A Vietnamese martial art combining strikes, throws, scissor kicks, and weapon forms in a unified sporting curriculum.
Origin and rules
Vovinam Viet Vo Dao was founded in 1938 by Nguyen Loc in Hanoi and synthesised Vietnamese folk wrestling with influences from Chinese arts and judo. The World Vovinam Federation was established in 2008 to standardise competition.
How it plays
Vovinam has three events. Sparring uses gloves and pads under a points-based striking and throwing format. Performance includes solo and paired forms with empty hand or weapons. The flying scissor kick called don chan tan cong is the sport’s signature technique.
Competition
The WVVF World Championships, the Asian Vovinam Championships, and the Southeast Asian Games are the leading events. Vietnam, Cambodia, France, Algeria, and Iran are top performers. Vovinam debuted at the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in 2009 but is not Olympic.
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Vovinam starts with V and ends with M. Browse other sports along the same letter.
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