Turon is Uzbekistan's national combat sport, with roots going back to the era of Amir Timur. Farrukh Niyazimbetov, president of the International Turon Federation, joins the Grapplezilla Podcast to explain how it works and how he's taking it global.

In this episode, Farrukh breaks down how Turon blends striking, throws, and submissions, and why the rules push constant action. He also covers how the International Turon Federation grew to 35 member countries and where the sport goes next.

🥋 WHAT YOU'LL LEARN

• Where Turon comes from and how Amir Timur used competition to pick his strongest soldiers

• How Bahodir Saidov developed the modern rules in 1991, and how Turon became an official sport in Uzbekistan in 1992

• How scoring works: throws, chokes, arm bars, leg locks, and wrist locks

• The grip and uniform rules, and why referees penalize passivity

• Why both fighters get a warning when one steps out of the mat

• Habits wrestlers, jiu-jitsu players, and kickboxers have to unlearn to compete

• How Turon compares to Kurash and combat sambo

• The plan for pro Turon, the Arnold Sports Festival, the Olympics, and the Asian Games

🌎 ABOUT THE GUEST

Farrukh Niyazimbetov is the president of the International Turon Federation (ITF), established in June 2025 and headquartered in New York City. He is a seven-time Uzbekistan champion, an Asian champion, and an international gold medalist in Turon.

🔗 LINKS

Turon website: https://www.itf-turon.com/

Farrukh on Instagram: @farruxniyazimbetov

Grapplezilla store: https://grapplezilla-shop.fourthwall.com/

👍 If you enjoyed this, like and subscribe to help the show grow and bring on more great guests. Got a question? Drop it in the comments.

Grab, throw, tap.

#Turon #Grapplezilla #MartialArts #grappling #uzbekistan #uzbek

In the Soviet Union, "Line 5" (pyataya grafa) on your internal passport listed your ethnic nationality. If it said "Jewish," it could quietly close doors to university spots, job promotions, and career ceilings for your entire life.

But there was one place in the USSR where a bureaucrat with a stamp and a quota couldn't touch you: the wrestling mat. Because a pin is a pin, and either your back touches the ground or it doesn't.

In this episode of the Grapplezilla Podcast, we break down the extraordinary history of the Jewish wrestlers and coaches who didn't just survive the brutal Soviet sports pipeline (Dynamo, CSKA, Spartak, Burevestnik)—they dominated it and built the technical infrastructure still used at the highest levels of Olympic grappling today.

Timestamps:

• 0:00 Intro: "Line 5" & The Only Objective Proving Ground in the USSR

  1:10 The Soviet Wrestling Machine (Dynamo, CSKA, Spartak, Burevestnik)

  2:34 Boris Maksovich Gurevich: The First Soviet Olympic Wrestling Champion (1952)

  3:42 Yakov Punkin: From 80-Lb WWII POW Survivor to Olympic Gold

  5:16 Grigory Gamarnik: Champion & 20-Year Architect of Ukrainian Greco-Roman

  6:21 Oleg Karavaev: Master of Pace, Tempo & Impenetrable Defense

  7:12 Boris Mikhaylovich Gurevich: 1968 Gold & The UN Statue Legend

  8:45 Aleksandr Kolchinsky: The 2x Olympic Super-Heavyweight King

  9:55 The Architects: Mikhail Mirsky, David Rudman (Sambo-70) & Valentin Kalika

  11:25 The Technical Legacy: 2-on-1 Russian Tie, Folk Setups & Pace Control

  11:56 The 1990s Aliyah Wave: Carrying the System to Israel

  13:50 The Honor Roll Across 11 Time Zones

  15:17 Why This Legacy Still Matters Today on the Mat

  
  

💬 Drop a comment below: Which of these stories stood out to you the most—Yakov Punkin’s comeback from captivity, or the coaching tree that still dominates wrestling rooms today? Let me know what wrestling history topic we should cover next!

🔔 Subscribe to Grapplezilla for deep dives into wrestling history, global grappling disciplines, and combat sports biomechanics. Until next time—Grab, Throw, Tap!If you want to get some AWESOME Grapplezilla merch, check out our Grapplezilla Store in the link below:

https://grapplezilla-shop.fourthwall.com/

If you would like to support the Grapplezilla Podcast and buy me a coffee, I’ll leave a link below as any support is always appreciated:

https://buymeacoffee.com/grapplezilla

#WrestlingHistory #SovietWrestling #GrecoRoman #FreestyleWrestling #OlympicWrestling #Sambo #Grappling #Grapplezilla #history #jewishhistory #jews #jewish #soviethistory #ussrwrestling #jewishathletes #jewishwrestler

Sambo Steve Koepfer reveals why the smartest grapplers are thinking about throws, grips, and transitions all wrong. If you train jiu-jitsu, wrestling, judo, or combat sambo, this conversation will change how you see stand-up, breakfalls, and the moment a strike becomes a takedown.

Stephen Koepfer is the founder and head coach of New York Combat Sambo, one of the earliest U.S. Sambo academies, operating in New York City since 2003.

He is a Master of Sport of Russia in Combat Sambo, president of the American Sambo Association, co-founder of Breakfall Studios, and a stunt performer and action designer whose work has appeared in John Wick 2, John Wick 3, Hunters, and The Blacklist.

We break down the evolution of American Sambo from the late 90s to the Fedor-era explosion, including how Combat Sambo became an official sport and why timing mattered so much for the growth of the art. Stephen also tells the full story behind earning his Russian Master of Sport title as an American, including the on-the-mat testing, the old-school coaches watching, and the moment that sealed the credential.In this episode, you’ll discover:

• Why Combat Sambo rewards finish-fast thinking instead of point-fighting habits

  
  

• The biggest mistake jiu-jitsu athletes make when closing distance under striking pressure

  
  

• How Sambo grips translate from kurtka to no-gi, and what simply does not transfer

  
  

• Why the Achilles grip matters more than the heel hook in real leg entanglement strategy

  
  

• How Stephen uses sweep mechanics to teach throws to jiu-jitsu players who think they “can’t throw”

  
  

• What stunt performers and actors must learn to make a fight scene look brutal without getting injured

  
  

Stephen also shares what makes John Wick’s grappling feel authentic, how Breakfall Studios turns martial arts knowledge into screen action, and why teaching fight choreography is really about preserving story, structure, and safety at the same time.

If you love technical grappling, Soviet training methods, or the hidden mechanics behind movie fight scenes, this one is packed with real-world insight.

Perfect for grapplers who want better stand-up, coaches who want smarter training methods, and anyone obsessed with the intersection of martial arts, film, and old-school combat systems.

Here are Sambo Steve’s social media account where you can find him online:

Instagram: @sambosteve

YouTube: @sambosteveYouTube: @FilmFightsFriendsPod

URL: ussambo.com

If you want to get some AWESOME Grapplezilla merch, check out our Grapplezilla Store in the link below:

https://grapplezilla-shop.fourthwall.com/

If you would like to support the Grapplezilla Podcast and buy me a coffee, I’ll leave a link below as any support is always appreciated:

https://buymeacoffee.com/grapplezilla

Also, if you enjoyed this episode of the Grapplezilla Podcast, we invite you to subscribe to Grapplezilla’s YouTube channel for more great Grappling and Wrestling content updated regularly.

Until next time…Grab, Throw, Tap!

#sambo #sambosteve #sambopodcast #usasambo #ussambo #nycsambo #grappling #grapplingpodcast #grapplezilla