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"Surely they don't stick," thought David Diaz Torrijos that day when he read an ad for a medieval combat championship. But when that weekend he saw with his own eyes what was this contact sport based on European tournaments 500 years ago he knew he had to try it.
Today, five years later, this 32-year-old young man from La Mancha is the captain of Bohurt La Mancha , one of the 10 Spanish clubs that beat this weekend (plus two French teams) in the IV National Tournament held in the castle from Belmonte , southwest of the province of Cuenca.
"It's shocking to see how an uncle attacks you with a two-handed ax ," says David on the other side of the phone. The young fighter is not trying to impress us, but to convey the fascination for the sport he shares with about 130 other fighters in Spain .
Game or sport? "No, no. It's a sport. And very hard," he says. For those who have never seen this kind of fight, think of Game of Thrones, but without blood in between. The weapons of medieval combat are neither sharp nor sharp , but the contact is real. "We use the armor with full power. It's about knocking down your opponent. You take some bruise, yes, but as your body is in tension, you can stand it," says the club's La Mancha leader.
In this weekend's fight, duels are disputed in its four modalities (sword and shield; sword and buckler; hand and a half; and antler weapons). There will be five to five and ten to ten melés. And the most spectacular: a "great melee" with all the fighters.
The four or five tournaments that are held a year, plus the exhibitions they usually do, require an important physical commitment for the weight of the armor, whose average is about 30 kilos.
The fighters do weights, crossfit, among other physical activities, and are left with teams to rehearse the tactics. David trains about six hours a week with armor on. In addition, it is almost every weekend of the year at its headquarters in Miguel Esteban (Toledo) and other villages to simulate a fight together. "We get together and we stick, go," he says.
Almost all armor comes from Eastern Europe, where the sport is most popular. "It's like a bike, you can spend from 1,500 euros to wherever you want, but a good note in the fight: if there are gaps, there are injuries ." The club from La Mancha is one of the "heavy" ones. David's armor weighs about 25 kilos, but that of a partner reaches 40.
Together they remember a rugby team. "It's a sport that hooks. You always want more. And not only because of the physical effort and the desire to win ... We are very pineapple. In the end it hurts more when they hit a teammate than you."
The fans are also hooked. Last year, Belmonte Castle, one of the great promoters of medieval combat, received 5,000 people during a single tournament (Saturday and Sunday). Fighters do not like to admit it, but the success of Game of Thrones has influenced the popularity of the sport and that there are more fighters. It also happens that one of the locations of the series, the castle of Almodóvar del Río, is also the scene of tournaments.
Now, whoever wants to visit the world capital of medieval combat will have to set course again this spring to Belmonte, because it is once again the headquarters of the International IMC F Championship. It will be from April 30 to May 3. Imagine more than 1,000 fighters beating melee with a two-handed ax ...
PRACTICAL GUIDE
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Place: Belmonte Castle. Calle de Eugenia Montijo, s / n 16640 Belmonte, Cuenca. Web castillodebelmonte.com
Schedule: The Tournament will last all Saturday and Sunday morning.
What to do : In addition to the fighting, visitors can enjoy the visit to the castle, the great craft market, the falconra of the castle (flight exhibits) and the Taberna de la Liza. You can also visit Trebuchet Park , the largest historical siege machine park.
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