ST. PETERSBURG, May 6 (Xinhua) -- St. Petersburg Governor Georgy Poltavchenko presided Monday over the opening of the city's 13th International Sambo Tournament.
Wrestlers from around Russia, as well as sambo masters from the United States, Finland and Latvia will take part in a tournament scheduled to coincide with Russia's Victory Day celebrations later this week.
The young fighters, many drawn from Russian military academies, will also have the chance to meet with surviving war veterans over the coming days.
Sambo is a Russian martial art and combat sport, a technique of self-defense without weapons.
Russia's ruling party, United Russia, has courted controversy in recent years by openly endeavoring to establish a link in popular consciousness between martial arts and national self- defence.