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BACKGROUND The introduction of the 'Golden Score' in
judo competition was initially adopted in late 2001 and early 2002. Most
competition during this time period used the golden score procedure and awarded
a win to the tori for a successful osaekomi that reached the 10 second mark. The International Judo Federation (IJF)
provided little guidance during this time period with regard to the application
of the golden score procedure. What eventually ensued were deliberations on
how to apply the golden score procedure during team contests or round robin
tournaments where the accumulation of points was the primary consideration for
overall wins. In tournaments where point accumulation is
the deciding factor, an ippon win merits the maximum
number of points. A koka merits the least amount of
points. Therefore, in golden score matches the decision was made that obligated
the tori to attempt to maintain an osaekomi for the full 25 seconds even though a koka score or higher had been attained. The issue was finally resolved in October of
2002 by the IJF with the concurrence of the U.S. Referee Commission. The
decision stipulated that there were to be no exceptions. The
golden score procedure was formally implemented in January of 2003. An additional area which needed to be
resolved involved was what to do if the tori
committed a prohibited act at some point after the 10 second mark was reached
during an osaekomi, but prior to the 25 second mark. In
this instance, the uke is declared the winner. The rationale for declaring the uke the winner is based on the fact that when the golden
score procedure is used for a match, the win is based on “the first called
score”. After the prohibited act is committed, the referee calls matte and
returns the players to their starting positions. The referee then penalizes the
tori for the prohibited act, announces soremade and awards the win to the other player. Whatever
scoring mark was reached by the tori between the 10
and 25 second time interval is of no consequence since it was never officially
called by the referee. A strange new way of doing things! If the uke should
attempt and manage to escape from an osaekomi after
the 10 second mark but prior to the 25 second mark, he would automatically lose
the match. The referee would announce toketa followed
by matte. The players would then go to their starting positions and the referee
would announce the appropriate score and then call soremade.
The referee would then indicate that tori was the winner. UKE’S HANDICAPS The most significant handicap imposed on the
uke after having been pinned for 10 seconds or more
is the forfeiture of the match if an escape is attempted and successful. It is
reasonable to assume that if the uke is aware of the
consequence of an escape after the 10 second mark has been reached, no attempt
to escape will be made. This handicap would be common at all levels of
competition. Handicaps can be classified in accordance to
the age groups that are competing. The designation of the age
groups are arbitrary and are called the minimum, intermediate and
maximum handicap levels. Minimum Handicap Level This uke has no
restrictions regarding attacking with techniques from any of the waza groups. In an osaekomi
situation this player can, after the 10 second mark is reached attack with
either shime waza or kansetsu waza. No attempt to
escape the osaekomi should be attempted between the
10 and 25 second marks. An escape results in loss of the match. An attempt to
apply a shime waza or a kansetsu waza without disturbing
the osaekomi can be difficult. Also, the type of osaekomi in effect will influence the type of attack that
the uke may attempt. Intermediate Handicap Level The uke can only
attack with shime waza
techniques because of either age and/or rank restrictions. Otherwise, the same
conditions apply to this player as the player in the minimum handicap level. Maximum Handicap Level. This uke has no
alternative attacks that can be attempted for the conditions discussed for the uke in the minimum handicap level group. This level is
representative of junior players who are restricted from using shime waza or kansetsu
waza because of age. If a player at this
level fails to escape from an osaekomi before the 10
second mark is reached, he automatically loses the match. A
PERSONAL VIEW When the golden score procedure was first
used in judo competition and the 10 second mark was reached in an osaekomi, the match was over and the tori
was the winner. The outcome was appropriate and made sense since it adhered to
written IJF judo contest rules. Historically, when new changes have been made
to the contest rules, things were simple at first. What typically follows are
the “what ifs”or some items that should have been
thought of before the change(s) were implemented in judo contests. In the case of the golden score,the business of team
contests and round robin should have been noticed prior to implementing it in
judo competition. The same goes for the case where the tori commits a prohibited
act during an osaekomi call between the 10 second and
25 second marks. Both of these situations came up after the fact. What apparently has gone unnoticed are the
handicaps to the uke during the application of the
golden score procedure. This oversight seems to be far more significant than
the two items discussed in the previous paragraph. It seems that in all fairness to the total
judo community, that a return to the initial method of a win for the tori when the 10 second mark is reached during an osaekomi would be very prudent. If this is not feasible,
then as a minimum, the golden score should never be allowed to be used in
junior contests. Finally, to bring home the point, it is
suggested that judo players engage in the following procedure: Have a player allow you to secure an osaekomi undisturbed for 10 seconds. Then ask
the player to attempt an attack without disturbing the osaekomi.
Uke will notice that he is faced with a situation that he
undoubtedly has never practiced before. That is, attempting to make an
offensive move against an osaekomi without being able
to disturb it, for in doing so, the consequence is the loss of a match. The
conclusion that has to be drawn regarding a golden score match where tori has succeeded in overcoming the uke
with an osaekomi for at least 10 seconds is that it
is a Win/Win situation every time! Once you have attempted to practice the
above procedure I believe you will arrive at the same conclusion. In a judo
contest, a call of toketa is most likely to precede
any successful offensive move by the uke after the 10
second mark has been reached. |
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