Germany’s Julie-Marie Horn won the inaugural International Online Sambo Cup this past week.
The tournament was organized by FIAS and included fighters from Europe.
Known as the Rosneft Online Sambo Cup, the event has the goal of promoting the Russian martial art across the world while filling the void left by the coronavirus pandemic.
Here’s what Horn had to say after her victory:
“To me, participation in this tournament has become a new, fascinating and unusual experience. On my way to the finals, I succeeded to outstrip athletes from Armenia, Cyprus, and Moldova. I think that in the final match against the Spanish athlete I was very lucky, as I opened a card that was concealing a significant piece of technique on the playing field. I decided to take a chance and guessed right!
“Now I experience emotions that are very untypical for myself, as the winner in the online SAMBO tournament, albeit somewhat different from the win on the mat, is still pretty dear because my opponents were strong enough! And, needless to say, the prize is important, too!
“In preparation for these competitions, I paid a great deal of attention to the nuances of SAMBO techniques, studied the location of the knees, elbows, feet as they are depicted on various figures. I believe it was the knowledge of these details that helped me win. The Super Cup that will bring together the finalists from all over the world is still ahead. I’m going to prepare for it even more zealously, as the class of the participants is expected to be high. Also, it is important to choose the right strategy”.
Source: sambo.sport
