Sambo Worlds 2016 were held on 10th to 14th of November, in Sofia, Bulgaria.
The organizer was Bulgarian Sambo Federation (celebrating 60 years of sambo in Bulgaria) and they had requested awesome graffitis on the highway bridge for that occasion.
We were stationed with all the other teams in Ramada Hotel, downtown Sofia.
Since the first day, the place was overrun by hungry looking athletes, cutting weight for their categories, constantly running between the sauna area and the gym. I think the staff freaked out a bit.
The venue for the event was Arena Armeec . Great looking, modern sport hall.
Cris had a smooth weight cut. It was her first time, so she was a bit worried, but we managed to keep her energetic and fresh the whole time.
That wasnt the only debut she made though.
Truth is, she started training martial arts just over a year ago, and managed to accomplish the following achievements for that short time:
- Got her black belt in judo through Batsugun tournament in Kodokan
- Took the 1st place at the Asian Championship of Combat Wrestling
- Took the 1st place at the World Championship of Combat Wrestling
Participation in the Sambo Worlds 2016 was something we really wanted to do and here she was- the first female to represent Brasil to the Sambo Worlds ever!
On the day of the competition, she was a bit nervous there were 19 women in her division, almost all from traditionally strong sambo countries. Her first match against Russia!
We went to warm up, just to find the area full of competitors, drilling hard for the matches:
The fights were not in our favor. Facing strong competitors, Cris managed to regroup mentally and in her second match she actually was the aggressor, but the experience proved to be vital and she lost, placing #7 in the world.
They say: What doesnt kill you, makes you stronger!
And I am sure she will demonstrate that in the next Sambo Worlds 2017 in Russia, where she will be looking to become the first female from Brasil, medaling in sambo at the biggest event in the world.
