Did you know that a sambo fight is being monitored by a team of 6 referees? This team includes:
— head of the mat, arbiter and side referee. They evaluate the fighters actions.
— timekeeper, technical secretary and an informing referee. They handle the technical and informational part of the fight.
If a dispute happens, the bout is temporarily stopped. The recordings check can spot a mistake made by a referee and refereeing objectivity.
Each competition is monitored by tens of referees. They are being supervised by the Head Referee of the competition who has the final word in any conflicting situation.
Each referee goes through regular training which includes international and local seminars where they cover latest questions of their field.
Sometimes referees are being under fire. It’s one thing to be in the way of a thrown athlete but sometimes it can get worse. Threats from cheering fans or team’s representatives are a clear violation of sambo principles. In order to fight any sort of such pressure on the referees the source of the threat can be severely punished: anything from a simple warning and up to a complete disqualification.