Judo
About Judo
The British Judo Association (BJA) is the National Governing Body for the Olympic Sport of Judo in Great Britain.
Many people have a pre-conceived notion of what they believe Judo to be which is sometimes wide of the mark. It bears no resemblance whatsoever to many of the martial arts it is so often associated with, as the intention of judo is never to injure your opponent.
Judo training is an ideal form of physical exercise and it serves as a great cardiovascular workout, which improves stamina, general health and overall fitness. Physical co-ordination can be seen to develop dramatically from participation. Discipline along with core-stability and learning to manage physical contact are also achieved. Judo was derived from an educational system and can be helpful in building character in our stressful society
Confidence and self-esteem are enhanced as a player progresses through the ranks and the very nature of the award system ensures that the next goal is always realistic and achievable with effort.
Judo is an ideal sport for all ages, males or females and attracts very many disability groups.
Rules of the Game
A judo contest is between two individuals generally of the same sex and weight. However Team Events do occur where each individual win counts for the team total.
Each adult contest is 5 mins in duration (times can vary for children but generally are 3 mins) there are adapted rules are for under 10’s and 12years (LTAD)
To win you have to throw your opponent with skill and force onto their back. This could finish a contest within seconds with an ippon ( full point). Generally smaller scores are achieved for throws that do not land the opponent cleanly onto their back. Groundwork requires an opponent to be held in a regulated position for a period of 25 seconds for Ippon or more than 15 seconds for a smaller score.
Penalties can be awarded for infringements of the rules
Arm locks and strangles can lead to submissions in adult contests
There is an amount of etiquette that is part of the judo culture and this continues in the contest and training. Judo is a controlled and “Honest” sport that has its beginnings in Japan and continues adapting as an Olympic Sport.
Competition forms only part of the judo world and many Clubs perform Kata (set moves ) and gradings (earning coloured belts) utilising theory, learning technique and Japanese terminology are carried out within clubs and later for Dan grading Black belt in the County at contest gradings
