulthood in which they conduct activities like wrestling, use of sticks, and facial scarification on their foreheads.
These ethnic tribes still want to maintain their culture around the world, showing off their traditional customs in spite of the ongoing conflict.
The wrestlers wore leopard-print skirts flapping and as well as feathers of ostrich on their heads.