Visitors to Scotland can enjoy the unique combination of culture, sport and social entertainment from mid-May to late September at various locations hosting traditional heavy athletics and field and track events, wrestling, piping and Highland dance competitions, as well.
Ősi gyökerek és a klánok szerepe
The Clan is a concept dating back 900 years and was originally an extended network of families, led by a chief. The word comes from the Gaelic word for children: “clann.” The chief acted as a leader in battle and a judge as well. The clan system was the main political system in Scotland until 1746, when the English crushed the Jacobite rebellion for attempting to put the exiled Stuarts back on the throne. Many Highlanders were forced to leave their small farms because landowners wanted to raise sheep, and a mass emigration to the Lowlands, America and Australia began. Unfortunately, these events destroyed the Gaelic culture and clan society.
The games, however, resumed in a few decades and by the 1820s they were held throughout Scotland. It is thought that originally the Scottish clans competed against each other in medieval times, with the strongest and bravest soldiers winning the games. This was a great opportunity for the chieftains to pick the best fighters, the fastest messengers and the best entertainers for their court: musicians and dancers.
Hogyan zajlanak a Highland Games eseményei
Caber toss - a long tapered pine pole - caber comes from the Gaelic word for pole - is stood upright and held vertically by the competitor by the narrow end. The athlete then runs to gather momentum. The caber is supposed to be tossed in such a way that it turns over and lands with the thicker end striking the ground first. Then the narrow end should come down parallel to the direction of the run. Cabers have no set measurements and vary in length, weight, taper, and balance.
Stone put - although this event is similar to the modern shot put, don’t think it’s easy. A large stone is used instead of a steel shot, and its weight depends on the event: the heavier “Braemar Stone” (men: 9-11.7 kg, women: 5.8-7.2 kg) should be tossed from a standing position.
Scottish hammer throw - a round metal ball (men: 7.25 kg or10 kg, women: 5.4 or 7.25 kg) is attached to the end of a shaft about 120 cm long. The hammer is whirled about one’s head in a standing position, then thrown over the shoulder.
Weight throw or weight for distance - there are two events, one using a light (men: 12.7 kg, women: 6.3 kg) and the other a heavy (men: 25.4 kg or 19 kg, women: 12.7 kg) weight. The metal weight, which has a handle attached directly or by means of a chain, is thrown using one hand only, with any technique.
Weight over the bar or weight for height - the aim is to toss a weight of 25.4 kilos over a horizontal bar. The weight has a handle and is held with one hand only. Competitors have three attempts at each height. If one height is successfully cleared, the athlete can go to the next height.
Értékek és kultúra a színpadon
The bagpipes have become a symbol of Scotland and records show that they have been played since the 13th century and in the 16th century they also got an important part in warfare. The clans used bagpipes as a battle instrument to rouse their armies and spread terror to the enemy. Piping schools appeared and over 300 tunes, surviving from the 17th century, are still performed. Later pipers started serving in the British army as well, with over one thousand pipers being killed in World War I. At the Highland games the massing of the bands is one of the highlights, when all the pipers taking part in the pipe band and solo bagpipe competitions play together.
Another exciting cultural event is the opportunity to listen to the Celtic harp, which is another musical instrument that survived from the Middle Ages. Highland dancing is not to be confused with Scottish country dancing, which is a social dance, danced with a partner or in formation. The former is a solo dance and the competition repertoire has several types of dances which require different outfits. The special dancing shoes are called ghillies, which are soft and made of supple leather that forms to the foot. Laces are criss-crossed and tied at the top of the foot. The World Highland Dancing Championship is held at the Cowal Highland Gathering, regarded as the biggest and most spectacular Highland games in the world. This event is conveniently located close to Glasgow, in Dunoon and it’s an ideal tourist destination for the last weekend of August.
Nemzetközi és szezonális események
In the United States the first Highland games were organised in New York and San Francisco boasts the oldest continuously running games since 1865. The World Highland Dancing Championship is held at the Cowal Highland Gathering, regarded as the biggest and most spectacular Highland games in the world. The event is conveniently located close to Glasgow, in Dunoon.
Az extrém Fighters’ Run versenyt követően egy újabb látnivaló zúdul a nézőkre, a Felföldi Játékok világbajnoksága (IHGF Highland Games Strength Challenge World Championship) lesz a program egyik fő attrakciója. Tizenegy kivételesen erős férfiú viaskodik majd augusztus 18-19-én, szokványosnak épp nem mondható tíz olyan versenyszámban, mint például malomkőnyomás, kalapácsvetés (13 kg-os), kőgolyó pakolás, póznadobás. A skót felföld versenyének jellegzetessége, hogy a nehéz fogások és erőpróbák széles skáláját vonultatja fel, amelyet a hagyományok és a sport riválisai ötvöznek.
A Felföldi Játékok (Highland Games) eredete több mint 1000 évre nyúlik vissza, mikor is az angol hódítók elfoglalták Skóciát és az ott élőknek megtiltották a fegyverhasználatot. A skót harcosok ekkor a ma már sportággá szelídült gyakorlatokkal tartották edzésben magukat, a legügyesebbekből pedig a nagy presztízzsel bíró klán vezetőjének testőrsége állt össze. A felföldi játékok a világ legrégebb között folyamatosan megrendezésre kerülő kulturális és sport eseménye, Skóciában óriási hagyományai vannak, ahol a skót és a kelta hagyományokat ünneplik évről-évre. A játékok rendkívül népszerűek világszerte, felvonultatják Skócia összes emblematikus ismertetőjelét, mint például a skót szoknyát, dudákat, dobokat, táncokat, ételeket, italokat és természetesen a “heavy games”-t, az erős emberek viadalát. A heavy games-t báró Pierre de Coubertin is tanulmányozta a modernkori olimpiák újra szervezésekor és szerepeltette az 1889-es párizsi világkiállításon...
