While wrestling among men in Senegal remains a popular sport that brews millions and galvanizes supporters, among women, still victims of many prejudices, women wrestlers find it difficult to assert themselves in the country and impose themselves outside. As during these Games of La Francophonie.
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From our special correspondent in Kinshasa,
Yacine, Mariétou, Mama, Anaïs, and Awa look defeated. They have just been eliminated in the African team wrestling event. Third and last of a pool they shared with the Chadians and the Madagascans. ” The Senegal team is very young. Only one of them had made an exit. And it’s recently. They are young girls who have no experience, they are all novices,” justifies Evelyne Diatta, national wrestling coach, in charge of girls since 2011.
However, this premature exit looks like a big disappointment, even a little humiliation, for the representatives of a country, Senegal, known to be a land of struggle and champions in all categories. Only, the financial means, the popularity, the sponsors are exclusively turned towards men as much in the fight with strikes as in the traditional fight.
Nieces of Isabelle Sambou
Among women, wrestling already suffers a lot from the lack of interested athletes. ” In Senegal, it is only in Casamance that women’s wrestling is practiced. It is part of our identity. There, we organize small tournaments to try to spot some talents “, informs Evelyne Diatta, former wrestling champion. It is in this part of southern Senegal, which includes the two regions Ziguinchor and Kolda, that four of the five wrestlers selected for the Games of La Francophonie come from.
Mama Marie Sambou and Anaïs Diatta come from the village of Mlomp, 40km from Ziguinchor. They are above all the nieces of Isabelle Sambou, 9 times African wrestling champion and flag bearer of Senegal in 2016 at the Rio Olympics. Sambou inspired her nieces who still face prejudice about women’s wrestling. ” A girl shouldn’t wrestle otherwise she won’t be able to give birth “, has already heard Mama Mary often called “boy” by her friends.
At Anaïs too, we keep telling her that she ” doesn’t look like a girl “. ” My friends tell me that I’m going to ruin my future with wrestling, because I’m going to have muscles and not shapes like most women. “says the 17-year-old girl who started wrestling less than two years ago.
A few years ago, their aunt Isabelle displayed her pride in “be an example for many girls”. “Many young people I meet tell me that they practice wrestling thanks to me. “, she confided to RFI. Today, the next generation is there, but it must first fight to exist.
Intractable Cameroonians
Cameroon flew over the first round of the African team struggle by dominating its group with three victories in three outings (14 successes in 15 fights) against DR Congo, Burkina, and Côte d’Ivoire. The gold medal should not escape the Indomitable Lionesses who will meet Chad this Saturday, August 5 in the final. For Issac Mpia, president of the Cameroonian Wrestling Federation, these results are logical given the means put in place to put the team in good conditions. ” From July 7 to 9, we did the national championships in Douala. Then, we did a preparation course in Yaoundé from July 11 to 24 to be ready for the Games. We did a pretty tough internship and we can see it “, he demonstrates. Especially unlike Senegal for example, women’s wrestling is widely practiced in Cameroon where prejudices do not affect women. ” Women have power in Cameroon, more than men. When there is a woman’s party, you don’t even dare to speak to a woman, half laugh Issac Mpia. Women practice a lot of sports. There are some who do boxing, whereas you don’t see any in Senegal for example. In sport, there are no prejudices in Cameroon. It’s a sports country »