All posts by Ash

Heavyweight Championship Records

YearChampion
2019Simon Margetts
2018Richard Cawley
2017Richard Cawley
2016Ashley Cawley
2015Richard Cawley
2014Ashley Cawley
2013Ashley Cawley
2012Ashley Cawley
2011Ashley Cawley
2010Ashley Cawley
2009Richard Cawley
2008Ashley Cawley
2007Gerry Cawley
2006Ashley Cawley
2005Ashley Cawley
2004D Richardson
2002Gerry Cawley
2001Glyn Jones
2000Glyn Jones
1999Glyn Jones
1998Glyn Jones
1994Matthew Deacon
1992P French
1991Gerry Cawley
1990C Udry
1986Fred W Thomas
1985Fred W Thomas
1984Gerry Cawley
1983Gerry Cawley
1982D Henwood
1981Chris Hunt
1980Chris Hunt
1979Chris Hunt
1978K Hawkey
1977John Dorning
1976K Hawkey
1975Rueben Chapman
1973Rueben Chapman
1971Chris Hunt
1970K Hawkey
1969John Venton
1968W J Treglown
1967John Venton
1966Michael S G Roberts
1965K Hawkey
1964K Hawkey
1963Dennis Pashley
1962Dennis Pashley
1961Dennis Pashley
1960Dennis Pashley
1959Dennis Pashley
1958Dennis Pashley
1957Thomas Henry Warne
1956Keith J Menadue
1955Geof J Menadue
1953Michael S G Roberts
1952William Chapman
1951William Chapman
1950T H Warne
1949William Chapman
1948William Chapman
1947William Chapman
1946William Chapman
1939William Chapman
1938William Chapman
1937William A Phillips
1936Francis Gregory
1935Francis Gregory
1934Francis Gregory
1933Francis Gregory
1932Francis Gregory
1931Francis Gregory
1930Francis Gregory
1929Francis Gregory
1928Francis Gregory
1927C Warne
1926C Warne
1925F Richards
1924F Richards

Fixture List 2019

EVENTS AND FIXTURE LIST 2019

JUNE

6 – 8th Royal Cornwall Show.
Twice daily demonstrations.

Sat 22th St.Merryn Tournament. St.Merryn Steam Rally. 2pm
Cornish Lightweight Championship. ( Under 12 stones )
Open Class.
Under 14 Championship ( Under 14 years at 1st May )
Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 16; and under 18.

JULY

Sat 6th Bodmin Tournament. Priory Park. 2pm
Bodmin Helliers Championship.
Under 12 Championship ( Under 12 at 1st May ).
Open Class.
Junior Classes: under 10; under 14; under 16 and under 18.

Sun 14th Lostwithiel Tournament. King George V Playing field. 2pm.
Cornish Featherweight Championship ( Under 11 stones )
Open Class.
Novice Class.
Lightweight Class (Regatta Cup).
Junior Classes: under 10, under 12, under 14, under 16 and under 18.

JULY ctd

Mon 15th Stithians Show
Wrestling demonstrations.

Sat 20th St.Mawgan Tournament. 2pm
Open Class.
Novice.
Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14; under 16 and under 18.
Plus local St.Mawgan cups.

AUGUST

Wed 7th St. Columb Tournament. Recreation Ground.7pm.
Cornish Under 18 Championship. ( Under 18 years at 1st May )
Under 10 Championship. ( Under 10 years at 1st May )
Open Class.
Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14; under 16.

Sat 17th St.Stephen Tournamet. King’s Arms Field. 2pm
Cornish Lightheavyweight Championship. ( Under 15 stones )
Men’s Open Class.
Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14; under 16; under 18.

SEPTEMBER

Sun 1st Helston Tournament. Sunken Garden. 2pm.
Cornish Middleweight Championship. ( Under 13 stones )
Cornish Under 16 Championship. ( Under 16 years at 1st May )
Open Class.
Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14 and under 18.

Sat 7th Cornish Gorsedh.
Wrestling demonstrations.

Sun 8th Truro Tournament. Boscawen Park. 2pm
Cornish Heavyweight Championship.
Cornish Ladies’ Championship.
Novice Class.
Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14; under 16 and under 18.

OCTOBER

NOVEMBER

Sun 3rd Lowender Perran, Newquay
Demonstrations.

Fri 8th Annual General Meeting. St.Columba Centre, St.Columb Major. 8pm

Sat 16th Annual Dinner. The White House Inn, Perranzabuloe.

2017 Fixture List

 

JULY

Sat 15th      St.Mawgan Tournament. 2pm

Men’s Open

Novice.

Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14; under 16 and under 18.

Plus local St.Mawgan cups.

 

Sun 16th           Belle-Isle-en-Terre, Brittany. Annual wrestling tournament.

 

AUGUST

Wed 9th        St. Columb Tournament.7pm.

Cornish Under 18 Championship.

Under 10 Championship.

Men’s Open Class.

Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14; under 16.

 

Fri 4th –            Lorient Festival, Brittany

Sun 13th

 

Sun 20th                Guingamp, Brittany. Festival of St.Loup.

 

Sat 19th            St.Stephen, King’s Arms Field. 2pm

Cornish Lightheavyweight Championship.

Men’s Open Class.

Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14; under 16; under 18.

 

Mon 28th          Tournament at Horningtops Steam Rally, near Looe

Men’s Open Class.

Under 12 Championship.

Junior Classes: under 10; under 14; under 16; under 18.

.

SEPTEMBER

 

Sat 2nd                        Cornish Gorsedh.

 

 

Sun 3rd             Helston Tournament. Sunken Garden. 2pm.

Cornish Middleweight Championship.

Cornish Under 16 Championship.

Men’s Open Class.

Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14 and under 18.

 

Sun 10th           Truro Tournament. Boscawen Park. 2pm

Cornish Heavyweight Championship.

Cornish Ladies’ Championship.

Novice Class.

Junior Classes: under 10; under 12; under 14; under 16 and under 18.

 

November

Fri 10th            Annual General Meeting. St.Austell Royal British Legion. 8.15pm

Sat 18th           Annual Dinner. The White House Inn, Perranzabuloe.

 

St Mawgan 2017

Cornish Wrestling St Mawgan Tournament 2017

The much awaited Cornish Wrestling Tournament at St Mawgan will take place on the 15th of July 2017 on the St Mawgan village green. Everyone welcome spectators, families and complete beginners to the sport who may fancy a little tuition and having a go in our Novice competition.

Helston 2015 Photos

Here are the photos from the Cornish Wrestling at Helston September 2015 taken by Ashley Cawley.

Results from St Mawgan Tournament 2015

Under 10’s Competition

1st – Jake Hannaford
2nd – George Riley-Flinder
3rd – Olwyn Champliand Tal-e-dot

Under 12’s Competition

1st – Carrie-Anne Allan
2nd -Lily Atrinson
3rd – Jake Hannaford
4th  – Corey Keelan

Under 14’s Competition

1st – Dougie Allan
2nd – Jamie Pyne
3rd – Bennath Webster

Under 16’s Competition

1st – Rob Doughty
2nd – Toby Garner
3rd – Joe Cawley
4th  – Luke Hannaford
5th – Jamie Hannaford

Under 18’s Competition

1st – Joe Cawley
2nd – Rob Doughty
3rd – Luke Hannaford

Novice Competition

1st – Tim Nicholas
2nd – Steve Nicholas
3rd – Tim Rickard
4th  – Clive Mitchell
5th – Phil Riley

Middleweight Open Competition

1st – Toby Garner
2nd – Jamie Hannaford

Men’s Open Competition

1st – Ashley Cawley
2nd – Dougie Allan

St Mawgan Tournament 2014 DVD

Cornish Wrestling St Mawgan Tournament DVD Film

Action packed traditional Cornish sport, containing some of the best Cornish Wrestling action of the season.

Recorded in high-quality with slow-motion replays for ‘backs’ and other great throws.

A great learning tool for those interested in the sport.

£5.99 (for UK delivery)





Wordwide shipping is available for an additional £2,  if you require international shipping please use the Buy Now button below.

£7.99 (for worldwide delivery)





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Cornish Wrestling – A Living Tradition

Wrestling is a distinct Cornish tradition that survives to the present day.

The history of Cornish Wrestling goes back so far it is lost in the midst of time. The first mention of Celtic Wrestling appears in the ancient book of Leinster, referring to the sport being included in the Tailteann Games which date back to at least 1829 BC. We know Wrestling was established in Cornwall before the Roman invasion and that the Cornish meetings on Halvager Moor were held during the dark-ages.
The Cornish contingent with Henry V at Agincourt (1415) marched under a banner depicting two Wrestlers “in a hitch”. The banner needed no words; the pictures of the wrestlers was enough to let anyone know the men of Cornwall were behind it.
During the famous meeting between Henry VIII and Francis I of France (on the Field of the Cloth of Gold) a team of wrestlers representing the English king defeated the champions of France. This contingent, which humbled the French team, consisted entirely of men from Cornwall. Godolphin the chief wrestler had received the Royal command direct to bring his men to uphold the king’s honour at Calais.
Wrestling is our national sport in Cornwall, a direct living link with our ancestors handed down through an un-broken chain, from father to son, brother to brother and friend to friend for over 3,000 years.

Many times, Cornish Wrestlers have displayed their prowess before a royal audience. King Charles II believed that the Cornish were “masters in the art of wrestling” after attending a tournament at Bodmin while on his way to the Isles of Silly. It was during his reign that Tomas Hawken of Cubert threw Lyttleton Weynorth, who claimed to be the champion wrestler of “all England”.

Richard Carew, famous for his survey of Cornwall (1602) said that at about 1590 even their Breton neighbours did not match the Cornish in the art of Wrestling. Men from all walks of life took part in the sport. One of the best known wrestlers of the 17th century was Richard Stevens, the head master of Truro Grammar school; inventor Richard Trevithick was another. In the 18th and 19th centuries for which information is more readily available, we see records of tournaments that ran for a week to find the standing men to contest the semi-finals and finals on the Saturday and Sunday. With crowds of upwards of 10,000 for such finals or big name challenge matches, large sums of money often changed hands

Royal Cornwall Show 2014

Here are the photos taken by Ashley Cawley at the Royal Cornwall Show 2014.

Cornish Wrestlers perform demonstrations at the Royal Cornwall Show twice a day for all three days of the event down in the Country Side area.

Wrestling Between Devon and Cornwall – 1826

One of the most famous encounters between wrestlers of Cornwall and Devon must surely be the great wrestling bout of 1826. Any match between Devon and Cornwall was most certainly hotly disputed, and always bore a pridely grudge, and this was no exception.

James Polkinghorne was to meet Abraham Cann. James Polkinghorne although born at St Kevern, is usually associated with St Columb for it was there he was landlord of the Red Lion Hotel and from there that he set forth to uphold the honour of Cornish Wrestling against Cann the challenger.

The match was to find the champion of the West of England and took place at Tamar-Green, Devonport on the 23rd of October 1826. The ultimate result of which has never really been agreed and has remained a matter of great controversy ever since.

It was from St Stephens he set off in his gig on the long trip with his brother to Tamar-Green, Morrice Town, Devonport.

From such information as is still available it seems that controversy surrounding the very outset is to be found. In an article in wrestling it’s heyday and decline, especially written in July 1960 for the 150th Anniversary supplement of the West-Briton who had incorporated the royal Cornwall Gazette, the late reverent Leslie Jolly a recognised authority on wrestling, even wondered if Polkinghorne was infact the proper person to meet the rather impudent challenging Cann.

Mr Jolly who’s grandfather of Penscawen, St Enader, was a renowned wrestler during the early part of the nineteenth century, made a case for Parkyn of St Columb Minor who’s reputation had remained unquestioned for 20 years, to have accepted Cann’s challenge and been Cornwall’s representative, even though then Parkyn was 52 and Polkinghorne a mere 38. Parkyn’s claims were upheld by many followers of the sport, even by some at St Columb but never the less it was Polkinghorne who eventually went across the Tamar.

During a long period of negotiations that followed the challenge that, according to the reverent Mr Jolly, Polkinghorne had made his first mistake by consenting to a kind of contest more likely to favour Cann than himself.

Polkinghorne should have insisted on a meeting where each man would have to win through to the final pair in open contest, similar to the way in which Parkyn had defeated Stiffy of St Just the mystery man of wrestling in 1809 in Falmouth.

By this means Polkinghorne, who was a man of great strength but did not have a lot of stamina for the protracted wrestling required by the conditions, would have met lesser men on his way up to the final, or as was perfectly permissible, at that time engaged substitutes to secure his placing.

West Briton’s account of the match, published on October 27th 1826 reported that, Quote “When Cann entered the ring, he went up to Polkinghorne and the competitors immediately shook hands, when they retired to equip themselves for the contest.

To be continued!…