Sambo (also called Sombo in the US and sometimes written in all-caps) is a modern martial art and self-defense system developed in the former Soviet Union. The word Sambo is an abbreviation meaning "self-defense without a weapon" in Russian.
Sambo (also called Sombo in the US and sometimes written in all-caps) is a modern martial art and self-defense system developed in the former Soviet Union. The word Sambo is an abbreviation meaning "self-defense without a weapon" in Russian.
There are two Sambo forms – the sport and combative Sambo. Combative Sambo stands separately from the sport of Sambo because it includes kicks and punches.
According to the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles (FILA), Sambo is one of the four main forms of amateur competitive wrestling practiced internationally today, the other three being Greco-Roman wrestling, Freestyle wrestling and Judo.
In 1981 MOK names Sambo an Olympic sport but since then it has not been included into the actual Olympic programme. Such an undefined status of the sport adversely affects its popularity. As a result, many Sambo wrestlers move to Judo.
There is no single recognized founder of Sambo. Traditionally, Anatoly Kharlampiev is considered as a founder of Sambo – his bestselling book "Sambo wrestling" republished many times in the USSR. As a matter of fact, Vasily Oschepkov and Victor Spiridonov were real creators of Sambo. Oschepkov got the second Judo Dan personally from Jigoro Kano. When Oschepkov was young, he lived in A Russian colony in Japan and studied in a Japanese school. Later he studied and graduated from "Kodokan Judo". During WWI, Oschepkov served in Russian Far East and trained soldiers in Judo. In the Soviet times, he taught self-defense and combat techniques to military personnel and students. A new combat style was invented on the base of Judo. Viktor Spiridonov was a combat veteran of World War I, Jiu-jitsu practitioner and one of the first wrestling and self-defense instructors. His background included Greco-Roman wrestling, freestyle wrestling, boxing, Savate and many Slavic wrestling styles. As a "combative investigator", he traveled to Mongolia and China to observe their native fighting styles. He eventually developed a softer, more "aikido-like" system called Samoz (self protect). He was the first Russian ever classified combat techniques and introduced new terms for them. He elaborated basic principles for the new developed self-defense system.
During Stalin’s purges in 1937 Oschepkov was arrested and executed. Since Spiridonov was security-guarded, a member of Oschepkov’s team, Anatoly Kharlampiev, was announced as a founder of Sambo. Kharlampiev, author popular book on self defense, should be given the credit of detail classification of the Sambo techniques. However, research of national combat and wrestling forms in the USSR was begun under Oschepkov who renamed his school from jiu-do (judo) to Sambo. Oschepkov, Kharlampiev and their colleague Ivan Vasilyev spent ten years in the making the catalogue of techniques which was instrumental in formulating the early framework of the art of Sambo.
Sambo was officially considered as a defensive sport, however combat Sambo forms were taught in army and police. Sambo was a part of the military drill of every Soviet soldier.
Sambo became a sport only on November 16, 1938. The sport was recognized by USSR National Committee of Physical Culture and Sports.
Sambo was born of native Russian and other regional styles of grappling and combative wrestling bolstered with the most useful and adaptable concepts and techniques from the rest of the world.
Each technique for Sambo was carefully dissected and considered for its merits, and if found acceptable in unarmed combat, refined to reach Sambo’s ultimate goal: stop an armed or unarmed adversary in the least time possible. The best techniques of Jiu-jitsu and its softer cousin, Judo, entered the Sambo repertoire. When the techniques were perfected, they were woven into Sambo applications for personal self-defense, police, crowd control, border guards, secret police, dignitary protection, psychiatric hospital staff, military, and commandos.
Nowadays, women are widely involved in all these services, so they must manage hand-to-hand combat techniques. Besides, learning Sambo techniques allows every woman to become proficient in the self-defense art. Thus, development of women’s Sambo is far from being limited by the sport.
The regional, native combat systems included in Sambo’s genesis are: Belt wrestling styles popular in Turkish nations (Kurash, Koras, Kures, etc.): Tartars, Bashkirs, Chuvashes, Altaians, Uzbeks, Tuvinians, etc. Other ethnic combat forms which techniques were included in Sambo are: Yakutian Khapsagai, Georgian Chidaoba, Moldavian Trinta, Armenian Kokh, etc. The foreign influences included various styles of European Wrestling styles, oriental Judo, Jiu-jitsu, and other Oriental martial arts of the day plus the classical sports of boxing, kickboxing, Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling. Sambo even derived lunging and parrying techniques from Italian scherma fencing.
Nonetheless, Judo remains the closest martial art to Sambo.
Although it was originally a single system, there are now three generally recognized versions of Sambo:
Sport Sambo ("Borba Sambo") is stylistically similar to amateur wrestling or Judo. The competition is similar to Judo, but with some differences in rules, protocol, and uniform. The differences which catch the eye are the following: a Sambo practitioner wears either a red or blue jacket (kurtka) with "wings" and slits for the belt, shorts rather than pants as well as special boots (sambovki); a mat in Sambo is round rather than square in judo; Sambo allows all types of leg locks while not allowing chokeholds whereas judo - the other way around. Besides, judo and Sambo have very different score counting systems.
Self-defense Sambo, which is similar to Aikijutsu, Jiu-jitsu or Aikido, and is based on self-defense application, such as defending against attacks by both armed and unarmed attackers.
Combative Sambo (Russian: "Boyevoye Sambo"). Utilized and developed for the military, this is arguably the root of Sambo as it is now known, and includes practice with weapons and disarming techniques. Competition in combat Sambo resembles modern mixed martial arts ("no-holds barred"), and includes extensive forms of striking and grappling.
As early as the Sambo’s father Oschepkov began his practice, women were involved in martial arts and self-defense training. During the period 1914 to 1917 Judo and self-defense classes were functioning in Vladivistok (Russian far East). Girls participated in them and did not yield to men in this respect. Those girls called in question the term "weaker sex" and became progenitors of women’s Sambo in Russia. Thus, Vladivostok is a birthplace of women's Sambo. In the postwar period, the follower of Oschepkov, Anatoly Kharlampiev became unquestionable leader of Sambo (particularly, of women’s Sambo.) For many years he trained girls side by side with men.
Despite the efforts by Kharlampiev and other Sambo trainers and enthusiasts trying to cultivate women’s Sambo, any female combative activities were under a strict ban for a long time until female judo became widespread in the USSR. For example, in 1972 the Soviet Sports committee issued an incredible order prohibiting bodybuilding, karate, female Sambo and playing card game "bridge". However, women’s Sambo had survived owing to efforts and selflessness of trainers and female enthusiasts. Currently, Sambo is very popular sport and self defense system among women.
Female Sambo was developing simultaneously with female Judo, the most kindred to Sambo combative form. It is not a big deal for a skillful Judoka to retrain for Sambo. According to the prominent Russian female sambist and judoka, the difference between Sambo and judo is not significant. Because of the similarity, many female wrestlers participate in the both sports (as Irina Rodina does). Many judokas take part in Sambo tournaments, spending just a few days for the additional training. Although, in the future they perhaps will be more separated and specialization will increase as it is happening in men's judo and Sambo.
Sambo inventors (from left to right):
Vasily Oschepkov, Victor Spiridonov, Anatoly Kharlampiev
|
 |
The most of the picture are gotten from Vladivostok Times
|
