Judo

Judo, in Japanese "the gentle way", is a martial art and combat sport that is characterized by its focus on grappling rather than striking, particularly in the use of throws when standing and submission holds and pins while on the ground.

Techniques

• Nage waza: throwing techniques
  • Tachi waza: standing techniques
    • Te waza: hand techniques
    • Koshi waza: hip techniques
    • Ashi waza: foot techniques
  • Sutemi waza: sacrifice techniques
    • Ma sutemi waza: back sacrifice techniques
    • Yoko sutemi waza: side sacrifice techniques
• Katame waza: grappling techniques
  • Osae komi waza: holding techniques
  • Shime waza: choking techniques
  • Kansetsu waza: joint locking techniques

General information

People who train in judo are called judoka or judoists. The places where judoka train are usually called dojos or training halls, but also clubs, schools, and other names.

Training in judo typically consists of drills, randori, or sparring, and shiai, or competition.

Training may also include kata, or forms, although not all dojos practice kata, and the usefulness of kata is often debated amongst judoka. Performance of kata is also often required to receive high ranks.

Judo kata is always performed with two judoka, with one performing the techniques and the other receiving them.

Judo competitions tend to favor wins by throws, and thus typically there is a concentration on training throws.

When training, a judoka wears a judogi, usually just called gi. The modern gi is a quilted cotton jacket and cotton drawstring pants, fastened by an obi, or belt. The obi is usually colored to indicate rank. The jacket is intended to withstand the stresses of throwing and grappling, and as a result, is much thicker than that of a karate uniform (karategi). The first judogi were undied and thus off-white, and then were changed to white as they were dyed. Later, the blue judogi was used in competition in order to distinguish the two competitors during a match. Purists and some Japanese practitioners tend to look down on the use of blue judogi.

History

Jigoro Kano created judo.

Rank and Belt Colors

There are ranks leading up to black-belt ranks, or kyus, and then black belt degrees, or dans. There are 10 dan ranks awarded in ascending numerical order.

Originally, there were six kyus in reverse numerical order.

On belts, the first five dan ranks are signified by black belts. The 6th through 8th dans are signified by a belt with alternating red and white strips. The 9th and 10th dans are signified by a solid red belt.

While technically there is no limit as to the number of dans that can be awarded to any judoka, nobody has ever been awarded anything higher than a 10th dan.

Shiai and Competition

Shiai

Judo is popular as a combat sport and is an Olympic sport. Judo competitions tend to drive the evolution of the art, and so changes to the rules of competition tend to affect the way that judo is practiced outside of shiai.

A judo match takes place between two judoka, typically of the same sex and in the same weight class and rank or experience level. The goal of the match is to score ippon, or a full point, by one of several ways:

• throwing an opponent to the ground on his back
• forcing an opponent to submit through the use of a legal submission hold, typically on the ground
• pinning an opponent to the ground for 25 seconds

Shiai rules ban the use of all joint locks that do not target the shoulder or elbow joints. Thus, leg locks, spinal locks, wrist locks, small joint locks, and other submission holds are illegal. This restriction is typically explained that such joint locks are more dangerous than legal joint locks, although the correctness of this explanation has been challenged.

No striking is allowed during competitions, thus requiring competitors to use the grappling techniques that judo encourages.

Judo in Mixed Martial Arts

There are judoka, mixed martial artists with backgrounds in judo, and mixed martial artists who cross-train in judo have found success in mixed martial arts. Some high-profile examples are Karo Parysian, Hidehiko Yoshida, Fedor Emelianenko and Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou.