Dozens of gravediggers gathered in Hungary for the nation's first
ever national grave-digging competition to promote the occupation.
Each set of contestants were judged not only on how quickly they were
able to dig their graves, but also on the style of the mounds
surrounding the completed graves.
Contestants were also allowed to choose how they went about digging
the graves, with some opting to dig at the same time, while others had
one member dig as the other piled dirt along the gravesite.
The only restriction was allowing only one team member at a time to work in the grave after digging 3 feet and 3 inches down.
The event was organized to draw young people to the profession of
grave-digging as organizer Iren Kari said it was difficult to replace
retiring employees.
"These men see death every day. Sometimes people joke about them while they work, but gravediggers are human, too," he said.
Deputy chairman of the Hungarian undertakers' association Zoltan
Juracsik rejected criticism that described the profession as "morbid."
"A horror exhibit with the hangman, that's morbid. This is a
profession, and the colleagues who toil in contest today are proud and
deserve our respect," he said. "That's what this contest is for, as well
as qualifying for the finals."
The fastest team completed the task in just over a half an hour.The winning teams earned the chance to participate in a regional contest in Slovakia in November.
A team from Debrecen, where the event was held, utilized their familiarity with the area to dominate the competition.
Local gravedigger Laszlo Toth said he enjoys the job despite its morbid elements.
"The hardest part of the job is to deal with the mourners," he said.
"But it's a good job, with good colleagues and a good environment."
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