AFP presents a photo essay on professional wrestler Gia Scott shot by photographer Jim Watson over several months in 2018. Kierra Scott – better known by her stage name Gia – is a rising star in the US pro wrestling scene. This month, the 19-year-old became the youngest ever female champion of the MCW wrestling league in Maryland. Here: Professional wrestler Gia Scott (R) tries to break free from the grip of professional wrestler Aria Palmer (L) during Autumn Armageddon 2018 in Galena, Maryland on October 6, 2018. (Photo by Jim Watson/AFP Photo)

Participants take part in the so-called “Bearded Men” parade in the streets of Slawatycze village, eastern Poland, 29 December 2023. “Bearded Men” is an old local tradition, passed from generation to generation. In last three days of December, costumed citizens of Slawatycze say goodbye to the old year and make wishes for the New Year. (Photo by Wojtek Jargilo/EPA/EFE)

An Iraqi woman, dressed as Santa Claus, rides her bicycle amid the spread of the coronavirus in the old city of Mosul, Iraq, December 18, 2020. (Photo by Abdullah Rashid/Reuters)

People work to rescue a dog from under rubble, in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, in Iskenderun, Turkey February 8, 2023, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. (Photo by Gurcan Ozturk via Reuters)

Doctor Dvora Ancona wears a glove bearing writings against violence on women as she arrives to attend La Scala opera house's gala season opener, Giuseppe Verdi's opera “Don Carlo” at the Milan La Scala theater, Italy, Thursday December 7, 2023. The season-opener Thursday, held each year on the Milan feast day St. Ambrose, is considered one of the highlights of the European cultural calendar. (Photo by Luca Bruno/AP Photo)

Contorsionist Rich Miteku performs during the opening of the 41st Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival in Monaco on January 19, 2017. (Photo by Valery Hache/AFP Photo)

Participants of the “Torture Ships” walk to the pier where the Ship of lacquer and leather will undock with hundreds watching in Friedrichshafen, Germany on June 23, 2018. (Photo by Felix Kästle/DPA)

A man dressed as a devil performs during a Krampus parade in Kaprun, Austria on December 5, 2017. Krampus is a mythical creature that, according to legend, accompanies Saint Nicholas during the festive season. Instead of giving gifts to good children, he punishes the bad ones. (Photo by APA-PictureDesk GmbH/Rex Features/Shutterstock)