The 2024 World SAMBO Championships have ended in Astana

The World SAMBO Championships were held in Astana, the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan, from November 8 to 10. Athletes from 80 countries competed for 31 sets of medals.

"The World SAMBO Championships in Astana became a historic event. For the first time, the tournament program included medals in Combat SAMBO among women, as well as in Blind SAMBO among men. Women's Combat SAMBO undoubtedly attracted the attention of martial arts fans around the world. And sambists with disabilities took part in the tournament on an equal basis with other athletes, becoming an example of masculinity and resilience for them.

The legendary sambist and SAMBO ambassador to the world, Fedor Emelianenko, was the honorary guest of the tournament in Kazakhstan. During the opening ceremony of the tournament, we presented him with an honorary gold FIAS badge of honor and a commemorative plaque, because no one has done as much to popularize SAMBO in the world as Emelianenko did. In response, Fedor gave his personalized SAMBO jacket with his autograph to the museum of the International SAMBO Federation.

Following the competition, medals were distributed to 25 countries. I would like to note the success of athletes from Venezuela, Mexico, the Philippines, Cameroon and Morocco, which once again demonstrates the growth of the level of sambists on all continents. I also congratulate the national team of the Republic of Maldives on their debut at the World Championships.

I would like to separately express my gratitude to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Akimat of Astana, the Kazakhstan Federation of Sports and Combat SAMBO for the high level of preparation for the World Championships, and also thank the general partner of the tournament, Rosneft oil company, and the official partner, VTB Bank, for their support,” said Vasily Shestakov, President of the International SAMBO Federation.