Inside the French medieval combat sport ‘Buhurt’ taking over Australia

Police officer Tom could already be considered a knight in shining armour, but when he’s off-duty he becomes a literal one. More than 300 Aussies have taken up ‘Buhurt’ - here’s why.

Knights of the Hawkesbury Showground? Buhurt fighters at the 2025 Winterfest medieveal fair. Picture: Julian Andrews

Police officer Tom could already be considered a knight in shining armour when patrolling the streets and protecting everyday Canberrans, but when he’s off-duty he transforms into a literal one.

The 21-year-old general duties cop is among the growing number of Australians fighting in the medieval combat sport ‘Buhurt’.

“It’s based on how French knights used to fight each other without killing each other,” Tom explained.

“There’s not a huge amount of rules, it’s full contact with blunted weapons – there’s no stabbing, but you can strike (with a sword).”

Buhurt is a last-man-standing sport with a fighter declared ‘dead’ when they hit the ground.

Newcastle-based fighters Sam Woodger and Ryan Hunger taking part in the medieval French combat sport ‘Buhurt’ that is growing in popularity in Australia. Picture: Julian Andrews

Competitions can include one-on-one points-based duels known as ‘pro-fight’ or ‘outrance’ and multiple combatant bouts, most commonly three versus three, five versus five or 12 versus 12 - though on occasion in 2019 competitors fought 150-a-side in Serbia.

Players wear “historically accurate” steel armour with slight modern modifications for safety, including larger helmets for concussion protection, and wield weapons including poleaxes or halberds, arming swords and longswords.

Buhurt is no pantomime or period reenactment; it’s real and injuries do occur. Players seen engaged in a ‘pro-fight’ duel at Hawkesbury Showground. Picture: Julian Andrews

Tom fights with the Burly Griffins, the ACT’s only Buhurt team and one of Australia’s most recently established clubs, having started out with Western Sydney-based Team Havoc.

He became fascinated with the “very physically demanding” sport from the very first time he watched the fighters brawl at a Winterfest medieval fair six years ago, and has been training twice a week since.

“I saw the guys fighting and I thought it looked really awesome because they weren’t pretending – they were really beating each other up,” he said.

“Once the fight’s over we’re all friends again; it’s not as bad as it sounds!”

Canberra cop Tom (left) and biometrics specialist Angela (right) are both members of the Burly Griffins Buhurt team. Picture: Julian Andrews

Standing on the sidelines to cheer Tom on at Hawkesbury Showgrounds on Sunday was Burly Griffins teammate Angela.

Despite dressing in traditional feminine medieval garb Angela is no damsel in distress, she’s a Buhurt fighter in her own right currently recovering from an ACL tear she suffered when 120 kilograms’ worth of human and armour crashed down on top of her during combat.

A biometrics specialist in the public service in her nine-to-five desk job, the 33-year-old weightlifter and Krav Maga combatant picked up Buhurt last year and is adamant the injury she sustained will “absolutely not” scare her off the sport.

“When it happened (team captain) Bryce basically had to carry me out, but I was still yelling ‘put me back in, put me back in,” she said.

Buhurt, a medieval version of modern-day mixed martial arts (MMA) is not lawless but it is brutal. Picture: Julian Andrews

Captain Bryce Lightbody is also one of the five men who co-founded Buhurt in Australia back in 2012, and said the little-known sport’s membership has “easily” tripled over the last five years.

The Australian Medieval Combat Federation now numbers 20 active clubs with a team in every state or territory except the NT, and more than 300 competitors, from history buffs and weapons enthusiasts to MMA fighters and rugby players.

Mr Lightbody said the sport’s focus is recreating and appreciating the “intensity and violence” of 14th Century medieval tournaments rather than spot-on historical accuracy, with many fighters the “overlap between a nerd and athlete”.

Buhurt is a male-dominated sport with one female fighter to every 10 male fighters in Australia. Picture: Julian Andrews.

Women are the sport’s fast-growing demographic and a “good influx” of female fighters has allowed the AMCF to recently establish dedicated womens’ teams and competitions.

“For a number of years there, women would fight with the men and they still do when training,” Mr Lightbody said.

“Armour is a great equaliser – once that helmet is on, you don’t know who’s under it.”

Angela said she had noticed “a lot of growth” in Buhurt over the past 12 months, with exposure on social media contributing to the increasing popularity of what remains a “very underground” pastime.

“Women compete in all of the same ways men do,” she said.

“The overarching theme is that even though we’re all enemies in the list (combat arena), outside the list everyone helps each other up, if you need extra armour someone will give it to you – we’re frenemies.”