Sursee keeps controversial goose decapitation tradition

Organisers in Sursee say they will continue the annual goose decapitation contest in its current form, despite animal welfare groups calling for it to end, SRF reported.

Held on November 11, the event sees men and women take turns trying to cut the head off a dead goose with a blunt sabre. Each participant gets one attempt. The winner takes the goose home, and it typically takes five to 20 blows to sever its head.

The contest and its children’s programme draw about 3,000 spectators to a stage in front of Sursee town hall. Activities for children include pole climbing, sack races and “Chäszänne”, a local term for making faces. The day ends with a lantern procession.

A group of demonstrators called for the tradition to be abolished this year. Oliver Bieli, who organised the protest on behalf of several animal welfare groups, said the event involved animals dying for people’s entertainment. He said the geese should be replaced with a dummy.

Sara Steiner, head of the committee that organises the event, said she understood that it could seem unsettling to people unfamiliar with it. She said organisers did not consider the tradition disrespectful to the animal, but instead saw it as an event held in the goose’s honour because geese were once valuable. Many people in Sursee still identified with the custom, she said.

The origins of the tradition are unclear, according to the city. It probably dates back to the late Middle Ages, while the event in its current form has been held since 1863. The Sursee contest is listed among Switzerland’s living traditions.

Committee chair Sarah Steiner said the event would continue as long as spectators attended and people signed up to take part. Organisers saw no need for change, she said, while accepting that others held different views.