This summer, Russia will live its moment of fame due to the World Cup, with odds to win the championship only 33:1. Football isn’t yet their specialism or, at least not as much as sambo is.

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Not to be confused with samba dancing, sambo wrestling has been Russia’s national sport since 1938. An acronym of SAMozaschita Bez Orujiya (self-defence without weapon), it historically developed as hand-to-hand combat technique for the Red Army.

 

Unlike oriental martial arts, sambo’s goal is to end fights quickly. “Through head butts, kicks, chokes, punches and knee strikes, wrestlers take their opponents down and knock them out with a fast submission hold,” explains Silviu Vulc, former professional wrestler. Having spent two years in St. Petersburg fighting three times per day, he describes it as “profoundly intrinsic to the Russian culture”, as practicing it requires both mental strength and physical toughness.

 

Indeed, Silviu shares the hopes of the International Sambo Federation (FIAS) to make sambo an Olympic discipline. “Nowadays, we lost real sporting values. Fuck those McGregors and the marketing behind them! Sambo creates true role models,” he says.

 

Watch out for the next World Sambo Championships in Bucharest this year.