Young men compete in the Evala ritual wrestling competition in the north Togo town of Lama-Feing in tha Kara region on July 15. Every year in this West African country, thousands of young people from the Kabyè ethnic group, aged 18 to 20, have taken part in this ancestral tradition practiced in the Kara region,
Kara, Togo - The bare-chested young men emerged from a forest ceremony in northern Togo chanting war songs, ready for the initiation tradition of "Evala" in which they wrestle to become men.
Every mid-July, thousands of ethnic Kabye men aged 18 to 20 take part in the ancestral rite of passage in the west African nation's Kara region, hundreds of kilometres from the capital, Lome.
And authorities hope it will soon be recognised by UNESCO as part of Togo's cultural heritage.
Ahead of wrestling, the participating "Evalo", as the young men are called, must display three small scars near each ear, made using blades.
