Kumite

Kumite in Japanese, literally means “Kumi”-assault, “You”-Hand. I mean, Hand Assault. Enter with us at the Kumite Karate.

Kumite has traditionally been understood as the way to put into practice the acquired knowledge of Kihón and Kata. The Japanese ancestrally put their knowledge into practice through challenges and confrontations between practitioners. Formerly as Funakoshi recounted in his book “My Way – Gichin Funakoshi”, on the roads that linked some of the populations in Okinawa stalked assailants who are easily swept away using some of the karate techniques learned in the dojo.

… but, before all this, before Karate was Karate there was a form of combat called “Tegumi”.

Tegumi

Referring to the Hansi McCarthy text, we can determine that the basis of the combat we understand today was long overturned.

Tegumi dates back to the 12th century in Okinawa. The term consists of two Chinese characters. 1. te (“hand [s]”, but also an ancient local term referring to martial arts) and 2. kumi (an ideogram with several meanings, this refers to clinging.

Legend holds that this form of commoner struggle was part of early island society, and eventually became a ritualized practice dedicated to the gods of heaven and earth to have abundant crops and abundant fishing, just like Japanese sumo Continental. The sheer nature of his brutal practice evokes images of tegumi as a rite of cultural passage as young men approaching masculinity in the early history of Uchina (Hogen for Okinawa) embraced it vigorously as a test of courage.

We do not want to focus much more on Tegumi, as it is not the objective of this note, and would lead to an exclusive note on the subject given its importance and extension.

Kumite types in Karate

Currently there are “accepted” in general mode, that is, because of the generality of practitioners and federations, 7 different types of Kumite (FMK Normativa_de_grados --> Section 3oDAN), although there are certainly more types and versions of Kumite, with different rules, such as KyoKushin Karate, JKA, or Karate Combat, also called Full-Contact Karate. The latter a type of combat arose from the MMA, with a comprehensive base of Karate.

IPPON KUMITE: assault on a step and/or a technique.

SANBON KUMITE: three-step assault and/or three techniques.

GOHON KUMITE: five-step assault and/or five techniques.

YAKUSOKU KUMITE: interlaced conventional study assault.

JYJU IPPON KUMITE: free assault on a technique.

JYU KUMITE: free assault. Free and flexible combat.

SIHAI KUMITE: regulated assault.

Of each of these styles I could write a book or several given the depth of elements that surrounds and complements them, but in this case we will choose to talk a little about Shiai Kumite because it is the competition kumite regulated by WKF (Word Karate Federation).

SHIAI kumite

Since the time of Felipe Hita, Jose Manuel Egea, Alvarado, Jesús Juan Rubio, Amillo, Manzano (I would quote everyone and indeed in a note that we are arousing to thank the Spanish Karatekas we will do) and so many great karatekas competitors the Spanish Karate has been at the top. Certainly now it takes a time without the results of yesteryear.

Shiai Kumite Karate is a type of combat in which two contenders fight to score a technique. The scoring system is complex and WKF has updated emerging a new version of the regulations in 2018.

There is a regulation for the correct execution of techniques, combat times, attire, positions on the tatami, etc…

Scoring method

1. Las puntuaciones son las siguientes:
   a) IPPON – Tres puntos
   b) WAZA-ARI – Dos puntos
   c) YUKO – Un punto
2. Se concede puntuación cuando se realiza una técnica en una zona puntuable de acuerdo a los siguientes criterios:
   a) Buena forma
   b) Actitud deportiva
   c) Aplicación vigorosa
   d) Percepción (ZANSHIN)
   e) Tiempo apropiado
   f) Distancia correcta
3. IPPON se otorga por :
   a) Patadas Jodan.
   b) Cualquier técnica puntuable que se realice sobre un oponente caído.
4. WAZA-ARI se otorga por:
   a) Patadas Chudan.
5. YUKO se otorga por:
   a) Chudan o Jodan Tsuki.
   b) Jodan o Chudan Uchi.
6. Los ataques están limitados a las siguientes zonas:
   a) Cabeza
   b) Cara
   c) Cuello
   d) Abdomen
   e) Pecho
   f) Zona trasera
   g) Zona lateral (los costados)
7. Se considera válida una técnica eficaz realizada al mismo tiempo que se señala el final del encuentro. Una técnica, aunque sea eficaz, realizada después de una orden de suspender o parar el
   encuentro no será puntuada y sí podrá suponer una penalización para el infractor.
8. No se puntuará ninguna técnica, aunque sea correcta, que se realice cuando los dos contendientes
   están fuera del área de competición. Sin embargo, si uno de los contendientes realiza una técnica
   eficaz mientras está todavía dentro del área de competición y antes de que el Árbitro diga
   “YAME”, dicha técnica será puntuada.

Warnings and Penalties Block

We left you a link to a match of Jose Manuel Egea in which we can appreciate what the Kumite was at the time, 1987: Jose Manuel Egea

Here, however, a somewhat more current match between the great Ivan Leal and Rafael Aghayev: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQ_7HqMya2I

Here is a current match between Rafael Aghayev VS Matsuisha: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kmmL8Ag8bw

Stop by our karate shop and discover the best karateguis for combat: Karate Tent

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