She's a Knockout! by L. A. Jennings

Author:L. A. Jennings
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: undefined
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Published: 2012-11-09T05:00:00+00:00

Fighting on the European Continent

At the turn of the century, the French art of savate returned to popularity. Savate, dubbed “boxing with the feet” by the American news media, is French kickboxing. In the history of fighting sports, strict boxing, with hands only, was the primary striking style in the Western world; however, prior to the Queensbury rules, and even after their implementation in some less formal venues, boxing matches would often include strikes to the legs and feet, kicks of all types, and even throws and wrestling. The specific style of kickboxing, as it is known today, did not come into being until the 1970s. Prior to that, numerous cultures had fighting styles that featured punching and kicking, from Muay Thai to San Shou to savate, but kickboxing arguably did not truly gain recognition as a separate sport until Bruce Lee entered the popular lexicon in film in the 1970s.

The popularity of savate in the early twentieth century was rooted in nationalism, something that the French needed at the time. Parisians began to engage in exhibitions of savate at the turn of the century, including the infamous 1902 match between Britain’s Jenny Pinkham and France’s Mariette Augagneur, who defeated the former by a particularly vicious kick to the stomach, which left poor Pinkham spitting up blood.[21] The strict rules of boxing seemed to be no match for the kicks of savate. In the following years, more women made headlines in France. Twelve young women gave a demonstration of savate at a private club. Another French woman defeated several men using her savate techniques. Savate, however, remained a fringe fighting sport, located primarily in France, compared to the dominant art of boxing. But the more traditional sports of boxing and wrestling would see a number of changes and advances in the twentieth century, especially for women.

In 1926, the home secretary in Ireland denounced a proposed bout between two women, claiming that although he could not officially stop a sparring match (which was lawful because it did not include a prize), he hoped that the “influence of decent public opinion [would] prevent such an outrage from taking place.”[22] By that time, boxing had become an international sensation amongst women, and not just because of the calorie-burning potential. Undoubtedly, nearly every country already had some form of fighting art taking place as a sport.

But the sport of boxing, as governed by the Queensbury rules and popularized by such fighters as John L. Sullivan, became increasingly practiced by women in countries like France, Ireland, and Mexico.[23] Mademoiselle Gouraud, niece of the famous French general, made headlines when she knocked out an opponent in 1918.[24] She was known for wearing trousers and reportedly having been the only woman to serve in the French army. Estonian Anette Busch wrestled in Russian troupes and even entered the seemingly impenetrable world of Japanese sumo wrestling in the 1920s.[25] Defeating her male opponents on a regular basis, Busch became a goddess in Japanese culture and was highly sought after in wrestling shows in Japan and throughout the world.

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