YAMHILL, Ore. — There’s a sport that’s starting to grow across the country, but it doesn’t require a ball, club or a racket. It does, however, require a suit of armor. A group from the Portland area is taking the sport of medieval armored combat by storm, and they just took home the world championships in Europe this past spring.
For many who compete, there’s a bigger reason than victory for coming out.
It’s a sport that captured Daniel Krug’s heart after he came back from serving overseas. Twice a week, they practice at his 3,000 square-foot shop in rural Yamhill County, tucked away amid the many acres of farmland and vineyards.
“I went to war, I came back and I was a little too old for mixed martial arts — and I found this sport,” said Krug, who works as a firefighter.
The 48-year-old describes it as a combination of mixed martial arts and ju-jitsu, where you’re dressed head-to-toe like a tin can with swords and axes in hand. Some of the men and women who practice here were crowned world champions this past spring in Prague.
“Dominus and Cerberus are two medieval combat teams based in the Northwest. Dominus is the number one combat team in the entire world,” Krug said.
So what does it take to win? You have three rounds, and the best of three wins.
“You have five versus five, and the goal is to put the other team on the ground. And being on the ground means anything besides the bottom of your two feet touch the ground and you're considered out of play,” Krug explained.
One way you can do that is through what he described as "pain submission" — and you can win through effective use of judo without going down alongside your opponent.
PHOTOS: Medieval armored combat
The equipment isn’t light, either. It starts with a padded jacket, but then you have the armor which weighs more than 100 pounds, literally capped with a helmet that weighs another 20 pounds. Some people can pay anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000 for all of the armor needed to participate.
Rashelle Hamms, who comes out to Krug’s workshop to practice, said she doesn’t mind the bump and bruises. For her it’s the mental part of the grueling sport that brings her out here.
“A lot of us are veterans. There are many people who come out who are recovering from PTSD, and there are multiple causes,” said Hamms, herself a veteran.
It’s a sport that means more than just competition to these men and women.
“You have comradery, you have brotherhood, you have shared adversity and you have companionship,” said Krug on what brings him out here to compete.
There are currently 80 teams in the United States who compete in this sport, a sport that Krug says is slowly growing.