help get karate into the olympics!!

[tshadowchaser]

Some of the problems with getting karate into the Olympics:


Setting up national OPEN tournament with regional through national titles, to decide whom will represent each country
Who is going to judge the competition at nationals ands the Olympics and how are they chosen
Finding enough judges and referees that are unbiased
What is going to be allowed ( this should be a minor thing but would not be) open hands, groin kicks, take downs, etc.
Will this be under one organization or can anyone participate (Open tournaments mean just that open to all)

 

[jkembry]

i dont think karate should enter the olympics, there is no discreet valuation to karate and further more i will quote what my sensei said to me many many years ago:


karate is not a sport, it is a way of life.

I agree! To me karate is much more than a sport. It is an art that is provides tools for living.

 

[twendkata71]

The USANKF is working on those issues. I have talked to several officials about this. The USOC is working with the USANKF. It takes time to make the changes.

Some of the problems with getting karate into the Olympics:


Setting up national OPEN tournament with regional through national titles, to decide whom will represent each country
Who is going to judge the competition at nationals ands the Olympics and how are they chosen
Finding enough judges and referees that are unbiased
What is going to be allowed ( this should be a minor thing but would not be) open hands, groin kicks, take downs, etc.
Will this be under one organization or can anyone participate (Open tournaments mean just that open to all)

 

[twendkata71]

The main thinng that concerns me about "if" karate is included in the Olympics in the future is that they will probably only include kumite and not Kata as well. I would hope that they would include kata.

 

[Brian S]

I am going to step on some toes with this one, but karate is just a sport. It is not a way of life.

Your religion (whatever that may be) is your way of life. Karate is not a religion. It is a sport that many teach as a religion, but it is still just a set of movements. Karate, as most sports do, enforce good habits and maneurisms, but only enforce what you should have learned from your religion and even to a large extent from your upbringing.

I always read Dave Lowry's karate column in Black Belt Magazine and think about this. He (and many like him) teach it as a "way of life" but fail to realize what they are saying by making that claim. I listen to these people go on about how they are better people because of the martial arts, but never hear them talk about who they believe created life and how greatful they are to that god. They thank karate, but never god. Look at the people who say football and baseball are a way of life (and there are many who do). They are making the same claim.

It will always fall to the question: who/what should get the credit for the improvements on one's character? Karate or your God?

AoG

AoG,

Very well said!

Personally, I hope karate never gets into the olympics. I hoe everyone goes the way of mma and I and a select few continue to do our kata by way of moonlight.

 

[Cirdan]

No, we don`t need to give the world a dumbed down spectacle version of our art.

 

[Grenadier]

The way I see it, Karate would be a fine addition to the Olympics. Having all three divisions (kata, kobudo, kumite), would be no more complex than what you already see in gymnastics.

They could simply use the USA-NKF or WKF rules (almost the same), which are already well-established. If you really want to specify things, use the Shitei division rules for kata, and use the kobudo kata list that the USA-NKF / WKF uses, so that everyone is on a more or less even playing field.

 

[Tez3]

AoG,

Very well said!

Personally, I hope karate never gets into the olympics. I hoe everyone goes the way of mma and I and a select few continue to do our kata by way of moonlight.

We don't want MMA in the Olympics for the same reason we don't want karate. Btw some of us do katas and MMA. Iain Abernethy's take on Bunkai is very useful for MMA.

 

[Brian S]

We don't want MMA in the Olympics for the same reason we don't want karate. Btw some of us do katas and MMA. Iain Abernethy's take on Bunkai is very useful for MMA.

That's because Abernathy's bunkai is taken from mma,lol.

 

[Andrew Green]

The way I see it, Karate would be a fine addition to the Olympics. Having all three divisions (kata, kobudo, kumite), would be no more complex than what you already see in gymnastics.

Gymnastics routines are creative and acrobatic, are you wanting sport karate forms or traditional forms?

Personally I can't see traditional forms ever having a place in the Olympics, how on earth would you judge them? Everyone does the exact same form, the difficulty level of the form is the same across the board, there is no creativity... Does the 70 year old 9th dan win with a very solid and traditional performance of Seisan, or the 17 year old that does a creative and acrobatic form?

 

[astrobiologist]

The way I see it... There are martial arts and there are martial sports.
Martial arts study the way of war, of battle, between human beings. Martial arts teach self-protection, are realisitc for an attack on the street, and usually include a lot of learning about the function of the human body and the spirit of the warrior. Martial sports are based solely in competition. They are studied by those who wish to fight with organized rules, stretegic battling with designated strikes and techniques, and trophies, belts, or awards for winners of fights.

Martial arts and martial sports are both a lot of fun to be involved with and are both very interesting. Indeed, there are times when the two begin to mix a little. Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu is mostly a martial sport, but I've read that many instructors also teach self-defense techniques which cannot be used in the ring/octagon/whatever. Tang Soo Do is a mostly a martial art, yet many instructors and practitioners emphasize tournament theatrics and techniques which just don't work on the street.

Martial arts don't really work well for competition... I don't think karate should be in the Olympics. But if there were a martial sport category beyond Tae Kwon Do (point striking) and Judo (point grappling), I'd be interested to see how it would work out.

 

[Brian S]

I agree with you about the sport vs. art thing and we won't get into that any deeper here,lol.

One thing though, if karate were to get into the olympics, it wouldn't be the karate I do.

 

[Flying Crane]

I am going to step on some toes with this one,...

looks like I'm going to step on some toes back...

Your religion (whatever that may be) is your way of life.

Maybe YOUR religion is YOUR way of life, and that's your choice. But it's not mine, and not for many others, and that is our choice.

Karate is not a religion.

agreed.

It is a sport that many teach as a religion, but it is still just a set of movements. Karate, as most sports do, enforce good habits and maneurisms, but only enforce what you should have learned from your religion and even to a large extent from your upbringing.

perhaps you feel this way for yourself, but many of us do not share this point of view. To me karate is not a sport, and whatever good habits and mannerisms that I may have, I do not credit to religion, altho it would break my own mother's heart to hear me say so. Altho I will give a lot of credit to my parents and my upbringing.

I always read Dave Lowry's karate column in Black Belt Magazine and think about this. He (and many like him) teach it as a "way of life" but fail to realize what they are saying by making that claim. I listen to these people go on about how they are better people because of the martial arts, but never hear them talk about who they believe created life and how greatful they are to that god. They thank karate, but never god. Look at the people who say football and baseball are a way of life (and there are many who do). They are making the same claim.

Many people do not share your views on religion. For them, karate is karate, and they get many benefits from it. They might get many of the same benefits from some form of sport or other activity if they chose, but they didn't. They chose karate, and there is no need to suggest that they need to look to a higher being for this.

It will always fall to the question: who/what should get the credit for the improvements on one's character? Karate or your God?

AoG

that is a personal decision, based on one's personal feelings about religion and spiritual matters. There is no single correct answer. The correct answer depends on the individual.

 

[chinto]

click the below link, and enter it in to help get karate into the olymipic games.

http://portal.enfoque5.com/karateolimpico/ingles/contenido/participar.php

considering what damage it has done to the other martial arts such as TKD or JUDO i would prefer that the Olympics leave Karate alone.. in short I would sign a petition to keep karate out of the Olympics before i would to have it in them!

 

[chinto01]

I agree in keeping karate out of the olympics. Tournaments are a fine example of how bad things can get.

In the spirit of bushido!

Rob

 

[twendkata71]

After what happened at this olympics with the Taekwondo, Taekwondo will probably get the boot and karate will never be in. I really could care less now if karate got in. I used to be in the Olympic push, but now I see the negative aspects of having karate do in the Olympics.

 

[chinto]

I would have to say seeing what it has done to TKD and things.. will be part of any push to keep it out!! but then I am so fed up and disgusted with what the olympics has become that if it never happened again i could not care less!!

 

[Martin h]

Karate in the olympics would be a fantastic boost to the economic side and for general acceptance. But it would be a great blow to both karate as a art (and a deathblow to styles). The sport would improve -but only within the specific bounds of the rules. We only have to look at TKD today to see how it can go wrong. But it wont happen. There is no way karate will be able to present a single dominating world organization in order to appease IOC (or hand them enough cash under the table as is the traditional alternative)

 

[BrianF]

Please help keep karate out of the Olympics. I watched boxing and it was horrible. What can you get done in 2 minutes? If the judges only count hard hits to the front of the head, why wear gloves or headgear?

I saw no TKD or Judo coverage, mainly because there were not enough Americans winning to merit big time TV coverage. Sad. And the wrestling I saw left me underwhelmed.

I think Olympic karate would be over-regulated and too subjective to be true to the sport/art.


BrianF

 

[Xue Sheng]

Karate in the Olympics….sure…why not…. It did wonders for TKD and Judo