Gouren

Gouren is a style of folk wrestling which has been established in Brittany for several centuries. It is practiced mainly in Brittany, but also in some neighboring regions, in particular through international meetings organized by the FILC (Fédération Internationale des Luttes Celtiques), for example in Cornwall, in Scotland and a Gouren skol has opened in New Orleans, in the United States.
In today's France, Gouren is overseen by the Fédération de Gouren which has an agreement with the Fédération Française de Lutte (French Wrestling Federation).
Gouren is a standing wrestling art with a shirt on mat ("pallen"). As soon as one of the wrestlers touches the ground with a part of the body other than his feet, the fight is stopped, the protagonists get up, then resume the fight after shaking hands.
Wrestling (gouren in Breton) was used by most European armies before the use of firearms. Thus, when Briton immigrants settled massively in Armorica in the 4th century, it is probable that they brought with them martial techniques which, added to local ones, gradually led to the gouren that arose in the late Middle Ages. If it was undoubtedly originally mainly practiced by the nobles and the people of arms, the gouren was then borrowed, mainly after the Renaissance and the arrival of firearms, by the common people, as a popular fun practice. The archives tell us that many “minor nobles” excelled in this art, sometimes fighting with peasants or millers. Its organization was generally subject to seigniorial authorizations and it preserved from its noble origins the aiguillettes, gloves and doublets, trophies which were offered to victors until the French Revolution.
The term gouren is mentioned as early as 1464 in the Catholicon, the very first trilingual dictionary.
Writings by Ambroise Paré describe the Breton wrestling in 1543 as it was then practiced in western Brittany.
The 19th century saw municipal authorities organize numerous "tournaments", often at the time of the National Day, in order to show that a new authority was now in place, but also within the framework of official parish festivals under the control of the municipalities. However, the population of rural parishes also continued to organize "local struggles", in an almost ritualistic manner, at the time of chapel pardons. Gouren was then the only "sport" in the countryside and seen as an element of social and identity recognition for their parishes of origin.
Gouren was especially popular in Brittany towards the beginning of the 20th century, before the beginning of World War I (1914), with competitions every Sunday during the summer season in numerous small villages.
In 1930, in order to revitalize the practice of gouren, Charles Cottonec of Quimperlé (Finistère) and his team breathed new life into the sport by codifying it : renovating rules, adding age and weight categories as well as limiting time for bouts. This was done after the creation of the first federation of the sport, the FALSAB (Fédération des Amis des Luttes et Sports Athlétiques Bretons - Federation of Friends of Breton Wrestling and Athletic Sports), of which the current Gouren Federation is largely an extension. He also preceded each tournament with an oath, also called "serment de loyauté" (oath of loyalty). This oath is part of the ritual practices linked to the gouren, such as the hug and the dornad (handshake), which form the accord de loyauté (agreement of loyalty).
Today gouren is well-organised. It has its own federation while maintaining a practice linked to regional culture, clubs (skoliou), and its own European Championships which take place every two years.
Many clubs (the skoliou gouren) welcome almost two thousand practitioners, for example in Berrien or in the Pays fouesnantais. An international federation of Celtic wrestling (FILC) was created in 1985, initially bringing together federations from so-called "Celtic" countries (Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, Cumbria), then gradually other federations managing the styles traditional wrestlings of Western Europe. European championships have been organized every year since 1991. A sign of its renewal, the gouren has been part of the optional baccalaureate exams in Brittany since 1998.
Gouren has also kept its cultural ties, and thus, in summer especially, displays of the martial art can be seen during numerous open-air competitions, on sawdust, sometimes with the use of the old challenge system, in parties and festivals, alongside Breton music and dance.
The gouren is also listed in the Inventory of intangible cultural heritage in France.
The mod-kozh tournament ("in the old fashion") takes place in two weight categories by challenge: a wrestler seizes the trophy and challenges the other competitors by circling around the combat area, anyone being free to take up the challenge by tapping him or her on the shoulder or calling on him with the words chomed o sav! ("stay up !").
To win the tournament trophy one must win 3 fights in a row. With the skoliou system (wrestling schools) the tournament takes a strategic turn because two wrestlers from the same club cannot meet (challenge each other) and so it's necessary to challenge the right wrestler at the right time, without exhausting oneself too much in order to be able to win 3 fights in a row.
The winner wins the maout (ram) and triumphs during a lap of honor carrying the animal on his shoulders. The gourener Mathieu Le Dour (Skol Ar Faoued) marked his era by winning numerous tournaments by challenge, known as "mod kozh" (old fashion).
The wrestler is required to fight barefoot. His outfit consists of:
No advertising inscription is tolerated on the outfit, apart from the federal badge with different colors depending on the Rannig (technical level).
The wrestlers try to throw each other to the ground by grappling the other's roched.
The Gouren bouts are arbitrated by 3 referees with equal rights. Decisions are made by majority.
The possible results following a fall are (in decreasing order):
Faults count as well for the final result. A fault can be an unjustified aggressive behavior (verbal or physical), an attitude dangerous to the opponent or a refusal to fight by remaining in a defensive position for an exaggerated duration. During a throw, the wrestler who first throws his arm to the ground to avoid the result is considered to have refused to fight.
The duration of a bout depends on the age category and the type of competition.
Overtime is possible if no result allowing the fight to be won is obtained at the end of regulation time; the overtime is equal to half the normal combat time.
Gouren is not confined to the regional level: it is also practiced at the international level. The Gouren Federation is part of the FILC (International Federation of Celtic Wrestling), a federation created in 1985 in Cardiff, Wales, symbolically in the premises of the association for the promotion of the Welsh language "Urdd Gobaith Cymru". In addition to Brittany, 11 other countries or regions are part of the FILC: Austria (Salzburg), Scotland, Cumbria (England), Ireland, Iceland, Spanish León, Spanish Cantabria, the Canary Islands, Sweden, the Netherlands and Sardinia. All these nations have a traditional wrestling. The main aim of the FILC is not to organize international championships, but to help its member federations develop their styles, and to encourage sporting and friendly exchanges between European wrestlers.
The European Celtic Wrestling Championships are organized every year or every two years. The team victory is the most valued. Those traditional sports are practiced at a high level: some delegations even include professional wrestlers. They are grouped together within the International Celtic Wrestling Federation. The city of Brest (Brittany) organized the FILC 30th anniversary championship in 2016 (wrestling: gouren and back-hold).
In 2017, the senior European championships took place in Austria while in 2019, Iceland took care of the organization of the international competition.
In 2018, the European Championships were hosted in Penrith, England, and took place in Guipavas in April 2020.