Village men wrestle for ball in unique festival in Hanoi

The sport is divided into competitions for different age groups, with the balls weighing 12 kilograms, 10 kilograms and 8 kilograms respectively.

In the past, the balls were made of jackfruit wood but have been made of rubber in recent years in order to minimise accidental injuries during the competition.

The festival commemorates a god named Linh Lang, who is said to be a manifestation of Prince Hoang Chan, the fourth son of Emperor Ly Thanh Tong.

The competition takes place at the communal temple of Thuy Linh village.

Balls are designed to be of different weights to be suitable to different age groups.

The wrestlers raise the ball up and the two sides try to seize the ball and put it into a hole in their half of the playing field.

A fierce tackle between the wrestlers.

Fans celebrate as a team succeeds in putting the ball into their hole.