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On April 17, nearly 10,000 spectators watched the local "village wrestling" game at the outdoor stadium in Yuanping City, Shanxi Province. This wrestling match, also known as "sheep wrestling", originated in the Xinzhou region of Shanxi Province, and is characterized by the fact that there are no restrictions on gender or age of participants. Contestants who win six consecutive matches will be awarded the title of "Sheep Scratcher", and the prize in the traditional competition is usually a sheep, and the winner will carry the sheep home (i.e. the meaning of scratching sheep), which also symbolizes victory and strength.
In 2008, the sheep scratching competition was included in the national intangible cultural heritage list, and Xinfu, Dingxiang and Yuanping were also awarded the title of "Hometown of Chinese Wrestling".
The sheep scratching competition, which has long been famous, is not only deeply loved by Shanxi people, but also attracts players and spectators from Beijing, Hebei, Inner Mongolia and other places to participate and watch the game.
Reporter: Xu Wei, Chen Zhihao, Zhang Lei
Reporter: Ren Tingyu
Produced by Xinhua News Agency's Audio and Video Department