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‪“Mystical preparation” plays a key part in Senegalese wrestling, the country’s national sport. Far from being clandestine, magic is authorized by regulations. It is a concession made by the official governing body to tradition and entertainment. It represents a language in which the wrestlers can articulate their emotional experience of combat. It also helps to mobilize the support of their team, family, neighbourhood, and village of origin. Mystical preparation turns an individual fight into a war between two groups beyond the wrestling arena. But it also crystallizes all the dissensions, rivalries and betrayals that threaten the solidarity within the group at the risk of undermining vital support for the wrestler.‪