Sambo words · Beginner

The words you will hear in your first match, grouped the way you meet them.

B · Beginner · 21 words · Step 1 of 2

Basic terms

Sambo

A Russian combat sport, governed worldwide by the FIAS, with throws, hold-downs and painful holds on joints. It has two competition forms, Sport Sambo and Combat Sambo.

Sport sambo

The grappling form: throws, hold-downs, painful holds (arm and leg locks) and defence against them. There are no strikes, and chokeholds are not allowed.

The ruleWhat is sambo?

Combat sambo

The form that adds strikes with hands, feet, knees and, with helmets, the head, and chokeholds to the grappling. Fighters wear helmets, gloves and protectors.

The ruleWhat is sambo?

Bout

One contest between two athletes.

Total victory

A win that stops the bout at once: a perfect throw, a submission signal in a painful hold or hold-down (or chokehold in combat), an eight-point lead, the opponent's withdrawal or disqualification, and in combat a knockout or two knockdowns.

Also called: ahead-of-time victory
See also: Bout, Throw, Painful hold, Hold-down, Submission signal

Formats

Weight categories

For adults the men's classes are 58, 64, 71, 79, 88, 98 and over 98 kg, and the women's 50, 54, 59, 65, 72, 80 and over 80 kg, with lighter classes for cadets and youths. An athlete competes in one class and one age group.

The mat and uniform

SAMBO mat

An 11 m by 11 m mat with a circular bout area of 8 m diameter. The red corner is to the left of the table side referee and the blue to the right.

Red and blue

Athletes wear a red or blue SAMBO jacket, belt, shorts and shoes. The athlete called first takes the red corner and wears red.

Off mat

The position when, standing, an athlete has both feet beyond the edge of the bout area; or on the ground, both athletes are outside it, or one is outside the safety area. The arbitrator stops the bout and restarts it standing at the centre.

Positions

Standing

A position in which the athlete touches the mat only with the feet.

Ground position

A position in which the athlete touches the mat with any part of the body other than the feet, or leans on an opponent who is on the ground. It includes lying on the back, on the side, on the chest or stomach, on the buttocks or lower back, on the shoulder, and the bridge and half-bridge.

Techniques

Throw

A technique that makes the opponent lose balance and fall so that some part of the body besides the feet touches the mat. Its score depends on whether the attacker stays standing, the defender's starting position, and how the defender lands.

Painful hold

A lock on the opponent's arm or leg, by bending (lever), rotating a joint (knot), or squeezing tendons or muscles (pinch), to force a submission. It lasts at most one minute. In Sport Sambo it may start only when the defender is on the ground; in Combat Sambo also standing.

Also called: joint lock, submission hold
See also: Sambo, Sport sambo, Combat sambo, Standing

Hold-down

Holding the opponent on the back, both shoulder blades on the mat, with the attacker's torso pressing on the opponent's torso. It counts 20 seconds. It ends if the defender turns onto the chest or stomach, pushes the attacker off, or the attacker switches to a painful hold.

Submission signal

The defender's way to concede, by shouting or by clapping the mat, their own body or the opponent's several times. An interruption requested by a defender caught in a hold is treated as giving up unless the attacker broke a rule.

Also called: tap out, give up

Scoring

Scoring of throws

A throw scores up to four points depending on how the attacker finishes and where the defender lands: back or bridge scores the most, side or half bridge the middle, chest, stomach, buttocks, lower back or shoulder the least. A throw without falling that puts a standing defender on the back is a perfect throw and a total victory.

Perfect throw

A throw made without falling after which a standing defender falls on the back, into a bridge, or rolls on the back at once. It wins the bout outright.

Also called: total throw
See also: Bout, Standing, Bridge, Throw

Eight-point lead

If one athlete has eight or more points more than the other, the bout stops and the leader wins by total victory.

Also called: distinct advantage
See also: Bout, Total victory

Winning on points

At the end of time the athlete with more points wins. Ties go to more technical points, then more high-scoring actions (four and two points), then whoever scored last. With no technical points the athlete with fewer warnings wins, then the one with the activity mark.

Warnings and penalties

Warning

A penalty for a violation, issued by majority of the three referees, at most three in a bout. The second and third each give the opponent one point. A fourth means withdrawal from the bout.

Officials

Arbiter

The referee on the mat, who starts and stops the bout with the whistle, gestures and commands, and takes the winner's hand. Two side referees help, and the three decide actions by majority.