Why in the News?

• Kapil Parmar clinched India's first-ever Paralympic medal in judo, earning a bronze in the men's 60kg (J1) category after a dominant win over Brazil's Elielton de Oliveira in the play-off.

Kapil Parmar

About Judo

• Origin: It was developed in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano, drawing from ancient martial art techniques of jujitsu. 
• Objective: The goal is to throw or takedown the opponent to the ground, immobilize them, or force submission using joint locks or chokeholds. 
• Scoring 
  • Ippon: A full point, awarded for a perfect throw, successful pin for 20 seconds, or submission via choke or joint lock, which ends the match. 
  • Waza-ari: A half point, given for a near-perfect throw or pin lasting 10-19 seconds. Two Waza-ari equal an Ippon. 
  • Yuko (no longer used): Lesser scores used in the past for smaller technical achievements. 
• Match Duration: 4 minutes for men and women at the international level, with golden score rounds (sudden death) if needed. 
• Weight Categories: Divided into weight classes, from lightweight to heavyweight, for both men and women. 
• Uniform: Practitioners wear a judo gi, a thick cotton jacket and pants, secured with a belt representing rank. 
• Techniques: Includes throws (nage-waza), grappling (katame-waza), joint locks and chokeholds. 
• Penalties 
  • Shido: Minor penalty for infractions like passivity or non-combativeness. 
  • Hansoku-make: Disqualification for major infractions like dangerous techniques or unsportsmanlike behavior. 
• Olympic and Paralympic Sport: Judo has been an Olympic sport since 1964 for men and since 1992 for women. It is also included in the Paralympic Games. 
• Paralympic Judo: Practiced by visually impaired athletes, using tactile rules and adapted starting grips.