Safety gear and Shobu Ippon vs. WKF Rules

I wrote this in response to a friend who had sustained a serious injury at their dojo because their sensei did not allow protective gear while participating in Kumite training.

She was told that protective gear was not good for traditional training methods and that it did not allow people to learn real self defense while training for kumite.

Here are my thoughts on subject:

Safety should always be first when it comes to competiton sparring and especially when sparring in the dojo.
I feel too many modern day traditionalists don't make safety their top priority when it comes to sparring.

This is the case when Kumite training is allowed and conducted without obligating students to wear the proper protective equipment they need in order to minimize and prevent injuries while training.

This happens to be the mindset of many "old school" traditionalists who still think sparring is actually fighting when in fact they need to realize this could not be any further from the truth. At least when it comes to kumite and competition...

If we want to keep a forward thinking mentality about sport Karate then we should follow the same vision and mindset of the most forward thinking and innovative person in Karate history - Sensei "Masatoshi Nakayama". It is due to his vision that sport karate even exists and has achieved worldwide popularity.
Sport Karate is also the reason why many of us study karate today.

If it were not for Sport karate, how many poeple would have never been exposed to the martial arts or Karate?

Sensei Nakayama introduced sport karate and the first point system back in the 50's & 60's.

In the beginning, competitors did not use any protective gear when competing. That soon changed after a few people were seriously hurt.

When realizing this, some safety issues were addressed and the necessary changes were made.

Now 40 years later, The science of every sport known to man has dramatically changed, so wouldn't it be the case for karate ?
Societies and people are so different nowadays. So why is it hard to think that the sport aspect of Karate has changed, evolved and progressed as well?

Sparring in competition is not combat and to think that we should not wear gear while competing is ridiculous.
Let's face it ... injuries should never occur due to not wearing gear or lack of prevention.

If any injury were to occur, it would be much easier to emotionally handle knowing that it was purely an accident with the appropriate protective gear ON .....gloves and mouth piece ect, ect ,.. Not using the right gear also increases the risk of injury quite a bit.

In reality, accidents happen, but they should only occur after taking all the right precautions before hand. Not wearing protective gear is asking for something to happen... as mentioned before... Kumite "sparring" is not combat, it is sport with a combat essence or attitude.

Real combat is when you fight for your life, not a point.

Combat should never be mistaken for a sport, and there is no such thing as combat with a sportsman like attitude either. Combat has only one purpose, to defeat the enemy in front of you to save your own life.

Ever since karate developed as a sport it has constanlty been evolving. So to say that we need to spar with out gear is like defending our selves without any training.?!?!

In addition, too many "Traditionalists" think that shobu ippon rules are the most suitable for competition. Many are against trying the Current WKF Rules. They also tend to think that putting on protective gear in competition lessens it's integrity.
Maybe this a one of the reasons that there is so much politics in sport Karate. Everyone has their opinion.

It is a close minded way of thinking not to at least try something. Competition is no different. Maybe the reason many think gear is not important for their students is also because they think the Shobu rules are superior and the athlete back in those day were true warriors... Who knows?

One thing is for certain, the only thing mandatory in the current shubo ippon rules is a mouth piece and gloves. A groin Cup is optional.

The new WKF rules simply put safety first. there is no preference for that.

Coincidentally the criteria of what determines awarding a point in the WKF rules is much more demanding than Shobu Ippon as well.

Example; Sportsmanship attitude, Awareness, Correct form, Balance, Control of technique, Vigorous application.

Also a single scoring techniques "Ippon" in the WKF rules must be at least 90 % correct in order to consider it worth awarding it a point. Anything less than that is not even considered whereas in the old Shobu ippon rules, a landed technique was awarded a half point "wazari" if it was considered a good technique but below 90% correct and accurate. Points were also scored in movement going backwards or even when a competitior was off balance or falling.

Therefore the WKF rules require athletes to be a more resourceful and develop a more well rounded game plan and polished skills when competing as well as executing accurate technique.

I would have to disagree with anyone who thinks that Shobu ippon is the best set of rules and method of competition.

I DO think it is A GOOD Method, just not the BEST.... I believe all rules of competition are fantastic to compete with and train in.

Training with each set of rules rather than just one system helps change up the atmosphere and learn to deal with different scenarios when competing, which also reflects on their overall ability as a martial artist.

"Shobu Ippon", "Shobu Sanbon", and the new WKF 8 point rules.. are all great ... each one has its own qualities.... We train in all three formats at our Dojo .. with GEAR ON.. We even have gear on when we are not sparring .. We go through the motions while learning, training and engaging each other, not intending to blast someone but trying to learn to execute correct technique.... each student learns what they need to do in order to get better.. at the end of the day, we spar... no one got hurt... This lets us spar with out worrying about getting hurt....and it is alot of FUN!

In my opinion if karate is to keep growing, we all must understand that sport and combat are two different things.

Safety should always be FIRST in regards to sport or any activity.

Being good in the ring does not mean you are a great fighter in real life or real life threatening situations.
I do think that a black belt student should be able to take a little sting and a little pain in sparring but not to the point of injury.

Until all karate enthusiasts come together in this point, what happened to the JKA will continue to happen to karate as a whole..

So many people dont like the new rules because they are under the impression that the competitors are holding back too much....I have had many instructors express this to me but have never stepped in the ring to find out nor have they had any of their students compete in WKF ruled competitions.

Anyone who has competed in a WKF tournament knows that they are not holding back. Athletes think of control but use vigorous application while delivering their techniques..
They also use many types of footwork, timing, evasive movement "tai sabaki" and there is more awareness required "zanshin" since not everyone fighting in the ring is going in a strait line ONLY to RELY on the Good'Ol reverse punch to save the day like many from the JKA once did.

Nowadays athletes actually move around side to side and like some friends of mine and myself included like to land a hook kick every now and then. Grappling and ending the sequence with a finishing technique is also a big part of the game.... whereas it is almost non existent in the Shobu Ippon Game.

It all boils down to this ...You can always drive a vehicle without a seat belt and not get into into an accident. But what if you do get into one?, I bet you will wish that you had put on your seat belt first.... right ?

As far as thinking that the old rules are better than the new rules, but you have never gotten in the ring to see, well isn't that like stating that a certain type of food does not taste good but you never tried a spoonful of it kind of the same thing?

Just my guess.

Safety First Always !


Good Training, Always in BUDO.
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