Zurkhaneh is a traditional Iranian system of athletics originally used to train warriors. It combines martial arts, strength training and music. Recognized by UNESCO as among the world's longest-running forms of such training, it fuses elements of pre-Islamic Persian culture (particularly Zoroastrianism, Mithraism and Gnosticism) with the spirituality of Shia Islam and Sufism. Practiced in a domed structure called the zurkhaneh, training sessions consist mainly of ritual gymnastic movements and climax with the core of combat practice, a form of submission-grappling called koshti pahlevani.
Jordi Cohen is a documentary photographer based in Barcelona. NGO Contributor AIDNOH (Haiti), Agua de Coco (Madagascar) and Cafebabel (Digital European magazine). Has exhibited his work in Europe and America, to highlight San Diego Art Institute, St. Petersburg, Royal Geographical Society of London, Gallería Hector Garcia of Mexico City, Couvent des Minimes of Perpignan, Complejo el Águila Exhibition Hall of Madrid. Has published in European and American media (Sunday Telegraph, CNN Blog, Leica Magazine, La Vanguardia, El Periódico, Photo France, XL Semanal, Piel de Foto, Chasseur d’Images...)
