Sambo is a relatively new martial art form which is practiced as a combat sport as well as a self defense system. It is also known as Cambo and Sombo and the whole word is mostly spelled with all capital letters. Its origin can be traced to the Soviet Union where in 1938 it was accepted by the U.S.S.R. All-Union Sports Committee as a certified sport. Cambo and Sambo are actually acronyms of these Russian phrases, САМозащита Без Оружия (SAMozashchita Bez Oruzhiya), which translate to “self-defense without weapons”.
Sambo, the art of combat stems from various older forms of martial art specially that of Judo from Japan then folk styles of wrestling like Armenian Koch, Georgian Chidaoba, Moldovan Trîntǎ, Uzbek Kurash, Mongolian Khapsagay and Azerbaijani Gulesh. This modern combat art was founded by two people separately. Vasili Oshchepkov was one of the foremost foreigners to learn Judo from its founder Kano Jigoro in Japan. Vasili was a third degree black belt in Judo and taught Karate and Judo to the elite Red Army soldiers. Vasili employed Kano’s teachings while developing the new Soviet art of Sambo. He inculcated fierce wrestling techniques and grappling in his style of Cambo. He was however punished with death in 1937 due to political controversies when he brazenly admitted to his learning of Judo from Japanese instructor Kano.
On the other hand Victor Spiridonov, the other founder came from a background of native Russian martial art. Hence he developed his style of Sambo with a softer touch. He fought during the Russian-Japanese war and wounded his left arm severely. He was also maimed by the World War -1. Victor’s style of Sombo is similar to Aikido. He taught it as a combat sport and one of his students Anatoly Kharlampiev went on to further enhance and teach the sport. Some even regard him as one of the founders of Sambo.
Though both original founders of Sambo formulated their own respective styles under a common name the art and practice has boiled down to one solid defense system due to students and practitioners mingling.
The Styles Of Sambo
Sambo originated as one solid form or defense system but gradually formulated into 5 practiced styles.
Self Defense Sambo- this style is similar to Aikido and Jujutsu and uses self defense techniques of wrestling. It can be used as defense against unarmed as well as armed attackers. It is recognized as a form of Combat Sambo.
Combat Sambo- this form of Sombo was developed and used for military purpose. It involves practice of disarming techniques using weapons. Its form can be compared to that of Judo and a mixture of martial arts. It employs grappling and striking to a great extent. Combat Sambo’s first World Championship was held as recently as 2001.
Sport Sambo- this style is also similar to Judo and involves amateur wrestling techniques. It however unlike Judo does not allow choke holds and all kinds of leg locks are used. It also has different protocol, rules and uniform.
Freestyle Sambo- this style was formed by the ASA, American Sambo Association in 2004 and bears its distinctive American competitive Sambo rules. These are different from Sport Sambo as they permit choke holds and other technique from Combat Sambo which are not allowed in Sport Sambo. However there are no strikes allowed in Freestyle, it focuses more on throwing skills and groundwork.
Special Sambo- this style was exclusively created for Rapid Reaction Police (Militsija), Army Special Forces and some other law enforcement teams. It is called special because it involves a few enhancements in technique to suit the training requirement of each force.
Sambo practitioners wear red or blue jackets called Kurtka with matching belts and shorts and paired with Sambovki, Sambo shoes. Unlike Judo or Jujutsu, the competitive ranking is not depicted by the uniform but is classified by a ranking system, Unified Sports Classification System of the USSR. The highest level which can be attained is The Distinguished Masters of Sport in Sambo.