Judo grew out of Japanese jujitsu in the late nineteenth century and has been an Olympic sport since 1964. It’s a grappling contest fought in bare feet on a padded mat, and it rewards balance and timing over raw strength, since a smaller fighter can throw a heavier opponent by using their own momentum against them.
Objective
Each contestant tries to throw their opponent cleanly onto their back, pin them to the mat, or force a submission through a choke or joint lock. Winning outright with a single throw is called an ippon, and it ends the contest immediately.
Rules and regulations
- Judo is governed internationally by the International Judo Federation, or IJF, which sets the competition rules used at the Olympics and world championships.
- A senior bout lasts four minutes; if neither fighter has a clear lead when time runs out, the contest goes into golden score, continuing with no time limit until someone scores or the other is penalised.
- Fighters are penalised with a shido for stepping out of the contest area, avoiding a grip, or other passive or illegal conduct; three shidos hand the win to the opponent.
- The IJF updated several rules in 2025, refining what counts as waza-ari and yuko and adjusting which grips and throws are allowed, including tighter limits on some head and leg techniques for safety reasons.
- A fighter who dives head-first into a throw, or attacks a joint dangerously, risks disqualification.
Equipment and playing area
- Bouts take place on a square mat, called a tatami, marked with a contest area roughly eight metres across.
- Competitors wear a judogi, the traditional white or blue jacket and trousers held together with a coloured belt showing their grade.
- Men and women compete in seven weight categories each, ranging from under 60 kilograms up to over 100 kilograms for men, and from under 48 kilograms up to over 78 kilograms for women.
Scoring
- An ippon wins the match on the spot, whether from a powerful, controlled throw onto the back or a successful pin held for the required time, or a submission.
- A waza-ari is a lesser score, awarded for a throw that falls just short of ippon; two waza-ari together used to end a bout automatically, though under the current rules a fighter can still win on a single dominant score plus penalties against their opponent.
- A yuko, a smaller score bracket reintroduced under the 2025 rules, can separate two fighters when nothing else has.
