Where is judo practice

Kano saw jujutsu as a disconnected bag of tricks, and sought to unify it according to a principle, which he found in the notion of "maximum efficiency". Jujutsu techniques that relied solely on superior strength were discarded or adapted in favour of those that involved redirecting the opponent's force, off-balancing the opponent, or making use of superior leverage.

The second characters of judo and jujutsu differ. Use of this word is a deliberate departure from ancient martial arts, whose sole purpose was for killing. Kano saw judo as a means for governing and improving oneself physically, mentally, emotionally and morally. He even extended the physical principle of maximum efficiency into daily life, evolving it into "mutual prosperity". In this respect, judo is seen as a holistic approach to life extending well beyond the confines of the dojo.

A practitioner of judo is known as a judoka or 'judo player', though traditionally only those of 4th Dan or higher were called "judoka". The suffix -ka , when added to a noun, means a person with expertise or special knowledge on that subject. For example, Benkyo-ka means "scholar". Other practitioners below the rank of 4th dan were called kenkyu-sei or "trainees".

However, today the term judoka is used worldwide to refer to any practitioner of judo without any particular level of expertise being implied. A judo teacher is called sensei. The word sensei comes from sen or saki before and sei life — i. In Western dojos it is common to call any instructor of dan grade sensei. Traditionally, that title was reserved for instructors of 4th dan and above.

Sometimes the word is seen shortened simply to gi uniform. The belt is usually coloured to indicate rank. The jacket is intended to withstand the stresses of grappling, and as a result, is much thicker than that of a karate uniform karategi.

In Japan, both judoka still use a white judogi and the traditional red sash based on the colours of the Japanese flag is affixed to the belt of one competitor.

While judo includes a variety of rolls, falls, throws, hold downs, chokes, joint-locks, and strikes, the primary focus is on throwing nage-waza , and groundwork ne-waza. Throws are divided in two groups of techniques, standing techniques tachi-waza , and sacrifice techniques sutemi-waza. Standing techniques are further divided into hand techniques te-waza , hip techniques koshi-waza , and foot and leg techniques ashi-waza.

Sacrifice techniques are divided into those in which the thrower falls directly backwards ma-sutemi-waza , and those in which he falls onto his side yoko-sutemi-waza. The ground fighting techniques are divided into attacks against the joints or joint locks kansetsu-waza , strangleholds or chokeholds shime-waza , and holding or pinning techniques osaekomi-waza.

A kind of sparring is practised in judo, known as randori randori , meaning "free practice". In randori, two adversaries may attack each other with any judo throw or grappling technique. Striking techniques atemi-waza such as kicking and punching, along with knife and sword techniques are retained in the kata.

This form of pedagogy is usually reserved for higher ranking practitioners for instance, in the kime-no-kata , but are forbidden in contest, and usually prohibited in randori for reasons of safety. Also for reasons of safety, chokeholds, joint locking, and the sacrifice techniques are subject to age or rank restrictions. In randori and tournament shiai practice, when an opponent successfully executes a chokehold or joint lock, one submits, or "taps out", by tapping the mat or one's opponent at least twice in a manner that clearly indicates the submission.

When this occurs the match is over, the tapping player has lost, and the chokehold or joint lock ceases. Forms kata are pre-arranged patterns of attack and defence, which in judo are practised with a partner for the purpose of perfecting judo techniques. More specifically, their purposes include illustrating the basic principles of judo, demonstrating the correct execution of a technique, teaching the philosophical tenets upon which judo is based, allowing for the practice of techniques that are not allowed in competition, and to preserve ancient techniques that are historically important but are no longer used in contemporary judo.

There are also other kata that are not officially recognised by the Kodokan but that continue to be practised. The most prominent example of these is the Go no sen no kata, a kata that focuses on counter-attacks to attempted throws. Judo emphasizes a free-style sparring, called randori , as one of its main forms of training. Part of the combat time is spent sparring standing up, called tachi-waza , and the other part on the ground, called ne-waza.

Sparring, even subject to safety rules, is much more practically effective than only practicing techniques on their own, which is what jujutsuka were used to doing. Using full strength develops the muscles and cardio-vascular system on the physical side of things, and it develops strategy and reaction time on the mental side of things, and helps the practitioner learn to use techniques against a resisting opponent.

A common saying among judoka is "The best training for judo is judo. There are several types of sparring exercises, such as ju renshu both judoka attack in a very gentle way where no resistance is applied ; and kakari geiko only one judoka attacks while the other one relies solely on defensive and evasive techniques, but without the use of sheer strength. In judo, there are two main phases of combat: the standing tachi-waza and the ground ne-waza phase. Each phase requires its own mostly separate techniques, strategies, randori , conditioning and so on.

Special training is also devoted to "transitional" techniques to bridge the gap. Judo's balance between both the standing and ground phases of combat gives judoka the ability to take down opponents who are standing up and then pin and submit them on the ground.

This balanced theory of combat has made judo a popular choice of martial art or combat sport. In the standing phase, which has primacy according to the contest rules, the opponents attempt to throw each other. Strikes i. The main purpose of the throwing techniques nage waza is to take an opponent who is standing on his feet, mobile and dangerous, down onto his back where he cannot move as effectively.

Thus, the main reason for throwing the opponent is to control the opponent and to put oneself in a dominant position. In this way the practitioner has more potential to render a decisive outcome.

Another reason to throw the opponent is to shock his body through smashing him forcefully onto the ground. If an opponent executes a powerful yet fully controlled throw, he can win a match outright by ippon on the basis that he has displayed sufficient superiority.

A lower score is given for lesser throws. A score for a throw is only given when executed starting from a standing position. Each phase follows the previous one with great rapidity - ideally they happen almost simultaneously. In competition, combat may continue on the ground after a throw occurs or if the contestants otherwise legally end up on the ground; a contestant is not allowed to simply drop to the ground to commence ground fighting.

On the ground, the contestants aim to either obtain a hold down, or to get their opponent to submit either by using a choke or strangulation or armlock locks on joints other than the elbow are not allowed for safety reasons. Hold downs osaekomi are important since in a real fight the person who has control of his opponent can hit him with punches, knees, headbutts, and other strikes. If osaekomi is maintained for twenty-five seconds, the person doing the holding down wins the match.

An osaekomi involves holding an opponent principally on their back, and free of their legs. According to the rules as they stood in , it was only necessary to hold down an opponent, on his shoulders, for two seconds - said to reflect the time necessary for a samurai to reach his knife or sword and dispatch his held opponent.

The newer longer requirements reflect the combat reality that a fighter must immobilize his opponent for a substantial amount of time in order to strike effectively. The score for a hold down is determined by how long the hold down is held. A hold down may sometimes result in a submission if the opponent cannot endure the pressure from the hold down. If the person being held down has wrapped his legs around any part of his opponent's lower body or trunk, he is pinning his opponent as much as he is being pinned, because his opponent cannot get up and flee unless the person on the bottom lets go.

While his legs are wrapped around his opponent, the person on the bottom can employ various attacking techniques, including strangles, armlocks and "body scissors" do-jime , while controlling the opponent so that he cannot effectively strike from above. In this position, often referred to as the "guard" in English, the person on top does not have enough control over his adversary for the position to be considered osaekomi. Note that while the guard is commonly used, do-jime is no longer legal in competition judo.

The person on top can try to pass his opponent's legs and in turn hold down or submit him, or he may try to break out of his opponent's guard and stand up.

The person on the bottom can try to submit his opponent from his guard or roll his opponent over to get on top of him. Joint locks on the elbow are considered safe enough to perform at nearly full-force in competition to force submission from one's opponent. After that, one must thoroughly learn the basics, and begin training both the body and mind. The sport of Judo takes place on tatami mats, and cannot be performed just anywhere. Moreover, failing to learn the fundamental waza from a qualified instructor could result in injuries.

One should begin practicing Judo by finding a nearby dojo, or by taking a Judo introductory course offered periodically by community organizations, etc. The instructors who preside over these courses are experienced and skillful teachers. Even children as young as 5 can attend such courses. Judo is open to just about anyone, without regard to age, sex, or physical size.

Because Judo "begins and ends with respect a bow ", beginners are first taught Judo etiquette Reiho. They then learn the fall breaking Ukemi techniques. In May , when he was just 21 years old, he took the best things about each jujitsu style and created a single new school.

This was the birth of modern judo. At first he had just nine students, and the dojo practice hall measured just 12 jo about 24 square yards. Kano went to Europe in to introduce judo outside of Japan. A famous episode occurred aboard a ship during his voyage: When a foreigner made fun of Kano, he threw the man down but put his hand under the man's head to prevent him from getting hurt.

This illustrated how judo combined practical fighting techniques with thoughtfulness for one's enemy. Kano always maintained a global point of view, serving as a member of the International Olympic Committee, and worked tirelessly to spread judo around the world.

Kano's dream came true at the Tokyo Olympics in , where men's judo was recognized as an official Olympic event. Medals were awarded to competitors in various weight divisions, and Japanese competitors swept the gold in all except the open division, where a non-Japanese champion was crowned. This was a sign that judo had already taken root in countries outside Japan.