She strides in against a backdrop of guitar
chords, chest thrust out like an exotic bird.
She takes her time to enter, raising her arms
to reveal the embroidered lowers on her
shawl, swinging her hips so that her skirts
swell. She stops before my camera, arranges
herself just so, and smiles. The shutter clicks
and she’s of, feeding on the admiration of
others. Satiated for now, she removes her
bowler hat and steps into the wrestling ring.
It seems an unlikely arena for an
indigenous woman, but Bolivia’s cholitas
have been subverting expectations for
decades. Forced to dress in the style of their
Spanish colonists, they scaled the clothes of
their oppressors, padding their hips to create
a cartoonish female form, piling on tiers of
lace and bling, and topping their pigtailed
heads with a men’s bowler hat.
The election of Evo Morales, the country’s
irst indigenous president, has elevated the
cholita from segregated minority to cultural
icon with unprecedented economic het.
Boarding the cable-car to the high-altitude
metropolis of El Alto, I was joined by a
cholita who, only decades ago, would have
been barred from public transport. She cut
a commanding igure, swathed in black lace
and dripping with amber jewellery, her hat
pierced by a silver pin. In the market, they’re
everywhere, hawking Chinese-made toys
and secondhand tools. Their recent foray
into El Alto’s professional wrestling scene
has bemused many, but to cholitas, it’s an
extension of their theatrical power.
Our cholita, Juanita ‘La Cariñosa’, is
squaring up to her rival, Sonia ‘La Simpática’.
There’s a hum of anticipation, then the call:
“Uno, dos, tres, lucha!” Juanita slams into the
ropes and launches into the air, wrapping
her slim legs around Sonia’s neck and
sending the pair of them down in a billow
of skirts. A pigtail chokehold is followed by
a swit kick between the shoulder blades
— Sonia goes down, and Juanita stamps
on her belly, screaming curses. Jeers ring
out around the arena — music to her ears.
Juanita curls her delicate ingers into a ist
and lets out a peal of delight. It’s telenovela-
scale drama with no holds barred, where
water bottles and bags of popcorn become
clubs and projectiles.While the ighting between cholitas is
vicious, the greatest censure is reserved for
the men who dare to challenge them.
At one point, a spandex-
clad monster of a man
squares up to a tiny girl in
little velvet shoes. She’s
David, he’s Goliath, and
she smacks him down
into the loor, the crowd
screaming in delight. The
partisan male referee, in
a black-and-white striped
shirt, is a pantomime
villain, administering
sneaky kicks to the
backside, assisting the
cholitas’ rivals, and
making victory so much
sweeter when it comes.
Those who complain
about the scripted nature
of the drama are missing
the point. It’s never been
about realism or even
physical strength — it’s
about redeining power,
and power in 21st-century
Bolivia wears a tiered
skirt and a bowler hat.WINNERIMAGE: GETTY
A SOUTHERN AFRICA ADVENTURE:
WILDLIFE, WATERFALLS & WILD COASTCourtesy of G Adventures, Sarah will embark on an eight-
night trip across Southern Africa. This itinerary showcases
some of the best the region has to ofer. The journey
will take her from Namibia, across Botswana and on to
Zimbabwe on an authentic African adventure that takes
in the elephants of Chobe National Park; San Bushmen
in the Kalahari; the thundering roar of Victoria Falls; and
the Okavango Delta, explored by dugout mokoro canoe. A
knowledgeable chief experience oicer will ensure Sarah
has the most authentic experience possible, staying in
characterful accommodation, including camping beneath
starry skies — something that will surely inspire further
award-winning travel writing. gadventures.co.ukWINNING PRIZE
BOLIVIA: NO HOLDS BARRED
ONCE A SEGREGATED MINORITY, BOLIVA’S CHOLITA WOMEN ARE NOW
CELEBRATED CULTURAL ICONS, NOT LEAST IN THE WRESTLING ARENA.
WORDS: SARAH GILLESPIEOur team thought Sarah
Gillespie’s winning
feature on Bolivia stood
out for its strong sense of
place and authentic
storytelling, which draws
the reader into what feels
like a uniquely immersive
experience. A compelling
snapshot, Sarah’s tightly
focused piece of writing
does a brilliant job of
showing, not telling, and
engaging all the senses. It
paints a vivid picture of a
very speciic place and
time, yet also brings
fascinating insight into
wider Bolivian culture.verdict
JUDGES’
Cholita wrestler, El Alto,
BoliviaOctober 2019 191