From what I've heard, the younger generations are mainly being taught a more watered down sport version instead. Like Ronda was part of the last generation to really learn submissions and stuff. And even at the time, she was really a specialist and wasn't even given time to work, so she had to learn to be explosive with her submissions.
As someone who has done judo for years (not anymore due injuries), you are trained in all of it because at some point you are going to be tested for your black belt and you have to know all of the Kodokan techniques and be able to demonstrate them at a black belt level. Right-handed and left-handed, if they ask. So you still better be pretty proficient with those lower body reaps in case they ask to see them for the Dan grading.
Black belts are not given out in your own dojo but by Kodokan representatives.
Eliminating lower body reaps (single, double, ankle techniques) from competition doesn't mean they aren't practiced or even used in all competitions. Rules were sketchy that you could still use them, but they cannot be the first attack -- meaning that they could be used as second part of a combination attack.
The lower body techniques were banned because wrestlers would sign up to do judo and that is all they would do. So at the lower levels (white and yellow belt) they are not experienced enough to defend that as they are working on other techniques and do not have a feel for the "gentle way." One of the guys at our club won the bronze or silver medal in wrestling for the Ontario championships in his senior year of high school. He was successful until he went against brown and black belts and tried to be wrestler in a gi. As soon as they saw what he was it was like they went, "oh, I know how to stop this" and they did.
My head sensei who is an accredited international ref and has refereed all over the world, would tell us how it will come full circle and the rules will change eventually to allow lower body reaps (single and double leg, ankle picks) back in at some point because they have done it before. Even still, you can find tournaments that will allow them by local clubs occasionally.
Rousey's mother would arm bar her to wake her up in the mornings growing up. That is why she got so good at them. Quite an alarm clock. But as far as time goes on the ground in competition, if you are not advancing your technique, you are stood up quickly.
Another sensei at my club competed against Ronda Rousey in an Ontario tournament years ago. She didn't lose by submission but was thrown for ippon, which ends the match (if you land on your back) about two or three minutes into the match. Rousey is more than an armbar assassin.
It's both funny and sad what short memories people have of Rousey's judo. Even the talking MMA heads don't even know anything about judo, because they can't tell the difference between something as simple as O-goshi (a hip throw) and harai goshi (a hip sweep). Or when Ronda would do a takedown/throw/trip a lot of times she is using multiple techniques at once to get her opponent to react to set up something else. I recall seeing her try about three or four techniques in just over a second or two to get her opponent on the ground from the clinch. I think the only commentator that ever really pointed that out was Pat Miletich on a Strikeforce show.
