User:Kansetsuwaza/Freestyle Judo

Freestyle Judo

What It Is and How It Came To Be

Freestyle Judo is a specific set of contest rules for the sport of Judo initially developed in 2008 by Steve Scott, a Judo, Sambo and Shingitai Jujitsu coach in Kansas City, Missouri. Freestyle Judo is not a new “style” of Judo, but in keeping with the aims of Kodokan Judo, it provides a different approach to how the sport of Judo is conducted as compared to the contest rules currently used by international and national governing bodies for the sport of Judo. Proponents of Freestyle Judo say that Freestyle Judo takes a “total” approach to the application of Judo as a sport and as a method of physical education. A stated goal in the development of Freestyle Judo is to bring Judo back to its roots as a technically sound, yet physically demanding combat sport allowing for the full and total range of Judo techniques and tactics to be used in competitive situations; and as a result of this to help promulgate Judo as the technically diverse sport and method of physical education that it has been for many years prior to the changes in the contest rules of recent years.

In November, 2009 the first National Freestyle Judo Championship tournament was sanctioned by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and held in Kearney, Missouri attracting a diverse group of athletes from Judo, Wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Submission Grappling. The AAU has held a National Freestyle Judo Championship every year since. In August, 2011, Freestyle Judo was featured as one of the sports at an international Martial Arts festival in Cardiff, Wales with Judo athletes from the United States, Wales, England and Poland participating. In 2013, the International Freestyle Judo Alliance was formed to provide a network for the advancement of the sport on the international level. Freestyle Judo tournaments have been held in Australia, Serbia, Italy, England and Wales in addition to the United States.

The AAU serves as the administrative body for Freestyle Judo in the United States and the AAU Judo Committee recognizes two sets of contest rules; the Freestyle Judo rules and the Standard Judo rules (similar to the Judo rules internationally prior to 2000). In this way, it has been stated that AAU Judo provides more opportunities for Judo athletes to participate and excel in competition. In October, 2010, Steve Scott copyrighted the Freestyle Judo contest rules and has given the AAU permission to use them when conducting AAU-sanctioned Judo tournaments and events.

Freestyle Judo’s rules encourage athletes to use all the skills of Judo placing equal emphasis on throwing techniques and groundfighting techniques. The Ippon (Full Point) is retained, but numerical points are awarded instead of Yuko and Waza-ari. The rules of Freestyle Judo provide a variety of ways for any athlete to score points on an opponent and have them objectively evaluated. The contest rules for Freestyle Judo also allow the use of leg grabs for throwing techniques and allow for more liberal time in groundfighting for the athletes than the current rules for the international and national governing bodies.

Features of Freestyle Judo

A stated feature of the Freestyle Judo contest rules is that they take much of the subjectivity out of the hands of the mat officials. As mentioned previously, the score of Ippon is still retained and terminates the match, but numerical points are awarded for throws and hold-downs as well as for skilled actions that take place on the mat in groundfighting. Aggressive, technically skilled Judo is rewarded and passive, non-combative Judo is penalized. A unique aspect of the rules of Freestyle Judo is the use of number scores in place of the Yuko and Waza-ari (or even Koka in previous contest rules). This use of numerical scores provides for a clear understanding of who is winning and who is losing the match. Similar to wrestling, volleyball, basketball or any sport, the athlete with the better score wins the match, unless an Ippon is scored to end the match immediately.

Another stated feature of Freestyle Judo is the way the officials conduct the match. The center referee is assisted by the two mat judges who are allowed to move about the edge of the mat to get a better view of the action. Allowing the mat judges to do this enables them to get the best view possible of all the action during the match and assist the center referee in making accurate, fair and objective calls during the course of the match.

Proponents of the sport say the name “Freestyle Judo” best describes the open-ended approach to the contest rules and how the sport is actually done on the mat. The rules of Freestyle Judo are significantly different from the contest rules used by the international and national governing bodies as well as other Judo organizations and groups. Freestyle Judo exponents say these rules allow the athletes more freedom of choice in a Judo contest, both technically and tactically. Supporters of Freestyle Judo point out that in exactly the same way Freestyle wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling have specific rule differences and aims, the contest rules of Freestyle Judo and the Standard AAU Judo rules can be viewed in the same manner and perform the same function. Wrestling is wrestling, no matter what the rules are and the success of American wrestlers in World and Olympic competition bears out the fact that college wrestlers quickly adapt to the international (Freestyle and Greco-Roman) rules of wrestling. Freestyle Judo proponents say that in similar fashion, good Judo is good Judo, and providing Judo athletes more opportunities to develop their abilities in competition; the better for them and the better for Judo. Freestyle Judo supporters stress that competition breeds a better product and Freestyle Judo offers another opportunity for athletes to compete and excel.