Sambo is a Russian martial art that is also known as Sombo or Cambo. It is a modern combat sport and self-defense art that has been officially recognized as a sport since 1938. The word Sambo stands for SAMozashchita Bez Oruzhiya, meaning self-defense without weapons. The sport has its roots in Chinese Shuaijiao, Japanese judo, and traditional wrestling styles such as Armenian Koch.
The founders of this martial art are Vasili Oshchepkov and Viktor Spiridonov. They independently developed two different styles, both with the same name. Spiridonov’s style was a gentle, aikido-like style. Anatoly Kharlampiev, a student of Spiridonov, is officially regarded as the founder of the sport.
Sambo styles
- Sport Sambo: stylistically, it resembles amateur wrestling or judo
- Self-Defense Sambo: stylistically, it resembles jiujitsu
- Combat Sambo: developed for the military
- Special Sambo: developed for commandos
- Freestyle Sambo: a style developed by the American Sambo Association
Uniforms and ranks
A practitioner of this Russian martial art normally wears a red or blue jacket, a belt and trousers in the same color. They also wear sambovki, special shoes. The uniform is not linked to a particular rank. In Russia, there is a ranking system linked to completed competitions. Some schools now use colored belts to indicate differences in rank. The points system used in Russia is known as the Unified Sports Classification System. The athlete with the highest score is called a Master of Sport.
