Taken from the Systema Guidebook:
About Vladimir Vasiliev
Vladimir Vasiliev spent 10 years with a Special Operations Unit (SOU)-the Russian Army Special Forces. During his decade with SOU he became a master of the Russian Martial Art, the fighting system that made the Soviet Union's elite soldiers the most feared in the world.
The unit Vladimir served in was even more exclusive than our Navy SEALS. Very few in the Soviet military even knew of the training Vladimir and the others in his unit received due to intensive government secrecy about the unit. Even fewer were allowed training in these techniques.
In Soviet Russia, military service was compulsory. You had to do your time with the Soviet Army. Most went into the Regular Army where their martial arts training consisted of training in "Sambo", a martial art based on traditional Oriental styles emphasizing jujutsu or kick boxing.
Others, the healthiest and most promising, were placed into Special Forces units. The best of the best were placed into elite special operations units. At first, Russian authorities experimented with different fighting systems from around the world to see which was most effective. The unit Vladimir trained in specialized in the ancient Russian martial arts.
This system was found to be superior to every other system tried by the Russian Special Forces. Not only could it be practiced with a remarkably lethal effeciency, it was also incredibly multi-functional. It provided results far beyond the others in any situation in a much shorter period of time.
The Russians were also concerned about training soldiers in a way that they could resist psychological stress. As in the Vietnam War, many soldiers returned emotionally crippled or had psychological problems when serving in places like Afghanistan and Chechnya.
One of the main goals of the training in Vladimir's unit was to prepare the operators to endure any military operation and stay sane and functional. The Russian Army wanted to train an elite group that could be called on at any time to go anywhere and, in a moment, gear up to maximum fighting readiness. The training was almost inhuman, certainly beyond anything our SEALS or Delta Force undergoes. But the result was a soldier the likes of which the world had never seen before.
Even when these people became civilians, they were so skilled and tough that the Soviet government would call them back into action to secretly participate in a mission. It must have been strange for the friends and co-workers of these people. They'd be doing their regular job in Russian society and then, suddenly, they wouldn't be seen for several days. When they returned from some incredible mission, nobody would know where they'd been. Nor could they talk about what they'd done. They simply went back to work as if nothing had happened.
The people in these special units were so well-trained and efficient that the Russian Army couldn't afford to let them go. Even when they were out of the Army, they were on call. Vladimir was one of these people.
His special area of expertise was hand-to-hand combat based on techniques acquired from the Russian Martial Art. His specialty was fighting unarmed against opponents with weapons, sometimes going single-handed against 6 attackers at once.
Vladimir was in many actions and battles, most of which are still considered classified by the Russian government. Some were special combat missions behind enemy lines. In other operations he'd act in much the same way a SWAT team member does in our country. He also served as a bodyguard for high ranking individuals. His experiance ran the gamut from military to civilian applications.
Ultimately, other SPETSNAZ operatives, KGB men, policital bodyguards, elite paratroopers, metropolitan SWAT teams and others in need of hand-to-hand expertise came to Vladimir for training.
There's an old saying that says, "Those who can't do, teach". Vladimir was an exception to this. He was not only a master of the Russian Arts. He also had the ability to pass the mastery on to others.
Much of the essence of Vladimir's training and the nature of the Russian Martial Art is located in its unique phsychological and psychic emphasis.
Key to this training is Vladimir's overall philosophy to combat, summed up as follows:
"Fighting skill should evolve into an unconquerable weapon that can't be seen until used nor taken away while its practitioner is alive."
