- Joined
- Mar 23, 2021
- Messages
- 338
- Reaction score
- 148
What a shame they didn't just create a freestyle and Greco-Roman division rather than Banning the grabbing of legs entirelyI can't talk to the internal politics because I'm not based there or particularly clued up on it - but Judo in the US seems very fractured, and I've never heard anyone from the US say anything positive about any of their (is it three?) national governing bodies.
It seems there is a lot of anti-IJF sentiment in the US - but its interesting that sentiment doesn't seem to exist in other countries, even in places like the UK where Judo also seems to be dying a death, and unable to adapt to BJJs popularity or provide adequate support to its national level athletes - people in the UK don't blame the IJF for issues that are within the British Judo Associations remit - but it seems common to do so in the US.
In terms of the leg grab ban - I liked Judo better when leg grabs were there, but it is what it is. And if you put aside notions of what Judo is or should be, I think the current rules actually make for some interesting contests.
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is still riding the slingshot popularity off the first few UFC's and even though the sport hasn't produced much ever since it's more attractive to the public because it has a much lower impact especially as compared to extreme Impact Sports like Judo and wrestling.
I'm of the firm belief that if Judo was available alongside wrestling in the public school system it would have been popular in the United States especially as it has proven time and time again to draw more female competitors then either wrestling or any other combat sport in Scholastic history