Pandemic Pushes Mexico's 'lucha Libre' Wrestlers Outdoors And Online

Xochimilco, Mexico, Aug 4 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 4th Aug, 2020 ) :Driven from their spectator-filled stadiums by the coronavirus, Mexico's "lucha libre" wrestlers have taken their flamboyant costumes and acrobatic maneuvers to an unlikely new battleground immersed in nature.

As dawn breaks over the capital, a dozen burly fighters board a boat in Xochimilco, a maze of canals and artificial islands created centuries ago by the area's indigenous peoples.

The pocket of green in the sprawling smog-plagued metropolis is now the scene of high-flying moves, blows and insults that will be broadcast online.

The goal is to raise funds to save the wildly popular mix of sport and entertainment.

Lucha libre is an integral part of Mexican popular culture, but like many activities it is now facing financial disaster because of the coronavirus.

In the absence of the usual crowds of fans, the hubbub of the wrestlers' arenas has been replaced by birdsong in the nature reserve on the edge of the city.

"Because of the pandemic, we couldn't do it indoors. So we decided to take it to this magical place," 24-year-old wrestler Ciclonico tells AFP.

The muscle-bound fighter's face is covered by a mask representing an axolotl, an amphibian endemic to Xochimilco similar to a salamander.

Hanging from a tree, a green ball shaped like the novel coronavirus offers a reminder of the health crisis shaking the country, which is approaching 50,000 confirmed deaths and 450,000 cases among a population of 128 million.

Mexico now has the world's third-highest official death toll from the disease.