Dynamics of judo contests performed by top world judokas in the years 2008-2012

Abstract

Present sport apart from health-related values, educational or utilitarian ones, is also a marketing tool [1,2]. For many countries, cities or regions it is the only media’s own image. However, to make this tool efficient there must be fulfilled a number of conditions. One of them is attractiveness of discipline as the sports-show. Its indicator is created not only by the number of persons watching contest of sportsmen live, but also the interest of media, and what follows also sponsors or local authorities [1]. For many years organizer of athletic events have been outdoing each other in ideas enriching the competing of contestants, and international sports federations modify regulations to improve ratings. This phenomenon does not bypass combat sports. Over the recent years in Olympian combat sports there were several changes of regulations done. Their purpose was the facilitation of reception and increase of struggle dynamics. However, as the research proves, e.g. in judo, struggle dynamics dropped and the number of practiced elements of technique diminished, too. Regulation penalties have also more often influence on a win in the fight [3-7]. Considerable changes of regulations took place in the first decade of 21 century. Changes of rules in the year 2006 were to limit a role of referee during the fight. In the year 2009 a restriction in grabbing the leg of contestant’s trousers was introduced, and in 2010 it was completely forbidden to grip below the belt in direct attack (this offence was punished with the disqualification – hansoku-make) [8]. For the purpose of the verification of results of introduced changes there was executed a number of analyses of contestants’ actions at start [9,10]. The influence of regulations on the manner of leading and finishing fights was diagnosed [4-7]. Preferences of combat sports fans were examined, too – the attractiveness of show was most often connected with the high dynamics of the sports-fight [11-13]. The main cognitive objective of the study was the evaluation of struggle dynamics realized by top world judo contestants. The application aim was the formulation of trainingfoundations and methodical instructions in relation to contest strategy and tactics optimization where present combat regulations were taken into consideration.