Winner to receive ₦500,000
The 2026 Nchia Traditional Wrestling Festival in Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State will begin on Sunday, October 25, with the winner of the championship set to receive a cash prize of ₦500,000.
The annual wrestling competition will kick off at Ogale Town Square before moving through the five clans of Nchia: Ogale, Agbonchia, Aleto, Alesa and Alode. The grand finale is scheduled for Friday, October 30, at Echieta Nchia Traditional Square.
The festival, a major cultural event among the Eleme people, will be preceded by the traditional performance of Otebe Esun, a rite performed to welcome ancestors believed to return to the community to witness the wrestling contests.
The Chief Priest of the Onura deity, Chief Obele Osarokote, said families were expected to visit the bush on Friday to obtain Ogboro ojiji rope, which would be tied at the entrances to their compounds ahead of the ancestors’ arrival on Saturday, known as Ojua.
He explained that the tradition required households to welcome and appease their ancestors with food throughout the wrestling festival.
According to him, after each day’s wrestling contest, families across the five clans would return to their compounds to prepare meals for the ancestors.
“Anything you have, you will give to them, be it goat, fowl, yam or fish. It will be cooked by women and men. Women and children will eat and celebrate with our ancestors until the very last day, which is the last wrestling, ‘Ochun Ejin Kachi,’” Osarokote said.
The traditional wrestling festival was formally declared open on Friday by Emere Apollos Chu, Oneh Eh Nchia X and Egbere Emere Okori Eleme, who described the event as an important platform for preserving Eleme culture, promoting unity and engaging young people positively.
Speaking at a meeting with Nchia community heads and the wrestling committee, the traditional ruler said the championship prize had been increased to ₦500,000, with additional cash rewards for outstanding contestants.
“We are investing in our culture and our youths. Traditional wrestling is more than a competition; it is a living expression of our identity, courage, discipline and communal solidarity,” he said.
He noted that the annual event provided young people with an opportunity to demonstrate their strength and talents while sustaining the cultural heritage of the Eleme people.
Emere Chu also disclosed that his council was considering the inclusion of Akpajo Community in future editions of the festival. He said he would lead the Akpajo traditional institution to meet the King of Eleme to facilitate the community’s participation.
The monarch, however, stressed that cultural development must go hand in hand with respect for traditional institutions.
He urged the people of Eleme to accord the King of Eleme the utmost respect, describing him as a father to all sons and daughters of the area.
“The throne of Oneh Eh Eleme Land deserves our collective respect. We may have differences, but we must not allow them to undermine our unity and the peace of our land,” he said.
The week-long festival is expected to bring together wrestlers and spectators from the five Nchia clans, with the grand finale at Echieta Nchia Traditional Square marking the climax of the competition on October 30.
