Five things to know about Swiss wrestling

Switzerland is gearing up for a wrestling festival of unparalleled proportions. The traditional event only takes place every three years and tickets are like gold dust. Now in its 44th edition, the Federal Wrestling and Alpine Games Festival, or ‘Schwingfest’ has been going since the end of the 19th century, and attracts spectators from at home and abroad. With around 250,000 people expected over three days it's the country's biggest sporting event, but what's the draw? 1. Gigantic The Federal Wrestling Festival has a long tradition, having been organised for the first time in 1895. Since then, it has been held once every three years. The previous festival took place in 2013 in Burgdorf (canton Bern) and ended with the crowning of Matthias Sempach. It has become a tradition to hold the festival in a French-speaking region of Switzerland once every 15 years. After La-Chaux-de-Fonds (Neuchâtel) in 1972, Sion (Valais) in 1986 and Nyon (Vaud) in 2001, ...