fedor stuff
July 20, 2008
It’s Sambotastic!
We have Fedor to thank for bringing a collective view on Sambo. Thank you, Mr. Emelianenko. He’s arguably the greatest representative of that martial art.
So in honor of his fight against Tim Sylvia this weekend – which I’m sure is going to have the net buzzing with searches – here’s the Last Emperor in a exhibition match with his Sambo instructor, Vladimir Voronov. I’m guessing somewhere in Korea. Enjoy!
Like Aikido, I’ve always been curious of Sambo.
Sambo also has different forms, again like Aikido. Unlike Aikido, Sambo is pretty much straight up about what kind of style it’s practitioners perform – Sport Sambo and Combat Sambo. There’s other forms of Sambo but it all boils down to sport and combat usage.
One uses strikes, chokes, and self-defense tactics against unarmed and armed attackers. The other doesn’t. Both use throws and submissions.
At Yushinkai, I had a chance to learn some Combat Sambo. And I think most of the “self-defense” techniques I learned there were from Combat Sambo. I’d like to post some of them up on my blog for my own benefit, just so that I don’t forget them. I wrote them down in a small yellow pocket notebook with little figures and notes, and even though I’m cleaning up my apartment and gathering up my things, I have no idea where it could be.
Aside from my favorite judo throws, the single leg, double leg, and ankle pick here are a couple of vids on some actual takedowns I like to use from Fedor’s artform.
This technique relies heavily on kuzushi/breaking balance with a gi. I used to do this a lot in Judo before I learned that I couldn’t (shouldn’t) grab the legs.
I like to use a single collar with this technique. Really gets the opponent off balance.
Okay, I’ll bite, why did they say you shouldn’t grab the legs?
Sorry, upon further [closer] reading [duh!]… what’s the theory about “couldn’t/shouldn’t” grabbing the legs? Is that an actual reg in Judo?
I think it might have to do with not wanting sloppy Judo techniques.
Like in randori. You’re not *supposed* to bend a lot at the knees, stick your ass out and lower your center of gravity (like how they do it in the Olympics), cause that makes it kinda hard to throw you. (And I thought it that was the whole point of using that kind of posture) From my limited Japanese at the time, my Judo instructor said it led to poor technique.
So I’m thinking when it comes to grabbing the legs like in a single or double legs, it’s the same thing. No sloppy techniques. There are single and double leg takedowns in Judo. The Judo single leg looks more like an ankle pick than a single leg.
Most often than not a single/double leg attempt will led to both players heading towards the mat, which is something we want to happen in BJJ, MMA and wrestling. Our goal is to get to the ground. But in Judo that’s not the goal. The goal is getting Ippon.
To get an Ippon via a throw means the throw has to be controlled and the back of the uke has to be exposed to or land upon the mat, which is why even if one bridges, never even having any part of the back touch the mat, they can still lose the match.
So by that definition, picking up and throwing your opponent in the air will probably get you an Ippon.
But that’s not Judo. And it’s clean, precise Judo techniques they’re looking for in Judo classes. And probably why they frown upon just grabbing at the legs.
That or Judoka secretly hate sprawing.
Ah, the Judo [Japanese?] obsession with form over efficiency. Kano weeps.
Lashely slapped the beast around last night for sure!