Senegalese wrestlers cover themselves in sand as they prepare to start their training program in Petit Mbao on March 29, 2021. As Covid-19 restrictions have been lifted, wrestlers now start prepare themselves for the start of wrestling tournaments. Senegalese wrestling, which has its roots in the ceremonies celebrating the end of harvests in Serer and Diola ethnic groups and remains surrounded by a thick cloud of mystical practice, is still extremely popular in this West African country. (Photo by John Wessels/AFP Photo)

Two young dancers take pictures while waiting for the start of the Koenji Awa-Odori dance festival, in the Koenji neighborhood of Tokyo. Saturday, August 24, 2019, Started in the 1950s, the Koenji Awa-Odori has grown to be one of Tokyo's largest and most popular summer festivals an estimated 10,000 dancers participating in the dance festival. Hundreds of thousands of spectators gather in the neighborhood to watch the two-day summer spectacle. The event is held on the last weekend of August each year. (Photo by Jae C. Hong/AP Photo)

Members of Uganda Soft Ground Wrestling perform for attendees during the third day of Nyege Nyege Festival in Jinja, on November 16, 2024. The four-day popular Nyege Nyege Festival in Jinja, Uganda, gathers over 10,000 revelers and artists from across Africa for a celebration of music and culture, though it has faced criticism from some religious leaders who view it as morally controversial. (Photo by Badru Katumba/AFP Photo)

“Theyyam”. Preparation for the Theyyam performance in the surroundings of Kasaragod city. Theyyam is a popular ritual dance form of North Kerala, particularly in Kannur and Kasargod districts. The Theyyam represents a mythological, divine or heroic character. Make up of Theyyams is done by specialist. There are different types of face painting for which primarily and secondary colours are used. Therefore it is essential that the makeup man should have perfect knowledge of primary and secondary colour combinations. Sometimes, it takes several hours to paint each face. Photo location: Kasaragod, India. (Photo and caption by Rafal Ziejewski/National Geographic Photo Contest)

An Indian woman collects camel dung during the annual cattle fair in Pushkar, in the western Indian state of Rajasthan, Sunday, November 10, 2013. Pushkar, located on the banks of Pushkar Lake, is a popular Hindu pilgrimage spot that is also frequented by foreign tourists who come to the town for the annual cattle fair and camel races. (Photo by Ajit Solanki/AP Photo)

An Indian labourer sifts coloured powder, known as “gulal”, to be used during the forthcoming spring festival of Holi, inside a factory at Fulbari village on the outskirts of Siliguri on March 6, 2017. Holi, the popular Hindu spring festival of colours is observed in India at the end of the winter season on the last full moon of the lunar month, and will be celebrated on March 13 this year. (Photo by Diptendu Dutta/AFP Photo)

A dramatic rise in owning exotic pets in China is fuelling global demand for threatened species. The growing trade in alligators, snakes, monkeys, crocodiles and spiders is directly linked to species loss in some of the world’s most threatened ecosystems. Here: A fennec fox (Vulpes zerda) is groomed in a pet store in central Beijing. Native to the Sahara in North Africa, the species became a popular pet after being depicted as a character in Disney’s 2016 animated movie Zootopia. Individuals can cost between $2,000–$3,000. (Photo by Sean Gallagher/The Guardian)

For her series “Japanese Whispers”, Belgian photographer Zaza Bertrand headed inside the intimate world of rabuhos – Japanese love hotels. Love hotels became popular in Japan from the 1960s onwards, due to a lack of privacy in many family homes. There are now around 37,000 of these hotels in Japan, allowing short daytime “rests” or overnight stays. (Photo by Zaza Bertrand/The Guardian)