Do You Know Judo?

With the London games upon us, it’s impossible to go anywhere without hearing about the competition. Sometimes this means watching sports you’ve never seen before. Somehow, despite how little we may know about the rules of certain matches, we’re drawn in and riveted – and want to learn more!

Kayla Harrison’s gold medal win in judo inspired us. Not knowing a whole lot about judo ourselves, we went on a fact-finding mission to better understand the sport.

Judo is the second most widely-practiced sport worldwide, following right behind soccer, and is the most widely practiced martial art. With roots in Japan, it was based on the martial art of jujitsu.

The match takes place between two players on a mat, with three referees watching closely to score the techniques. The goal is to score an ippon. similar to a boxing’s knockout or wrestling’s pin. There are many different techniques for achieving an ippon, and each move is scored by the referees. In order to prevent any serious injury, referees pay careful attention when a player moves to take another in a chokehold or armlock, and can stop the match at that time. Though the sport is very physical, the intent is not to cause any serious harm to another!

What other sports have you learned about watching this summer’s competition heat up?