Judo (IJF) — Official Rules

Judo ("the gentle way") is an individual one-on-one grappling combat sport contested between two judoka of the same sex and weight category. The athletes wear a judogi (jacket, trousers and belt) and seek to throw the opponent to the back with control, or to control them on the ground by osae-komi (pin), shime-waza (strangle) or kansetsu-waza (elbow arm-lock). The contest is directed by a referee on the mat supported by the Care System (video review). Each contest produces one winner and one loser — there are no draws in IJF competition.

A contest is won by: Ippon (a single decisive score that ends the contest immediately); Waza-ari awasete ippon (a second waza-ari, which combines into ippon and ends the contest); superior score at the end of regulation time (more waza-ari, then more yuko); Hansoku-make (the opponent is disqualified, directly or by accumulating a 3rd shido); Kiken-gachi (win by the opponent's withdrawal/injury); or Fusen-gachi (win by the opponent's no-show). If the scores are level at the end of regulation time, the contest goes to golden score.

When no ippon is scored, the winner at the end of regulation time is decided in strict hierarchy: (1) Ippon ends the contest instantly; otherwise (2) the judoka with more waza-ari wins; if equal, (3) the judoka with more yuko wins. Yuko never aggregates into waza-ari, and waza-ari never aggregates into ippon by count alone (only two waza-ari combine into ippon). Shido is a penalty, not a score: it does NOT break a tie of equal technical scores at the end of regulation — a contest tied on waza-ari and yuko goes to golden score regardless of how many shido each judoka holds.

The duration of a contest is 4 minutes of actual fighting time for Senior men and women, and likewise 4 minutes for Juniors (U21) and Cadets (U18) in IJF competition. The clock records only effective combat time: it runs on "Hajime" (begin) and stops on "Matte" (stop), "Sono-mama" (freeze) and at the end of an osae-komi. There is no halftime and no fixed rest period — a contest is a single continuous period.

The referee controls the action with spoken commands. "Hajime" starts the contest and restarts the action and the clock. "Matte" stops the action and the clock and returns both judoka to their starting positions (used when action leaves the area, a judoka is injured, a penalty is given, or there is no progress on the ground). "Sono-mama" freezes the judoka exactly where they are — the clock and any osae-komi count stop but the position is held — and "Yoshi" resumes the action and the count from that frozen position. Judoka must not move during sono-mama.

If the scores are level at the end of regulation time, the contest continues without interruption into golden score, which has no time limit. All scores and all shido from regulation time are carried over and remain on the scoreboard. The contest ends the instant a decisive advantage appears: the first additional score of any value (yuko, waza-ari or ippon) wins, or the contest is won when one judoka receives a further shido that takes the opponent ahead, or a hansoku-make is given. There is no flag/decision in modern golden score — it continues until a score or penalty separates the judoka.

Ippon is the maximum score and ends the contest immediately. In standing technique (nage-waza), ippon is awarded when a judoka throws the opponent largely on the back with control, considerable force and speed. The three judged criteria are: landing on the back, force/speed, and control to the end of the throw. A throw landing the opponent on the back but lacking one of these elements is scored waza-ari, not ippon. Ippon remains the unchanged top score under the 2026 rules.

On the ground, ippon is also awarded for: an osae-komi (pin) held for 20 seconds; a submission when the opponent taps twice with hand or foot or says "Maitta" ("I give up"); or the clear effect of a shime-waza (strangle) or kansetsu-waza (elbow arm-lock). Only elbow arm-locks are legal — locks against any other joint are forbidden. A submission or the effect of a choke/lock ends the contest at once.

A judoka who scores a second waza-ari in the same contest is immediately awarded ippon — "waza-ari awasete ippon" ("two waza-ari combine into ippon") — which ends the contest. This is the only way separate scores combine: yuko scores never combine into waza-ari, and a single waza-ari can never become ippon by accumulation — exactly two waza-ari are required.

Waza-ari is the intermediate score. By throw it is awarded when the opponent lands on the back lacking one of the three ippon elements (force, speed or control), or lands largely on the back but rolls — covering the area less than ippon but more than a side landing to the rear. By hold-down, waza-ari is awarded for an osae-komi held 10 to 19 seconds. Two waza-ari combine into ippon (Article 3.3); a single waza-ari standing alone decides the contest only if the opponent has no waza-ari at the end of time.

Yuko is the smallest score, reintroduced in 2025 and retained for the 2026 season after being removed in 2017. It rewards lesser-quality throws and shorter pins so that near-scoring actions count. By throw, yuko covers a landing on the side, the upper back, or on the buttock(s) — including side landings with or without an elbow or arm touching the mat, and landings close to the side toward the front — i.e. an action less than waza-ari. By hold-down, yuko is awarded for an osae-komi held 5 to 9 seconds. Yuko never aggregates into waza-ari; it serves only as the final tiebreaker after ippon and waza-ari.

Osae-komi ("hold-down") is declared when a judoka controls the opponent on the back or side, the opponent is held with the back largely toward the mat, and the controlling judoka is not held or trapped by the opponent's legs. The referee calls "Osae-komi" and the timer starts. The count is paused by "Sono-mama" and resumed by "Yoshi". The hold-down scores progressively: 5–9s = yuko, 10–19s = waza-ari, 20s = ippon. If the second of two scores would be reached in the same hold, only the higher applies once its time is met.

"Toketa" ("hold broken") is called when the held judoka escapes — for example by trapping the controller's leg with the legs, by turning so the controller is no longer in control, or when the controller's body is no longer over the opponent. The clock for that osae-komi stops at the seconds already accumulated; any score whose threshold (5/10/20s) was already passed stands. A new osae-komi must be re-declared to start a fresh count.

Ground work may continue only while there is continuous progress toward an osae-komi, a strangle or an arm-lock. If a judoka who reaches the ground makes no progress, the referee calls "Matte" and stands the judoka up. Under the 2026 rules, non-combativity is assessed from activity in BOTH tachi-waza (standing) and ne-waza (ground) — a judoka actively seeking progression on the ground is credited with combativity, rather than being judged solely on standing attacks.

Shido is the penalty for a minor infringement or for non-combativity. The first and second shido are warnings that give no score to the opponent. A third shido is hansoku-make: the offender is disqualified from that contest and the opponent wins. During a contest shido does not add points to the opponent's score; it only carries the disqualification at the third. At the end of regulation time, shido does NOT decide a contest whose technical scores are equal — such a contest goes to golden score (Article 2.3).

Acts penalised by shido include: non-combativity (no genuine attack over a period); false attacks; prolonged defensive (non-fighting) gripping or breaking the opponent's grip with both hands without taking a new grip; gripping inside the sleeve/trouser end or below the belt; gripping or blocking the opponent's leg(s) with the hand; a one-handed bear-hug clasp forming a circle without a prior grip; stepping intentionally outside the contest area or pushing the opponent out; adopting an excessively defensive posture; and wasting time (after a first warning, repeated time-wasting such as delaying standing up or adjusting the judogi becomes shido).

Because shido is not a score, equal shido counts do not separate the judoka. If both hold the same number of shido and the technical scores are level at the end of regulation, the contest goes to golden score. A judoka can lose by penalty only by reaching a third shido (or a direct hansoku-make). Shido given during golden score, however, ends the contest at once because it puts the opponent decisively ahead with no further regulation time.

Direct hansoku-make is awarded for a serious infringement and means immediate loss of the contest; for the gravest acts it can also mean expulsion from the competition. It is given, among other acts, for: diving head-first onto the mat when attacking (a head/neck injury risk); applying kansetsu-waza or ushiro-sankaku in a way the opponent cannot avoid (high injury risk to the neck or spine); a standing arm-lock or strangle that is dangerous; kawazu-gake (winding the leg) and other prohibited dangerous throws; and any act against the spirit of judo or that endangers the opponent.

A judoka who receives a third shido is given hansoku-make by accumulation: the contest is lost but the judoka is NOT expelled from the competition (the gentler consequence than a direct hansoku-make). This is the engine's distinction between a direct hansoku-make (the direct flag set, for a serious act) and an accumulated one (resulting from the third shido). In both cases the opponent is declared winner and the contest ends.

Under the 2026 rules the consequence of an arm-lock combined with a throw depends on the risk: a kansetsu-waza combined with a throwing technique at LOW risk of injury, where the opponent (uke) has the chance to avoid it, is penalised with shido; but a kansetsu-waza where the opponent has NO chance to avoid the situation is hansoku-make. This graded approach protects athlete safety while still allowing controlled, escapable arm-lock attacks.

Kiken-gachi ("win by withdrawal") is declared when a judoka cannot continue and withdraws, including for injury. The IJF strictly limits medical attendances: an athlete may be treated/examined a limited number of times for the same contest, and a third occasion of treatment for the same injury results in kiken-gachi for the opponent. Bleeding must be controlled; an injury caused by the opponent's prohibited act is judged separately and may give the result against the offender.

Fusen-gachi ("win by default") is declared when one judoka is absent or fails to appear on the mat when called for the contest (for example after failing to make weight or to present in time). The present judoka is declared the winner without fighting. The absent judoka is recorded as the loser of that contest.

Judo is an individual sport: a judoka fights the entire contest alone and cannot be substituted. There are no team timeouts and no coaching during action — coaches may instruct only when the action is stopped (Matte/Sono-mama) and must not interfere. The only permitted interruptions are referee-directed: Matte, Sono-mama, medical attendance within the allowed limit, and judogi/hygiene checks.

The contest takes place on a tatami assembled from interlocking mats of 2 m × 1 m. The contest area is a square measured minimum 8 m × 8 m and maximum 10 m × 10 m. It is surrounded by a safety area at least 3 m wide on every side to protect athletes who fall outside the fighting zone. Where two contest areas adjoin, a common safety area of at least 3 m is kept between them. The whole surface is flat, joined and non-slip.

Each judoka wears a regulation judogi of jacket, trousers and belt, of approved IJF cut and material, with the back number/sponsor patches as specified. To distinguish the judoka, the first-called wears blue and the second white at IJF events (or both white with a colour sash at lower levels). The judogi must meet measured tolerances at the sleeve and trouser ends; an over-tight or non-conforming judogi is penalised. Nails must be short, long hair tied, and no hard or metallic objects worn. Sokuteiki (measuring) checks enforce judogi compliance.

Each contest is directed by one referee on the mat. At IJF events the referee is supported by the Care System — two judges at a video monitor who review scores, penalties and continuity and may intervene to ensure the correct decision. The referee's call is given immediately, but the Care System can correct it before the contest result is final. There is no coach challenge; review is initiated by the officials, not the teams, ensuring decisions match the recorded action.

Senior judoka compete in seven weight categories per sex. Men: −60 kg, −66 kg, −73 kg, −81 kg, −90 kg, −100 kg, +100 kg. Women: −48 kg, −52 kg, −57 kg, −63 kg, −70 kg, −78 kg, +78 kg. Athletes are weighed in before competition and must make the category limit. There is also a mixed team event that pairs men's and women's categories. Junior and Cadet categories follow their own age-graded weight bands.

The 2026 refereeing rules continue the framework introduced after the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, with clarifications (notably on yuko side-landing scoring and ne-waza non-combativity). From the Ulaanbaatar Grand Slam onwards the refereeing rules are set and will not be modified until the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, giving athletes a stable ruleset across the qualification period. National federations (e.g. British Judo) implement the IJF SOR domestically, with the 2026 contest rules applied from 21 February 2026.