How to Learn the Rules of Sambo

Sambo is a sport of hand-to-hand combat and self-defense developed in Russia for use by its army. The name is an acronym of a Russian phrase meaning "Self-defense without weapons." Sambo combines moves from the martial arts and wrestling to overpower your opponent in a match. Sambo schools and tournaments can be found throughout the United States and are open to men and women of all ages. Read on to learn how to learn the rules of Sambo.

Instructions

    • 1

      Wear the appropriate uniform. The traditional Sambo uniform consists of the kurta or jacket, shorts and a belt. This is all made of a heavy fabric like canvas and is all the same color, either red or blue, but never mixed. The jacket is long sleeved and hangs up to eight inches below the belt. The belt goes through the loops on the jacket and is tied tightly. The shorts should fit snuggly.

    • 2

      Begin the match. A match is a single six-, five- or four-minute period depending on the age and rank of the competitors. Each match begins with the participants in the standing position. It can be stopped and restarted from this same position when the participants go out of bounds, an injury occurs but the person can still continue, to make adjustments to the uniform, if a player must be cautioned for an illegal hold or when a stalemate occurs.

    • 3

      Battle your opponent to win the match. You can do this by using different moves and scoring points.

    • 4

      Hold your opponent down with most of his back in contact with the mat and you lying on top of him with your chest, side, or back in contact with his chest. This move scores two points if it's held for 10 seconds and four points for 20 seconds. You can only earn points for this move once in the match.

    • 5

      Work your opponent into a submission hold, applying pressure to his arm or leg to force him to surrender. This can't be applied while you're still standing. When your opponent surrenders you win the match.

    • 6

      Throw your opponent. This is done by taking your opponent in one fluid motion. The perfect throw will send your opponent to the mat on his back and leave you still standing. If you achieve this you win the match. Any variation of this throw scores between one and eight points based on how your opponent lands and whether you stay on your feet or not.

    • 7

      Win the match by one of the two previously mentioned methods or by scoring 12 more points than your opponent to achieve a technical superiority, or have more points than your opponent at the end of the match.