During the next national judo championships, the Japanese federation will rehabilitate a technique banned since 2010 by international authorities.
Attacks on the legs made with the hands will no longer be punished. A decision that the Japanese hope to see spread on a large scale.
Behind quarrels linked to arbitration methods, Japan hopes that a change in the rules would make it possible to overthrow <a href="https://www.archysport.com/2022/01/judo-aglae-aubree-my-goal-is-to-work-for-the-paris-olympics-in-2024/" title="Judo. Aglaë Aubree: "My goal is to work for the Paris Olympics in 2024"”>Teddy Riner.
During the Paris Olympics, Teddy Riner shone again (new window)adding two new gold medals to his incredible record. Successes achieved at the expense of powerless opponents, starting with the Japanese judokas. While the domination of the tricolor continues year after year, the Japanese federation is now considering new solutions to overthrow this hegemony. The “Spirit of Judo” website reports (new window) in fact that during the next Japanese championship in all categories, scheduled for next spring, a change in the rules will be introduced.
Leg attacks that have disappeared since 2010
The Japanese idea? Reintroduce on their soil an attack technique banned since 2010 by the international federation (IJF). “A judoka will be able to attack or defend in the legs of his opponent” with his hands, summarizes the specialized site, but “on two conditions”. First of all, the fighter must have previously grabbed his opponent’s kimono, but also that the attack must be carried out with only one hand, the other must remain clinging to the opponent’s outfit.
By authorizing this technique, Japan hopes to initiate a small revolution. “Today, the level of our heavyweights is zero. The fighters have become athletic to the detriment of technique. Reintroducing this rule will allow them to challenge themselves with fighters from lower categories. It will push them to expand their technical palette “a entrusted (new window) has The Team a former Japanese Olympic medalist, Noriko Mizoguchi.
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For the moment, nothing says that the international federation will change its rules, but Japan wishes to use its influence and its historical status as a judo country so that the reestablishment of leg attacks becomes widespread beyond its borders. In any case, the Japanese authorities assume their opposition to the developments driven by the current leaders of world judo and by their Romanian president Marius Vizer, in office since 2007.
If we are pleading on the side of Tokyo for a return of leg attacks, we must remember that their disappearance was justified in 2010 by very specific reasons. “The objective of the federation was to fight against a trend, coming from Eastern countries, which made judo resemble more and more like freestyle wrestling, and risked disappearing from the Olympic program”a points out (new window) near Liberation Axel Clerget, Olympic champion during the mixed team event in Tokyo.
For Teddy Riner, a rule change in Japanese championships has no impact for the moment. And this, as long as the IJF keeps its current regulations unchanged. In the event of development, he would be forced to adapt his judo, in order to respond to attacks on the legs of his opponents and add them to his technical palette. Nothing insurmountable in appearance: before their ban in 2010, the French champion used them on the tatami mats, a time when he already had three world heavyweight titles.
