This year event was launched on May 28. The annual festival, rooted in the cultural traditions of the Kinh Bac region, commemorates Tam Giang Saints, sixth-century military figures revered for helping repel foreign invaders.

Standing Vice Chairman of the Bac Ninh People’s Committee Mai Son beats the drum to open the Van Village mud ball wrestling festival.

The highlight of the event is the mud wrestling field, covering around 200 square meters.

Before the competition begins, women in traditional costumes carried water from the Cau River and poured it onto the arena, creating a layer of soft mud symbolizing fertility and prosperity.

Players compete fiercely for the ball.

Sixteen selected players, known locally as “quan cau,” competed in the contest. Chosen for their physical strength and moral character, the players were divided into two teams representing Thuong (Upper) Hamlet and Ha (Lower) Hamlet.

A 20-kg wooden ball made from jackfruit wood was placed at the center of the field as drums echo through the festival grounds.

Players battle fiercely for possession of the wooden ball during the match.

Bare-chested players wearing traditional loincloths wrestled fiercely on the slippery mud surface, drawing cheers from spectators with dramatic tackles, blocks and struggles for possession.

According to local beliefs, the wooden ball symbolizes the sun, a source of life and energy, while the contest reflects people’s hopes for favorable weather, abundant harvests and harmony with nature.

Quan ho performance at the event.

The festival runs through May 30 and includes performances of intangible cultural heritage, community cultural exchanges and Quan Ho folk music programs staged by the Bac Ninh Provincial Folk Song Theater.

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In his opening speech, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Thai Van Thanh noted that over 45 years, the event evolved from “Songs from Sen Village” and the “Sen Village Singing Festival” into the Sen Village Festival in 2002. Since then, it has been staged annually at the provincial level and every five years on a national scale.

 

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