Pan American SAMBO Championships Conclude in Costa Rica

From July 9 to 11, the Costa Rican city of Alajuela hosted the Pan American SAMBO Championships. The competition took place at the Polideportivo Monserrat sports complex and brought together the continent's strongest athletes across three disciplines: Sport SAMBO, Combat SAMBO, and Beach SAMBO.

The championships drew representatives from 21 countries across the continent: Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

Men and women competed for medals in Sport SAMBO and Combat SAMBO across seven weight categories in each discipline. Medals were also awarded in Beach SAMBO, contested in four weight categories for men, four for women, and one team event. Sport SAMBO and Combat SAMBO competitions ran on July 9 and 10, while July 11 closed out the championship program with the Beach SAMBO events.

Following three days of hard-fought competition, Team USA topped the overall medal standings, reaffirming its status as one of the continent's strongest SAMBO nations. Venezuela claimed second place, showing consistently high performance across the entire program. Rounding out the top three was host nation Costa Rica, for whom the home championships proved a genuine success.

Team winners by discipline:

- Sport SAMBO (men) – USA

- Sport SAMBO (women) – Venezuela

- Combat SAMBO (men) – USA

- Combat SAMBO (women) – Venezuela

- Beach SAMBO (men) – USA

- Beach SAMBO (women) – Costa Rica

- Beach SAMBO (team event) – USA

“The Pan American Championships have once again confirmed the high level of SAMBO's development on the continent and marked an important stage in athletes' preparation for upcoming international events,” said Eliseo Romero, President of the Pan American SAMBO Union. “The tournament clearly demonstrated the growing competitiveness and skill of the region's athletes: bright young talents made their mark, while the continent's established leaders confirmed their class, once again climbing to the top of the podium. It's also worth noting that the championship program covered nearly every discipline of world SAMBO – from Sport and Combat to Beach SAMBO – making this one of the most representative events on the calendar.”

He also stressed the importance of continuous training for continental referees and coaches. Ahead of the championships, a packed educational program took place at the Polideportivo Monserrat sports complex: a coaches' seminar on July 6-7, followed by a referees' seminar on July 7-8. Coaches and referees who passed their respective certification exams earned qualification categories.