Is pankration still an Olympic sport?
24245#39
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) does not list pankration among Olympic sports, but the efforts of Savvidis E. A. Lazaros, founder of modern Pankration Athlima, the technical examination programma, the endyma, the shape of the Palaestra and the terminology of Pankration Athlima, the sport was accepted by FILA, known today as United World Wrestling, which governs the Olympic wrestling codes, as an associated discipline and a "form of modern Mixed Martial Art". Pankration was first contested at the World Combat Games in 2010. The international federation is United World Wrestling. Under UWW the pankration competitions have two styles:There are also pro tournaments and federations like MFC modern fighting pankration. These competitions are similar to professional mixed martial arts. There are many UFC stars with pankration backgrounds like American UFC champion Demetrious Johnson, Russians Ali Bagautinov, and Khabib Nurmagomedov. Johnson's coach, Matt Hume, is the founder and head trainer at AMC Pankration in Kirkland, WA.
Pankration
24245#0
Pankration (; ) was a sporting event introduced into the Greek Olympic Games in 648 BC and was an empty-hand submission sport with scarcely any rules. The athletes used boxing and wrestling techniques, but also others, such as kicking and holds, locks and chokes on the ground. The only things not acceptable were biting and gouging out the opponent's eyes.
Pankration
24245#8
By the Imperial Period, the Romans had adopted the Greek combat sport (spelled in Latin as "pancratium") into their Games. In 393 A.D., the pankration, along with gladiatorial combat and all pagan festivals, was abolished by edict by the Christian Byzantine Emperor Theodosius I. Pankration itself was an event in the Olympic Games for some 1,400 years.
Pankration
228344#4
In Ancient Greece, there was a sport called pankration, which featured a combination of grappling and striking skills similar to those found in modern MMA. Pankration was formed by a combination of the already established wrestling and boxing traditions and, in Olympic terms, first featured in the 33rd Olympiad in 648 BC. All strikes and holds were allowed with the exception of biting and gouging, which were banned. The fighters, called pankratiasts, fought until someone could not continue or signaled submission by raising their index finger; there were no rounds. According to E. Norman Gardiner, 'No branch of athletics was more popular than the pankration.' From its origins in Ancient Greece, pankration was later passed on to the Romans.
Mixed martial arts
735092#10
Freestyle wrestling is an international discipline and an Olympic sport, for both men and women. This style allows the use of the wrestler's or his opponent's legs in offense and defense. Freestyle wrestling has its origins in catch-as-catch-can wrestling and the prime victory condition in this style involves the wrestler winning by throwing and pinning his opponent on the mat. American high school and college wrestling is conducted under different rules and is termed scholastic and collegiate wrestling. 
Pankration, from the Greek words "pan" and "kratos" meaning "the one who controls everything", is a world heritage martial art with the distinction of being the only martial sport in the ancient Olympic Games from 648 BC to 393 AD. Modern amateur pankration is a form of mixed martial arts (MMA) that incorporates techniques from multiple systems. Matches are fought with both grappling holds and by striking techniques.
Wrestling
19098431#26
The pankration was introduced in the 33rd Olympiad (648 BC). Boys' pankration became an Olympic event in 200 BC, in the 145th Olympiad.
As well as techniques from boxing and wrestling, athletes used kicks, locks, and chokes on the ground. Although the only prohibitions were against biting and gouging, the pankration was regarded as less dangerous than boxing.
Ancient Olympic Games
24245#9
There were neither weight divisions nor time limits in pankration competitions. However, there were two or three age groups in the competitions of antiquity. In the Olympic Games specifically there were only two such age groups: men (andres – ἄνδρες) and boys (paides – παῖδες). The pankration event for boys was established at the Olympic Games in 200 B.C.. In pankration competitions, referees were armed with stout rods or switches to enforce the rules. In fact, there were only two rules regarding combat: no eye gouging or biting. Sparta was the only place eye gouging and biting was allowed. The contest itself usually continued uninterrupted until one of the combatants submitted, which was often signalled by the submitting contestant raising his index finger. The judges appear, however, to have had the right to stop a contest under certain conditions and award the victory to one of the two athletes; they could also declare the contest a tie.
Pankration
24245#4
Pankration, as practiced in historical antiquity, was an athletic event that combined techniques of both boxing (pygmē/pygmachia – πυγμή/πυγμαχία) and wrestling (palē – πάλη), as well as additional elements, such as the use of strikes with the legs, to create a broad fighting sport very similar to today's mixed martial arts competitions. There is evidence that, although knockouts were common, most pankration competitions were probably decided on the ground where both striking and submission techniques would freely come into play. Pankratiasts were highly skilled grapplers and were extremely effective in applying a variety of takedowns, chokes and joint locks. In extreme cases a pankration competition could even result in the death of one of the opponents, which was considered a win.
Pankration
11544727#9
Powers, as an executive producer, has a television special and film under development. Since 2000, he has been active in a non-profit youth development program with the ancient Greek Olympic sport of pankration as its activity platform.
Johnny Powers (wrestler)
758041#1
The name was based on "pankration", a fighting sport in the Ancient Olympic Games. Suzuki and Funaki practised catch wrestling. They based the promotion and its rules on professional wrestling. The promotion's champions were called "King of Pancrase".
Pancrase
24245#37
The preparation of pankratiasts included a very wide variety of methods, most of which would be immediately recognizable by the trainers of modern high level athletes, including competitors in modern mixed martial arts competitions. These methods included among others the periodization of training; a wealth of regimens for the development of strength, speed-strength, speed, stamina, and endurance; specialized training for the different stages of competition (i.e., for anō pankration and katō pankration), and methods for learning and engraining techniques. Among the multitude of the latter were also training tools that appear to be very similar to Asian martial arts Forms or "kata", and were known as "cheironomia" (χειρονομία) and "anapale" (ἀναπάλη). Punching bags ("kōrykos" κώρυκος "leather sack") of different sizes and dummies were used for striking practice as well as for the hardening of the body and limbs. Nutrition, massage, and other recovery techniques were used very actively by pankratiasts.At the time of the revival of the Olympic Games (1896), pankration was not reinstated as an Olympic event.
Pankration