In addition to this ranking system, the USSR Sports Federation had its
own internal system of sambo ranking. Sambists who were actively com-
peting in the USSR were considered to be “sport candidates.” Those sam-
bists who won a national title in their class were awarded the title “master
of sport” and were licensed to teach the art. There were different classes of
sport sambo competition, including armed forces sambo competitions,
KGB competitions, amateur competitions, and youth competitions.
Today, sambo is regulated by the International Amateur Sambo Fed-
eration (FIAS), which is further developing an international system of rank-
ings and rules. This may lead to changes in sambo grading and proficiency
examinations. It is likely, however, that the rules for competition and the
method for awarding points in tournaments will remain the same.
Soviet films sometimes showcased sambo. There are three films that
may be familiar to Western filmgoers. The first, The Undefeated,is a film
about the life and travels of Anatolij Kharlampiev in his development of
sambo. The second, Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears,was the 1980 Os-
car winner for Best Foreign Film and features a whimsical display of the
art, as a sambist engages the Soviet version of juvenile delinquents. The fi-
nal entry, The Individual Swimmer,features Soviet commandos and spies
incorporating sambo techniques as they attempt to avert a war.
Sambo champions and trainers are well known and respected in the
former Soviet Union and Russia. Anatolij Kharlampiev is a hero of the for-
mer Soviet Union for his work. Russian figures such as David Rudman and
Laishev Renat are as well known in their home country as football and
baseball players in the United States. With the advent of events such as the
Ultimate Fighting Championship and international no-holds-barred events,
sambists such as Oleg Taktarov and Igor Zinoviev have become recogniz-
able figures worldwide.
Sambo was, for fifty years, the exclusive martial art for more than 300
million people. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union and free flow of
information now occurring from the Russian Federation, the popularity of
sambo continues to grow. As martial arts of all styles continue to grow in
popularity worldwide, sambo can rightfully take its place as one of the
most influential and effective fighting styles of the twentieth century.
Gene P. Tausk
References
Corcoran, John, and Emil Farkas. 1983. Martial Arts: Traditions, History,
People.New York: Gallery Books.
Eigminas, P. 1992.Sambo: Pervye Shagi(Sambo: The First Steps). Moscow:
Fizkultura i Sport.
Retjuskikh, Alexander I., and S. I. Zajashnikov. 1992. Russkij Still’
Rukopashnogo Boja—Stil’ Kadochnikova(Russian Style of Hand-to-
hand Combat—Kadochnikov Style). Novosibirsk, Russia: Vest’.
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