Still, before the eyes of almost 10,000 spectators in the Sports Palace Luzhniki the world championship in the Mix-Fight M-1 version passed with an appreciable Russian edge. On results of the preliminaries, two Russians reached the finals - Martin Malkhasyan and Ibragim Magomedov. The latter won in a drawn-out fight.
Sotaro Shinoda, vice-president of one of the most prestigious mix-fight tournaments in the world Pride (Japan), said: "Russian athletes are widely-known in Japan. Some of them are regularly front-paged by magazines. However, in general, this sport is more wide-spread in Japan and we hope that with time mix-fight will reach the same level in Russia. Today I see that there are all conditions present for that. To achieve the aim, I think, Russian sportsmen should be more aggressive, improve the quality of their attacks and diversify them. They can win victories, as we see, and now have to make their achievements more spectacular".
In the interview to RIA Novosti, president of the International Mix-Fight Association Ino Albergo of The Netherlands admitted that he was "stunned by the progress made by the Russians in mix-fight. I came to Russia for the first time about ten years ago and met only a small group of enthusiasts willing to go in for this kind of sport in Moscow and St.Petersburg. Now I know that dozens of thousands of people engage in mix-fight in different parts of Russia. The Russian success at the world championship cannot be called accidental".
In turn, Vadim Finkelshtein, president of the Russian Mix-Fight M-1 League, established in 1996, said that he is "in general, satisfied with the results of the tournament and particularly the victory of the Russian athlete. It is another proof of the high level of Russian sportsmen and their ability to vie with the most famous sportsmen from other countries". In his opinion, "the growing popularity of mix-fight in Russia and the world makes it possible to talk of including catch-as-catch-can fights in the Olympic programme".
As is known, in order to be included in the Olympic programme a kind of sport has to be spread in at least 75 countries on four continents. The probability is high that catch-as-catch-can fights, known in Russia as mix-fight, gaining popularity among sportsmen and spectators have long become a full-fledged part of the world sport movement. This kind of sport is popular on every continent. Mix-fight competitions are held in Africa, South and North Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia. The biggest tournaments are held in Japan, (Pride, Rings, K-1), the United States (UFC), Brazil (Vale Tudo), The Netherlands (2Hot2Handle), Russia (M-1, Pancration). "Of course, it is too early to say that mix-fight will 'any day now' enter the Olympic programme. Still, we can say with confidence that such competitions are coming to a higher and higher level with every year, which provokes a reciprocal interest among the public. This fact lets us make such daring forecasts", Vadim Finkelshtein said.
