On December 8, 2013, the first World Championship in Ukrainian national mixed martial arts «Kozatsky Biy» took place in Kharkiv. The championship brought together 400 competitors from 6 countries: Azerbaijan, Algeria, Armenia, Georgia, Russia, and of course the birthplace of this sport — Ukraine. In the team competition, Ukraine took first place, Russia’s athletes confidently secured second place, and Azerbaijan’s team finished third. We would like to note that the first World Champion in Ukrainian national martial arts was Azerbaijani fighter Ali Aliyev (born 2006). The tournament was held in all age groups starting with children aged 8 and ending with veterans over 40. Competitions were conducted in the following disciplines: “Onotan” — formal and free technical combinations; in this section we would like to highlight an athlete from Algeria — Mameri Farid (in the photo); “Tan Biy” section — demonstration of self-defense techniques in pairs; “Zabava” — matches with controlled contact; “Bornya” — matches with light contact; and the pinnacle of the sport “Hertz” — full-contact matches with the maximum range of permitted technical actions including striking and grappling techniques. This section is conducted only among men over 19 years old. This section was the most popular at the championship and attracted maximum attention from spectators and tournament guests. In this section, we would like to highlight athletes from the Republic of Dagestan of the Russian Federation.
The tournament was held at the Lokomotiv Sports Palace named after Kirpa at Kotlova Street, 90/1 and consisted of two parts: at 9:00 AM, preliminary matches began on four venues, and at 5:00 PM a parade and ceremonial opening of the championship finals took place, followed by final matches. The opening of the championship was conducted by Alexander Viktorovich Popov, Deputy Mayor for Family, Youth and Sports. Athletes were also greeted by organizers and honorary guests: Vladimir Anatoliyovich Radionov, President of the Ukrainian Sports Federation “Kozatsky Biy”; Oleg Gennadiyovich Rozhkevich, President of the MMA Federation of Ukraine; Rishat Salimovich Sayapov, Vice-President of the World Federation “Kozatsky Biy”; Valery Vladimirovich Ruban, Chairman of the Cossack Committee of the Public Council under the Kharkiv Regional State Administration; Victor Ivanovich Posokhov, Advisor to the Mayor on Cossack Affairs; and Oleg Evgenyevich Posokhov, Otaman of the “Slobidske Cossack Host”.
The championship was organized by the World Federation “Kozatsky Biy” (WCFF), with direct organization entrusted to the official WCFF representative in Ukraine — the Ukrainian Sports Federation “Kozatsky Biy”. The tournament was held with the support of Kharkiv City Council. The championship’s general partner is Red Star Chemical Pharmaceutical Plant; partners of the championship are “All-Ukrainian Cossack Host”, “Slobidske Cossack Host”, “Kodatske Zaporizhian Host”; technical partner is BOYKO-SPORT company. Special thanks to the administration and staff of Lokomotiv Sports Palace named after Kirpa for their assistance in organizing the event. Thanks to their efforts and the coordinated work of the refereeing corps, the competition was conducted at a high organizational level.
Photographer: Marina Tretyakova