why Judo for Armenians?

freakroor

freakroor

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just wondering why Judo is so popular with Armenians? is there some history that i'm not aware of?

i need to stop making posts, i'm about to lose my whitebelt
 
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Well its very close to Russia and Turkey and Judo is popular in both.. Probably has some Gokor influence also.

Thats my guess as a brazillian of armenian grandpas
 
Well, the USSR was pretty hardcore about Judo (as they were about all Olympic and especially fight sports), so most of the former USSR republics are good at Judo. Armenia isn't all that much better than Georgia or Russia.
 
Uchi Mata said:
Well, the USSR was pretty hardcore about Judo (as they were about all Olympic and especially fight sports), so most of the former USSR republics are good at Judo. Armenia isn't all that much better than Georgia or Russia.
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That makes sense. So why judo for the USSR?
 
I honestly believe that the USSR made such a big push for Olympic combat sports because it allowed them to get into fights with America and win without anyone dying.
 
Gokor really only helps in the Armenian-American scene. They (we) simply succeed because Judo has become tradition and it will only gain momentum. There is no one man that simply made Armenia good at Judo.
 
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For the USSR judo was a way to use sambo skills to get olympic medals
 
Its because most of the Armenian fighters have been Gokor's students ever since they were kids.
 
Georgia has a lot of jacket wrestling, wonder if Armenia does as well? If so, then they would compliment each other fairly well.
 
Armenians smash everyone in California tournaments..
 
along that thought i've always wondered why boxing is so popular among latinos
 
They always have a big group that makes a lot of noise if the ref does anything against their competitors.
 
freakroor said:
just wondering why Judo is so popular with Armenians? is there some history that i'm not aware of?

i need to stop making posts, i'm about to lose my whitebelt
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Armenia and Russia share cultures and so, there are many Armenians who practice sambo and from a cultural perspective, Armenians are the type to seek glory and a better life to make their families proud. Since Sambo doesn't hold as much as tournament, they compete in judo for recognition and the honor of being an Olympic champion that brings their country pride.
 
freakroor said:
That makes sense. So why judo for the USSR?
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One Russian spy, Vasily Oschepkov, lived in Japan and trained at judo Kodokan; received shodan in 1915. When he returned to Moscow he started promoting judo for self defence, and judo started gaining popularity. For political reasons they changed name to 'sambo' in 1938 and some rules to underscore distinction. When judo became Olympic sport in 1964 they started training for judo competitions.
 
Old thread, but an interesting topic. One big reason nations like Armenia and Georgia are so good at Judo is that it's not all that different in many ways from their indigenous wrestling styles which are contested wearing jackets and pants. When leg grabs were still legal especially you used to see a lot of indigenous influence in their styles, much like you still do with Mongolian Judoka. And of course, there's just a strong culture of grappling in all the former Soviet republics that goes back many centuries. If everyone does it, the best ones will be pretty damned good.
 
Georgia and Russia are much better at judo (and freestyle/greco roman wrestling) than Armenia.. just saying. Armenia are pretty good though, probably on the same level as UK/USA at judo.
 
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