Tokyo to host next edition of Russian President’s Sambo Cup on February 6, 2022

TOKYO, October 18. /TASS/. The next edition of Japan’s annual all-nation Sambo wrestling championship, which is also called the Russian President’s Cup or Putin’s Cup, is scheduled for February 6, 2022, Nobuyuki Asai, a vice-president of the Japan Sambo Federation, told TASS on Monday. This will be the 10th annual Sambo championship in Japan, with the main prize named after Russian President Vladimir Putin. "The anniversary 10th Sambo Championship for the President Putin’s Cup will be held on February 6 in Tokyo at the Sumida Sports Center," Asai said adding that the program of the next year’s tournament is planned to include women’s competitions as well. The previous Sambo Championship was held in Japan in August this year as it had been rescheduled several times due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the pandemic restrictions, a number of participants and weight categories in the previous tournament were reduced. Sambo wrestling Sambo wrestling originated in Russia in the 1920s, when soldiers of the then-Soviet Army developed their own hand-to-hand combat technique. The word Sambo is a Russian acronym, which stands for "self-defense without weapons." Russian President Vladimir Putin stated in 2016, speaking about Sambo wrestling and its global perspectives, that the Russia-originated wrestling should be included in the Olympic program, but it would require a lengthy and labor-consuming period. On July 20, 2021, the International Sambo Federation (FIAS) obtained full recognition of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The decision was made at the IOC Session in Tokyo, on the eve of the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Japan. Read more