It's hard to know how to introduce an article I received by e-mail last night with a BBC News header (can't link, sorry, so I'm pasting). I was stunned, disturbed, saddened, and all while laughing at the absurdity. You decide how to handle it.
Lion Mutilates 42 Midgets in Cambodian Ring-Fight
An African Lion much like this (sorry about missing photo) is responsible for the death of 28 Cambodian Midgets. Spectators cheered as [the] entire Cambodian Midget Fighting League squared off against [the] African Lion. Tickets had been sold-out three weeks before the much anticipated fight, which took place in the city of Kâmpóng Chhnãng. The fight was slated when an angry fan contested Yang Sihamoni, President of the CMFL, claiming that one lion could defeat his entire league of 42 fighters. Sihamoni takes great pride in the league he helped create, as was conveyed in his recent advertising campaign for the CMFL that stated his midgets will "... take on anything; man, beast, or machine."This campaign is believed to be what sparked the undisclosed fan to challenge the entire league to fight a lion; a challenge that Sihamoni readily accepted.
An African Lion (Panthera Leo) was shipped to centrally located Kâmpóng Chhnãng especially for the event, which took place last Saturday, April 30, 2005 in the city’s coliseum.
The Cambodian Government allowed the fight to take place, under the condition that they receive a 50% commission on each ticket sold, and that no cameras would be allowed in the arena. The fight was called in only 12 minutes, after which 28 fighters were declared dead, while the other 14 suffered severe injuries including broken bones and lost limbs, rendering them unable to fight back. Sihamoni was quoted before the fight stating that he felt since his fighters out-numbered the lion 42 to 1, that they “… could out-wit and out-muscle [it].”
Unfortunately, he was wrong.
P.S. I'd think 42 midgets could handle a lion, but they'd need a unified game plan and a lot of knowledge of lions. And why not sneak in a blade, like wrestlers do? There's not enough detail here to know how all the deaths occurred, although many lost limbs is a graphic clue. Still, with the huge count of tiny bodies, I couldn't help but imagine my Boston terrier (my barely terrier) shaking the tar out of his toys, displaying the characteristic neck-snapping move they use against rodents.
P.P.S. What would it have been like to be in the audience? Were cameras not allowed because organizers were filming it themselves? When they "called" the fight after 12 minutes of carnage, did it only require a couple of guys with tranq darts and netting to subdue the lion afterward? Why did they wait until 2/3 of the midgets were dead?
P.P.P.S. It's a fake, of course. Read the details of how the story began here and be sure to look at the original news report they created. The link I received was to a more authentic-looking web page without any disclaimers or "fake" labels, and I looked through the news archives for a real link before being sure I smelled a dead fish in Denmark.
But what a story! It practically screams for reality TV to flesh it out, non?
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2 comments:
The Scrivener would have bet on the lion - after all - look at how many times they won in the Roman games - was there ever a civilian who bested a real lion? I don't think so.
The Scrivener would have bet on the lion - after all - look at how many times they won in the Roman games - was there ever a civilian who bested a real lion? I don't think so.
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