Your input on.......

[J-kid]

I want to know what you guys think on Refs using forun Terms of other langues , Like in judo the judges use japanis terms in the US. Like mata means stop, Isajimme start. etc

Its sort of hard to listen to the ref scream someone really fast wal you are consatration on fighting your oppent, In the first match i was in i was in a trance and fighting. I had won and didnt even know it, The ref was yelling mata at me. And i was still chocking my oppenent , Final the ref said that means stop. I was like O . Lol i got second at my tournement ,


But all the same how do you guys feel about this, Wouldnt make more sense to have the ref speak in english, If your countrys main launge is english?

 

[Aegis]

You're learning a Japanese Martial Art. The international standard language for it is Japanese. Everywhere you go, the lessons should be taught using Japanese terminology, so going into competition shouldn't be any different than practicing Judo in randori. If you're going to complain about the use of Japanese in Judo, then you should probably be learning "The way of yielding" from some guy that also didn't want to learn any japanese.

Fact is that the theory and language is part of Judo. If you don't know the competition terminology, you could potentially be disquallified, so best bet would be to just sit down and learn it. And to ask your instructor to start using japanese terms when telling people to stop in practice.

 

[Cthulhu]

I think that for competition, especially at an international level, it's beneficial to use the language of the system's origin, for example, judo.

If most judo practitioners train and learn to compete with Japanese terminology, then the referees only have to worry about officiating in a single language. Instead of having to tell the competitors to stop in their respective languages, or explain point or half-point, etc., they can use terminology that is common to the system, therefore common to the competitors.

It's not like you're being made to learn the language...just a few terms. Hell, if American English is your native language, then you already use many words of foreign origin, whether you're aware of it or not.

Cthulhu

 

[7starmantis]

Yeah and when your at a competition they expect you to do a form the exact way they would do it? Isn't that kind of close minded, asking you to do things the same way as other people in that system? I mean, to go completel with it, why must I use the techniques taught in judo at a judo tournament? Couldn't I introduce my own movements and use them in a tournament for judo practitioners?


7sm

 

[Nightingale]

The problem happens when you're competing in a mixed martial arts tournament... you've got a kenpoist fighting a korean martial artist, and the judge is shouting in japanese.

I saw a match where there were two kenpoists, and the judge shouted "Kumite" meaining "fight" and one of em just stood there because they didn't know what it meant.

I think if you're in a mixed tournament, you should use the language most people understand (which in the US would be English, in Mexico, Spanish, and so on). If you're in a style exclusive tournament, do whatever the promoter wants.

 

[Bod]

I understand Judo-kid's problem. It's hard enough to feel a guy tapping when your blood is up in competition let alone hear what the ref is saying and translate it into English!

Still, for Judo to be international means that you need a single language for the important stuff. In my grading syllabus that includes the referee calls.

We constantly have foreign students at our dojo, but since the throws and commands are called in Japanese there is no problem. It's a similar thing to French being spoken in kitchens round the world.

Learn the calls. After a while you'll soon be able to hear the referee and choke out your opponent at the same time.

 

[Yari]

In scandinavia we have american football, and we don't call quaterbacks, for "Tungside passere" (my own translation). Everbody calls them for quaterbacks.

Samething about MA, use the language that is the defined language.

/Yari

 

[Nightingale]

exactly...

the problem arises when you have more than one style competing, so there is no defined language.

 

[7starmantis]

I hope everyone understood that my past post was sarcastic. I think if you are learning a system from China, you will also learn the chinese terms in the system, otherwise your missing part of the entire system.
I do agree that in a mixed tourny it would be hard if the two fighting were from different systems, thus they should use a collective language. But Judo-kids post was a judo tournament, you can't expect them not to use japanese terms.

7sm

 

[Yari]

Originally posted by 7starmantis

in a mixed tourny it would be hard if the two fighting were from different systems, thus they should use a collective language.
7sm

I don't totally agree on that. As long as the organixers who are holding the course have said that the competition is held in a certain language, it's OK to keep to that language.

I think that the main issue is that evebody should know which language the competition is held in.

/Yari

 

[7starmantis]

Originally posted by Yari

I don't totally agree on that. As long as the organixers who are holding the course have said that the competition is held in a certain language, it's OK to keep to that language.

I think that the main issue is that evebody should know which language the competition is held in.

/Yari

Yeah thats what I ment, that they would stick to one language so that both fighters know what to listen for.
I guess I didn't write it correctly.

7sm

 

[Nightingale]

as long as both fighters understand the language (or it was on the flyer for the tournament) its cool... the problem is when judges who run their classes in a certain language forget that not everyone speaks japanese or korean or whatever, and start shouting in it in the middle of an open sparring match, and then gets pissed when you don't understand him. (I've had this happen to me, folks. The guy was telling me I'd kicked too hard or something, but he was saying it in japanese. I said "excuse me, sir, but could you say that in English?" and he got totally pissed at me!)

 

[Bod]

Try not to kick the ref in future nightingale, and if you persist, allow him to sound off in whichever language he sees fit.

 

[2maz]

Originally posted by Yari

I don't totally agree on that. As long as the organixers who are holding the course have said that the competition is held in a certain language, it's OK to keep to that language.

I think that the main issue is that evebody should know which language the competition is held in.

/Yari

Agree. And shouldn't the instructor be able to help his students out with competition language..?

 

[Yari]

Originally posted by 2maz

Agree. And shouldn't the instructor be able to help his students out with competition language..?

Very good point!


/Yari

 

[Nightingale]

Originally posted by Bod

Try not to kick the ref in future nightingale, and if you persist, allow him to sound off in whichever language he sees fit.

LOL! I kicked my opponent, silly! and not very hard at that... I just basically put my foot up, and she was doing that "california blitz" thing, and ran right into it, and knocked the wind out of herself!

 

[muayThaiPerson]

dude, u better learn the language. if they say stop and u keep going, that foo is gonna woop ur ***. ive seen it in a muay thai fight. he got his teeth knocked out sick

 

[MountainSage]

If I read Judo-kid's post correctly, the problem isn't the language barrier, but ability to focus on a situation, not just an opponent. Those of us that train in a sport martial art tend to fall in to the trap of focusing only on the one opponent we are competeing against. This habit might become ingrained and become a problem in the self-defense area when there are multiple attackers. There is a cool drill where two people walk around you in circles opening and closing their hands while a third person asks questions of you and you must be able to verbally answer question and tell whos hand are open or closed. Your awareness becomes better and as a martial art you become better. Just some thoughts

"it's not the destination, but the journey that builds character"