In the land of the rising sun, it is an unmissable spring event. Every year, the Nippon Budokan is the scene of the very prestigious Zen Nihon. This competition is probably the one that comes closest to the very essence of judo. Because it is all categories, allowing fighters weighing less than 80 kilos to challenge opponents whose weight easily exceeds a hundredweight. Because it seeks, above all, to reward those who are offensive and enterprising. Even if it means taking a step aside from the rules in force at the international level.
In 2024, for example, fights could last up to five minutes, or even eight in the final, instead of the usual four. Decried by some purists, the golden score (a sort of sudden death) was replaced by the hantei (flag decision) in the event of a tie. Another major change is expected for the 2025 edition. According to L’Esprit du judo, the Japanese Federation (AJJF) has in fact planned to reauthorize leg attacks. These have been prohibited since 2007 and even severely sanctioned, since any seizure of the opponent’s pants is punishable by a hansoku make (disqualification).
At the Rio Olympic Games, Frenchwoman Priscilla Gneto was disqualified for grabbing her opponent’s leg.
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An additional weapon to “seek projection”
“These attacks were banned because some people abused them. There were guys who put their hands in their pants, their buttocks back and broke everything so as not to make any movement. It was very naughty and it damaged judo”recognizes Frédéric Lecanu, who was a member of the French team at the time when “leg pickups”, as it is customary to call them, had their place on the mat. “Allowing them again is a good idea, he admits, however. As long as it is in a productive context for our discipline.”
Two fighters grab their opponent’s leg during the 2006 Asian Games.
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The Eurosport expert takes a positive look at this regulatory development, which “will add a technical dimension, offering fighters more opportunities to surprise the opponent and seek projection.” “Judo was criticized at the Olympic Games because it was not spectacular enough. The penalty game too often took precedence over the projection game”he underlines, recalling that one of the greatest French champions did not hesitate to grab the leg of his opponent: “David Douillet, if he hadn’t been able to get the pants to do his uchi-gari, we would have taken away a terrible weapon from him.”
A way to bring down Riner?
In addition, the return of attacks to the lower limbs will prove very useful in countering. “Today there are a lot of direct attacks, which are mostly only executed to protect themselves from the penalty, remarks Frédéric Lecanu, who was able to see it again this weekend, during the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam. These half-hearted attacks, it’s impossible to counter them, because we can no longer go to the legs.” Reintroducing these techniques would therefore make it easier to counter movements that are not sharp enough.
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According to The Spirit of Judopicking up the legs will be authorized during Zen Nihon provided that a kumi-kata (guard hold) has been placed beforehand and that the grasp of a leg is only done with one hand. It is still too early to know whether the initiative of the Japanese Federation will have an influence on international arbitration rules, which are regularly modified and, it is true, often criticized. Even if it is currently unfounded, the hypothesis according to which the Japanese would like to reintroduce these techniques to find a way to beat Teddy Riner may nevertheless have crossed our minds. Can the three-time Olympic heavyweight champion see this as a real threat to him?
Teddy is surely the one who is best equipped to defend himself against this type of action.
Absolutely not, according to his former training partner at INSEP. “It will not be a difficulty for him at all, balaie Frédéric Lecanu. He is 35 years old, he is one of the only ones who grew up in a system where we relied on that. All the opponents he had at the time were doing leg lifts, all of them.” Like, in particular, “the excavator” Juri Rybak, particularly at ease in this area. “If there is one person on the face of the Earth who knows the leg-picking judo very well, it’s Teddy. I think he’s the one who’s suffered the most attacks this year. type in competition, he is contemporary with a world where this was normal”supports our consultant.
Juri Rybak (in white) faces Yasuyuki Muneta (in blue) at the 2007 Worlds.
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Due to its large size, the Guadeloupean colossus has no real interest in reaching for the legs of its rivals on its own. This does not mean that this possible modification of the rules could not be useful to him. “But it could be used to counter, throw a te-guruma and use his power to finish the move”suggests Lecanu, who remains categorical: “Teddy is surely the one who is best equipped to defend himself against this type of action.” Those looking for an anti-Riner weapon, if it exists, can therefore continue their research elsewhere.
