Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square Hosts
World Sword Swallower’s Day Event on February 26
Free sword swallowing performances part of worldwide event!
Nearly 20 sword swallowers will be “dropping swords” at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditoriums worldwide at 2:26 p.m. on February 26, in celebration of the Fifth Annual World Sword Swallower’s Day.
As part of the international event, Todd Robbins and several other performers will present a free sword swallowing show outside the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square Odditorium. The performance will start at 1:30 p.m., with the finale at 2:26 p.m. local time.
World Sword Swallower’s Day was founded by the Sword Swallowers Association International (SSAI) and is co-sponsored by Ripley’s Believe It or Not! locations around the world.
Why World Sword Swallower’s Day? “We sword swallowers risk our lives every time we swallow swords, but many people don't believe it’s real, or they think the art has died out," explains Dan Meyer, a sword swallower who has been featured in Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
"We established World Sword Swallower’s Day to raise awareness of the medical contributions sword swallowers have made to the fields of medicine and science, to honor veteran performers, to raise funds for esophageal cancer research and the Injured Sword Swallower’s Relief Fund (with donations matched by Ripley’s), and to correct myths by putting on sword swallowing demonstrations for the public and media around the world.”
About Sword Swallowing
The art of sword swallowing began more than 4,000 years ago in India, and requires the practitioner to use mind-over-matter techniques to control the body and repress natural reflexes to insert solid steel blades from 15 to 25 inches down the esophagus and into the stomach. With the demise of the traveling circus sideshow over the past several decades, there are currently less than a few dozen full-time professional sword swallowers actively performing the deadly art around the world today.
