Tourism, Culture and Society

Sports in Bali

Mepantigan – Balinese Martial Art

Mepantigan is derived from a Balinese word which means “clinching each other”. This sport is a combination of both dancing and martial arts, wrestling. The traditional martial art concentrates on locking and throwing the enemy. Mepantigan can be traced back to India, Mahabrata one of the major sanskrit epics.

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The traditional martial art is a combination of self-defenses, such as taekwondo, silat, capoeira, kickboxing, and judo and various Balinese cultures. The sport includes the Balinese dance, music and even costumes. Mepantigan is unique to Bali because of the area which the competitors wrestle in which is the wet and muddy rice field instead of a wrestling mat. The rice field is the chosen location because it not only signifies the livelihood of the Balinese but the kid’s playground as well. In addition, the competitors are required to wear the Balinese traditional uniform.

Mepantigan which was developed by Putu Witsen Widjaya enables its practitioners to not only focus on physical fitness but help to release stress, and learn valuable lessons of comradeship and sportsmanship.There are three levels of mepantigan: beginner, intermediate, and advance.