I have written previously about the problems I see in the ways that kumite is taught in most traditional karate schools; gohon, sanbon, ippon, jiyu-ippon, jiyu-kumite. This trend may vary somewhat depending on the school, or there might be more steps included, but by and large this is the template used by practically every JKA-style Shotokan dojo. One big criticism that I've been hearing though is how effective jiyu-kumite training actually is. If you read the interview with KUGB legend, Elwyn Hall, on The Shotokan Way; Hall says that jiyu-kumite is where karate-ka can pressure test all kihon-based techniques in a semi-controlled environment against a resisting opponent. I couldn't agree more, and this is absolutely true. However, many schools today focus less on realistic sparring, or jissen-kumite, and more on competition-style, shiai kumite. There is nothing inherently wrong with shiai style of sparring, sport is sport, but the issue that arises is that many instructors pass this along as teaching a karate-ka how to truly handle himself and fight.
I will be the first person to say that this is absolute garbage. If you're familiar with Mr. Rob Redmond of 24 Fighting Chickens, you know that he refers to karate, Shotokan in particular, as a dueling art. Mr. Redmond has written numerous articles regarding the lack of realism within Shotokan kumite and how it is lacking in true self-defense efficacy. I highly recommend perusing his blog (www.24fightingchickens.com), he has a wealth of knowledge and first-hand experience. Now that's enough criticism of shiai-kumite, I could spend an entire post talking about the down sides. My purpose here is to discuss the benefits.
So what are the benefits? Looking at any competition scenario and it might be hard to visualize anything as being useful, but in my opinion there are three primary benefits of this type of sparring; distancing, footwork and timing.
Distancing
The distance at which most competitors fight is highly unrealistic, watch the video below of both WKF-style and JKA-style championships and you'll notice that the competitors maintain a very long range between them for the majority of the match. What is the point of this exaggerated range? This teaches you where you are in danger, and where you are not. In self-defense, the quarter of an inch can have a significant effect on whether you walk away uninjured or not. So, while the distance in which we operate during a competition is very artificial, it does teach us our safety zones compared to the danger zone. The third video you will see shows Sensei Edmond Otis discussing distancing in competition.
Footwork
If you watch the training for football and basketball players you will often see them using tools like agility ladders to improve their foot speed and overall agility. This is what makes running backs and receivers in football so dangerous - not only do they have tremendous speed, but they also have the ability to change directions with tremendous speed and power. It is this ability that makes their faking from side to side so effective in confusing their covering man. Footwork in karate is similar in concept, if not in training, but by training for shiai kumite a karate-ka is forced to decrease the time in contact with the floor and increasing speed. This gives the fighter the ability to cover the great distances that we start at during a match. From a self-defense stand point, the ability to change directions is highly beneficial as it allows one to dodge attacks with only the slightest pause.
Timing
I would think that this is obvious by watching the typical tournament match, but everybody is a counter-fighter, or at least everybody wants to be. It's more impressive to allow the other guy to start and beat him anyway. Wayne Otto has been known to say, "When I attack, I score; when my opponent attacks, I score." This is pretty typical of everybody's mindset in fighting, but some live on counter fighting. Timing is critical for this and in self-defense, or in real fighting, timing is even more important. Timing helps us to attack pre-emptively, timing helps us to catch our opponent off balance and vulnerable, timing helps to win more than anything else. You can have incredible footwork and a supernatural sense of distance, but if you can't time your attacks you will never catch your opponent's rhythm.
So long story short, is shiai kumite overly flashy and demonstrative to a fault? Yes, without the shadow of a doubt, but is it completely useless as some purists would like to tell us? Not at all. Many people who lose in competition complain by saying things like, "If it had been a real fight I would have done..." or "I would have never tried that in a real fight." You've all heard these complaints, but in many ways if you have to realize, if your opponent is faster than you in a tournament match, then a real fight your opponent will still be faster! Don't let your ego be bruised when you lose, shit happens, but keep being realistic about what happened.
I will be the first person to say that this is absolute garbage. If you're familiar with Mr. Rob Redmond of 24 Fighting Chickens, you know that he refers to karate, Shotokan in particular, as a dueling art. Mr. Redmond has written numerous articles regarding the lack of realism within Shotokan kumite and how it is lacking in true self-defense efficacy. I highly recommend perusing his blog (www.24fightingchickens.com), he has a wealth of knowledge and first-hand experience. Now that's enough criticism of shiai-kumite, I could spend an entire post talking about the down sides. My purpose here is to discuss the benefits.
So what are the benefits? Looking at any competition scenario and it might be hard to visualize anything as being useful, but in my opinion there are three primary benefits of this type of sparring; distancing, footwork and timing.
Distancing
The distance at which most competitors fight is highly unrealistic, watch the video below of both WKF-style and JKA-style championships and you'll notice that the competitors maintain a very long range between them for the majority of the match. What is the point of this exaggerated range? This teaches you where you are in danger, and where you are not. In self-defense, the quarter of an inch can have a significant effect on whether you walk away uninjured or not. So, while the distance in which we operate during a competition is very artificial, it does teach us our safety zones compared to the danger zone. The third video you will see shows Sensei Edmond Otis discussing distancing in competition.
Footwork
If you watch the training for football and basketball players you will often see them using tools like agility ladders to improve their foot speed and overall agility. This is what makes running backs and receivers in football so dangerous - not only do they have tremendous speed, but they also have the ability to change directions with tremendous speed and power. It is this ability that makes their faking from side to side so effective in confusing their covering man. Footwork in karate is similar in concept, if not in training, but by training for shiai kumite a karate-ka is forced to decrease the time in contact with the floor and increasing speed. This gives the fighter the ability to cover the great distances that we start at during a match. From a self-defense stand point, the ability to change directions is highly beneficial as it allows one to dodge attacks with only the slightest pause.
Timing
I would think that this is obvious by watching the typical tournament match, but everybody is a counter-fighter, or at least everybody wants to be. It's more impressive to allow the other guy to start and beat him anyway. Wayne Otto has been known to say, "When I attack, I score; when my opponent attacks, I score." This is pretty typical of everybody's mindset in fighting, but some live on counter fighting. Timing is critical for this and in self-defense, or in real fighting, timing is even more important. Timing helps us to attack pre-emptively, timing helps us to catch our opponent off balance and vulnerable, timing helps to win more than anything else. You can have incredible footwork and a supernatural sense of distance, but if you can't time your attacks you will never catch your opponent's rhythm.
So long story short, is shiai kumite overly flashy and demonstrative to a fault? Yes, without the shadow of a doubt, but is it completely useless as some purists would like to tell us? Not at all. Many people who lose in competition complain by saying things like, "If it had been a real fight I would have done..." or "I would have never tried that in a real fight." You've all heard these complaints, but in many ways if you have to realize, if your opponent is faster than you in a tournament match, then a real fight your opponent will still be faster! Don't let your ego be bruised when you lose, shit happens, but keep being realistic about what happened.
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