Kirkpinar Oil Wrestling Festival – Edirne, Turkey

Where: Near Edirne, Turkey (in Sarayiçi)

When: June 30 – July 6, 2012

Where To Stay: Edirne Hotels

There’s nothing like watching 1,000 guys get slicked up with oil, and wrestling.

The Kirkpinar Oil Wrestling Festival has been a tradition for nearly 650 years in Turkey, and is one of the oldest wrestling festivals in the world.

A number of different forms of wrestling contests take place during the Kirkpinar Oil Wrestling Festival, and there is also folk dancing, belly dancing, local food including roasted lams, performing artists, and other events.

The Kirkpinar Wrestling Contest takes place within the outdoor field Sarayiçi Er Meydanı where the wrestlers battle for three days, until the finals are held on the last day. Each wrestling match has a forty minute time limit and a seven minute overtime. Winners receive $100,000.

Participants wear nothing more than a pair of leather pants and are coated from head to toe with olive oil.

Click here for more information on the Kirkpinar Oil Wrestling Festival.