Perceptrial and Motor Skzlls, 2008, 106, 859-869.

C Perceptual and Motor Skills 2008

TECHNICAL VARIATION IN A SAMPLE O F

HIGH LEVEL JUDO PLAYERS '

12fartial Arts anlld Combat Spovts Rescarcl. Gtloup Departmet~tof T,beory and Abfethodology
School of Physical Education and Spurt of Combat Sports
Ltrziiri.sif!; of S~ioI'dzilo lrf7jt:e~sft)lsrhr~olqj' Physical Education, Krakox

CASSIO MIIWNDrl MEIRrl, JR., FABIO RODRTGO FERREIM C;O,LlES, G O TAN1

Laboratoq ?;fA.lfoto~
Behavior, School of Phl;sical Educatiotz a d Sport
LTniz:ersityof SZo l3az4!o

Summary.-Technical actions performed by t\vo groups of judokas ~ 7 1 1 won0 med-

als at LVorld Championships and Olympic Games during [he period 1995-2001 were
analyzed. In the Super Elite group ( n = 17) were rhe best athletes in each weight cate-
gory. The Elite group (n = 16) were medal winners u-ho were not champions and did
not win more than three medals. Super Elitc judokas used a greater number of thro\\,-
ing techniques uhich resulted in scores: even when expressed relative to the total num-
ber of niatches performed, and thcsc techniques were applied in more directions than
those of Elite judokas. Further, the number of different throwing techniques and the
variability of directioils in which techniques were applied were significantly corrclared
with number of wins and the number of points and ippon scored. Thus. a greater
llun~berof throwing techniques and use of directions for attack seem to be important
in increasing unpredictability during juclo matches.

In an attempt to be less predictable during matches, judo players sys-

tematically vary their attempted maneuvers and throws iAdams & Carter,
1988; Schmidt, 1991; Calmet & hhmaidi, 2004; Calmet, Trezel. & Ahmaidi,
2006). In essence, judo should be considered an open motor skill, once the
opponent is constantly moving and as a closed motor skill ahen a judoka at-
tempts throws and strategic maneuvering. To be successful in performing
judo techniques in a match, skilled judoka have to adapt quickly to new
demands from each opponent, which usually implies having a range of pos-
sible responses to the stimulus. Likewise, Elite judo players are capable of
inducing significant perturbation to the opponent, which functions similarly,
i.e., leads to dn attack based on the response of the opponent (Adarns &
Carter, 1988; Magill, 1989; Schmidt, 1991).
To be less predictable, judo plajers often attempt a wide range of tech-
niques (Calmet & Ahmaidi, 2004; Caltnet, et al.,2006). This variability is
thought to play a major role in a judo maich, considering that each of the

'Address correspondence to Emerson Franchini, Martial Arts and Combat Sports Research
Group, School of Physical Education and Sport. University of Sao l'aulo. A\!.Prof. Mello
Moraes 65. Cidade Universirlria. 05508-900 Sao Paul/SP, Brazil or e-mail ieiranchini@usp.br).
athletes tries to deceive each other to capitalize on any momentary loss of
balance (Calmet & Ahn~aidi,2004; Calmet, e t d l . , 2006). For this reason,
tuTostrategies are generally used in competition, ( 1 ) perform different tech-
niques from the same grip and i 2 ) perform the same technique from differ-
ent grips. Skilled judoka also vary their techniques over the course of a com-
petition (Sterkowicz, 1998; Sterkowicz & Franchini, 2001). In contrast, a
judo player xvhose strategy is based upon a small number of techniques per-
formed in limited directions has a smaller chance of defeating an opponent
(\XTeers,1996'; Calmet & Ahmaidi, 2004) because it is harder to induce
points of imbalance if a judoka has only one or two directions of attack.
Such a player is simply easier to anticipate and defend against, as the oppo-
nent can effectively prevent the player from entering a technique. Alternative-
ly, if a judo player performs three directions of attack (forming a triangle),
the likelihood of unbalancing the opponent is enhanced, and, consequently,
the defending judo player (uke) confronts more uncertain strategy which is
difficult to predict, and so is in a disadvantageous situation (Calmet & Ah-
maidi, 2004; Calmet, et al.,2006).
During a match, kinaesthetic anticipation is one of the most important
factors in determining the winner. This anticipation occurs when the person
attempts to identify any regular cue for the purpose of predicting the occur-
rence of certain stimuli (Poulton, 1957). In judo it is important to vary the
techniques to reduce the identification of any regularity. The relations among
attack variations and the consequent defense actions leads players to explore
responses of the opponent early in a match, looking for a latency on which
they can capitalize in a situation of choice. Specifically they take advantage
of giving more than one signal to which the person must respond and there-
by prevent a situation in which each signal has a specific response. For in-
stance, choice reaction time increases as the number of stimulus-response op-
tions (pairs) increases, i.e., the reaction time is grearer at the beginning when
one switches from one (simple reaction time) to two options (choice reaction
time). If the number of options continually increases, the reaction time also
increases iWelford, 1980).
Another crucial concept which can be applied to judo is Hick's law
(Hick, 1952), which considers task and situation characteristics as influenc-
ing movement preparation. According to this law, the reaction time \vill in-
crease logarithmically as the number of stimulus-response alternatives in-
creases. Reaction time, therefore, increases as the number of stimulus-re-
sponse alternatives increases (in judo, from taro attack variations to four at-
tack variations, or from four to eight). The implications of Hick's law in judo
are crucial because in proper preparation of judo players it is necessary to

'Weers, G. (1996) Skill Tange oJ elite judo athletes. Retrie~edfrom the internet 8th December
1996 at http://vr~~~.judoinfo.con~/~~eersl.ht~n.
 T7ARIABILITYIN JUDO TECHNIQCE 861

teach them as many attack variations as possible. In contrast, as Hick's law

states, increased number of stimulus-response alternatives will increase
delays in choice reaction time, although because the relation is logarithmic
this increase is relatively slow (less than linear). This means that judo players
do not necessarily maximize perfornlance by a dramatic increase in the nutn-
ber of attack variations to maximize the number of stimulus-response alter-
natives applied to the opponent. From a practical standpoint, given the
years of practice it takes to be highly effective at a technique, it is very
difficult for a judo player to achieve high proficiency on a \vide range of
attack variations. In general, performance errors should be roughly propor-
tional to the number of options. It appears there is likely an optimum
number of attack variations which do not require a maximuin number of
techniques, but which should be effective in producing uncertainty in an
opponent. In other words, by having enough stimulus-response alternatives
a player creates confusion. This also should vary according to the stage of
learning of the judo player, becoming larger as expertise increases.
However, relatively few studies have been done on the technical charac-
teristics of highly skilled judo players (Matsumoto, Takeuchi, & Nakamura,
1978; Heinisch, 1997; Sagnol & Bisciotti, 1997; Calmet & Ahmaidi, 2004:
Sterkowicz & Franchini, 2001; Calmet, et al.,2006; Sterko~~icz, Lech, & Al-
mansba, 2007) so available information about attack techniques and direc-
tions of attack is quite limited. The need for ecological research on judo has
been pointed out recently (Calmet, 2006, 2007). Hence, the present purpose
was to analyze the number and the direction of attacks performed by the
top level judo players, to test the hypothesis that the most skilled athletes
use a larger number of different techniques, and that these techniques are
appIied in more directions than used by other judo players who won World
Championship or Olympic medals.
METHOD
Pa~ticipafzts
Initially, all results for judo matches of World Championships (1995;
1997, 1999, and 2001) and Olympic Games (1996 and 2000) held between
1995 and 2001 were analyzed. The choice for this specific period was made
because there were no significant rule modifications of the time structure of
the match (for example: addition of one minute in female matches and the
inclusion of the extra-time/golden score). From these results the most suc-
cessful athlete of each weight category (including the open category) in both
male (n= 9) and female (rz = 8) competitions was identified and considered
for further analysis. This selection was made by summing the points obtain-
ed by athletes in these competitions using the following criteria: five points
for each gold medal, three points for each silver medal, and one point for
each bronze medal. The comparison group included eight male and eight fe-
male athletes who participated in at least three of these events and had been
classified among the seven best athletes at least two times at the Olympic
Games or World Championships, but not the champion in either event.
Thus, this group was also composed of high level judo athletes, but these
athletes were not the best or xvinning competitors of each event or did not
win a medal more than three times in these high level competitions. The
highest skilled group was called Super Elite, and the other was called Elite.
Table 1 presents recorded status of the athletes in each group.

After the definition of: these two groups, all of their matches in these
competitions were analyzed. This analysis considered aU the official data of
the International Judo Federation, which is based on the referees' and judges'
decisions during competitions. An international judo contest is conducted by
one referee and two judges under the supervision of the Refereeing Commis-
sion. The referee and judges are assisted by scoreboard keepers and time-
keepers. During the judo match the referee stays within the contest area to
conduct the contest and administer the final judgment. There are also two
judges, who must assist the referee and sit opposite each other in two cor-
ners outside the contest area. While announcing an opinion and making the
appropriate gesture, the referee brings at least one judge within line of sight
to be immediately aware of any differing opinion. Each judge must indicate
an opinion by making the appropriate official gesture, whenever that opin-
ion differs from that of the referee on a technical evaluation or for a penalty
announced by the referee. Should the referee express an opinion of a higher
score than that of the two judges on a technical result or penalty, the referee
must adjust the evaluation to that of the judge having expressed the higher
evaluation. Should a referee express an opinion on a technical result or a
lesser penalty than that of the two judges, the referee must adjust his evalua-
tion to that of the judge expressing the lower evaluation. Should one judge
express a higher opinion and the other judge a lower opinion than that of
the referee: the referee's opinion must be maintained, iZ discussion is possi-
ble and necessary only if the referee or one of the judges has clearly seen
something which was not \risible to the other two and which could change
their decision (International Judo Federation, 2003j. In the present competi-
tions all referees and judges were of international level and were specially se-
lected to participate.
For each athlete the total number of matches performed, the number of
wins, points and ippo~z(maximum judo point, xvhich determines the end of
the match) scored, and penalties received by the opponents were calculated
based on the official decision. Additionally, a video analysis of each match
was undertaken to specify the number of different techniques which resulted
in a score, the number of different throwing techniques (tachi-wuzn)xvhich
VARIABILITY IN JUDO TECHNIQUE 863
861 E.FRANCHINI, E?' AL

resulted in a score, the number of different groundwork techniques (ne-

zuazn) which resulted in a score, and the direction of the throuing technique
which resulted in a score. All were determined by one experienced evaluator
using the procedures described by Calmet, et al. (2006). The only difference
to this approach was that the directions of techniques employed were ana-
lyzed considering use of the same grip pattern by the athlete. On this criteri-
on only four directions were considered (right backward, left backward, right
fonvard. and left forward).
All analyses were performed using the Statistica for Windows (Version
6.0; Statsoft, Tulsa, OK,USA). Data are reported as means and standard
deviations (SD).The distribution of the data, a~lalyzedby the Shapiro-Wilks
test, was a normal Gaussian distribution. Groups were compared through a
two-way analysis of covariance (group level and sex; covariate: weight cate-
gory), followed by a Scheffi. test. Correlation between variables was calcu-
lated with the Pearson product-moment procedure. Significance ( a )was set
at 5 % (p< . O f ) for all analyses (Zar, 1999).
RESULTS
Tables 2 and 3 present the main absolute and relative results for both
groups.

TABLE 2
NUMBER
OF MATCHFS \CYS, POINTSSCOREDT \ P ~ 4ND DIFFERENTTECHNIQUE>
APPII F D DURIVG\X'OXLD CHA~~I>IOI\SHIPSAND OLYMPIC GAMESBY
SUPERELITE(n = 17) 4ND ELITE(12 = 16) JUDO PLAYERS
- --

Variable Super Elite Group Elite Group

- - --
hlcn IY'omen Men Women

- -
1 Si) A1 SD A1 SD ,U SD
No of matches 17 3 19 8 19 5 15 5
No. of wins" 16 3 18 7 13
Points scored 39 lla 39 17-33
Ippon scored" 10 3 10 3 8
Penalties received by opponencst 16 9 14 7 16
No. different techniques 12 4 11 5 10
No.different thro\ving rechniqucs"i. 10 3 9 4 7
No. different groundwork techniqucs 1 1 2 2 2
Direction of thro~vs* 3.7 0.7 3.8 0.5 3.1
-- -- ~p

"Different from elite woinen ! p < .05). "Group ( p< ,053. ?Sex ( p < ,053

There were no effects of group or sex for the nuinber of matches per-
formed on the competitions analyzed. However, the Super Elite group had a
larger number of wins than the Elite group (FI2&= 17.6, p < .001), as well as
of the percentage of wins (F,,,= 87.6, p < .001: Table 3). There uras no effect
of sex and no interaction between sex and group.
 VARIABILITY IN JUDO TECHNIQUE 863
TABLE 3
TYPEA \ D DIFFEREUT
S UMBER OF WINS,P O I ~ TSCORED,
S ~ E C H N I Q L E SAI'I'LIED RELATIVF
TO
NUMBER OF MATCHES DURING
PFRFORMED L ~ O R L DCHAMPIO~.SHIPS AUD OLY~IPIC
GAMESBY SUPFRELITE (n = 1;) A ~ ELITE
D (n= 16) JUDO PLAYERS
- -
-

Variable Super Elite G l o ~ ~ p -

-
Ellte Group
Men \Yoinen Men Women
in=91 (n=8) -
(tl = 8 )- i n = 8)
14 SD ,21 SD SD XI SD
&[in, i o "
0,
92 8 92 5 68 8 60 12
Scored techniques per niatch 0.7 0.2 (1.6 0.1 0.5 0.2 0.6 0.2
Scored throwing techniques per match" 0.6 0.2 0.5 0.1 0.4 0.1 0.4 0.2
Scored groundwork techniques per match 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.1
Ippolz scored per match" 0.6 0.2 0.5 0.1 0.5 0.2 0.3
-
0.2
'Mean difference becureen Super Elire and Elite groups (~<:EJ.

For the points scored there n7as an interaction between sex and group
(F1,,=4.1, p < .Oj). The post koc Scheffi: test indicated that both men and
women in the Super Elite group scored more than the Elite women ( p < .01).
No other difference was observed. Ippon scored differed between groups
(F,,,=5.0, p i .05) and sexes ( F ,,= 1 2 . 4 , p < . O l ) . The Super Elite group
scored more zppon than the Elite group ( p < .01); houre-ver, the Scheffi: test
did not confirm the significance of the difference between the sexes ( p =
. W ) . Penalties received by opponents onl> differed between sexes (F,,,=5.6,
p < .05) as male athletes had a higher number of penalties scored than the fe-
male athletes ( p= .03).
The number of techniques applied did not differ between the groups or
sexes. This was also the finding for the number of ground~x-orktechniques
which were applied. However, when only throwing techniques were consid-
ered, there were main effects for both groups ( F , ,,= 5 . 3 , p < .05) and sex
(F,,, = 9.9, p < .01). The Super Elite group performed a greater number of
different throwing techniques than the Elite group ( p c . 0 1 ) ; however, the
subsequent Scheffk test did not confirm the difference between male and fe-
male athletes ( p = .19). Even when the outcomes of dtfferent throwing tech-
niques are relative to the total number of matches performed. the Super
Elite group used a larger number than the Elite group (F,,,= 7 . 2 , p < .05;
Table 3).
illso, the Super Elite group performed more throwing techniques in
different directions ( F ,,,= 7.4, p < .05) and earned more zppon per match
than the Elite group (F, ,,= 1 3 . 8 , p < .001).
The main significant Pearson correlations observed are presented in Ta-
ble 4 . Fig. I presents the scatterplots for the correlations between the num-
ber of different throwing techniques applied and the number of matches
won, the number of points scored, and the number of zppon scored. This
shows the basis for the correlations in Table 1.
866 E. FRANCHINI. ET AL.

TABLE 4
I'EARSOX
CORRELAT-IOKS*
BEWEEN TECHXICAL VARIABLES
WITH
AND I P P O I~N JUDO MATCHES
POINTS
--- -
-
- . - - .-. ...-

Variable No. Different No. Different Directions of

Techniaues Throwinc Techniaues Technicrues Scored
No. of matchts won .70 .70 .45
Points scored .61 .64 .42
Ippon scored .61 .66 .12
LY'ins. % ns ns .11
Ippon per match
-
ns
- ~
ns s
11

"Allsignificant i p < ,051.

DISCUSSION
The main finding in the present study was that the Super Elite judo
players used a larger number of throwing techniques which resulted in
scores, even when these were expressed relative to the total number of
matches performed. Also, these techniques were applied in more directions
than used by the other group of Elite judo athletes. Furthermore, the num-
ber of different throwing techniques and the variability of the directions in
which these techniques were applied were significantly correlated with the
number of matches won and the number of points and zppon scored. In gen-
eral, male and female judo players did not differ in the main actions they
performed during the match. The only difference found was that men were
able to achieve a higher number of scores from penalties on their opponents
than the female judo players. The number of zppon scored xias somewhat
higher for the men than for the women.
The number of different techniques applied by the analyzed athletes
which resulted in scores is quite high even when compared with other medal
winners in judo at the Olympic Games and World Championships. For ex-
ample, KTeers2found lor a sample of all nrinners of the World Champion-
ships from 1981, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, and the Olympic Judo
competition of 1992 that the total number of techniques '~vhichresulted in
scores was 6 k 1. The use of a large number of techniques seems to be sup-
ported by the assumption that a higher variation can increase the unpredict-
ability of the actions performed and consequently disrupt the planning and
execution of effective responses by the opponent (Adams & Carter, 1988;
Schmidt, 1991: Calmet & Xhmaidi, 2004; Calmet, et dl., 2006). Furthermore,
it is important to emphasize that from the Super Elite group only one
among eight women and o~ilytwo among nine men did not perform attacks
to the four directions when using the same grip pattern. This result supports
the finding reported by Calmet and hhmaidi (2004), \x-ho showed that the
high level judo athletes they tested used 1.7 f 0.8 directions of attack (consid-
ering eight possible directions of attacks). However, in their study the direc-
tion of attacks was not fixed to a similar grip pattern. Despite this niethod-
 VARIABILITY IN JUDOTECHNIQUE

0 !
0 10 20 30
No. of Contests Won

No, of Points Scored

0 5 10 15 20
No. of Innon Scored
FIG. 1. Scatterplots showing relations for number of different- throwing techniques ap-
plied xxrith number of contests won (A), i~umbcrof points scored (13), and number of zppon
scored ICi
ological difference in the tnYostudies, it seems reasonable to conclude that
specialization in just a few techniques or attacks in a few directions does not
represent the best form for achieving success in judo competitions. The high
probability of failure with this limited strategy is attributed to the fact that
with just one direction of attack there is only one point of unbalance so it is
easy to control another's attacks because these are predictable. W'ith nvo di-
rections of attack the athlete creates a line of unbalance, but it is still easy to
control the attacks. However, with three directions of attack there will be
three lines of unbalance. In that case the opponent will have to organize a
system of defense which considers the direction of attacks and it will be more
difficult to control these. It is necessarj then to master at least three tech-
niques in different directions to create uncertainty for an opponent (Calmet
& Ahmaidi, 2004: Calmet, et al., 2006). Study of athletes who take part in
competitions at different levels of skill (Calmet, et d l . , 2006) showed that the
players were not able to keep many directions of attacks in the highest level
of competition, which seems to corroborate the notion that the success of
the Super Elite athlete group analyzed in the present study may be a conse-
quence of their skill to maintain attacks in different directions using a similar
grip pattern. This is one of the strategies used to increase the attack unpre-
dictabiliq, since there would be an increase in difficulty of anticipating the
actions (Poulton, 1957). This reflects the fact that different actions using sim-
ilar grips decrease the regularity of the grip-technique relationship. Accord-
ing to Hick's law (Hick, 19521, the use of attacks to four directions would
also result in the increase in choice reaction time. As there is an increase be-
tween the reaction time and the logarithm of the nuinber of stimulus-re-
sponse alternatives, it was possible to ver~fythat the nuinber of throu~ing
techniques is slightl] larger than eight techniques, thereby confirming this
basic assumption. Additionally. if one considers the difficulties in mastering
the execution of an even larger number of techi~i~ues and that there is a
smaller increase then in the choice reacdon time, this nuinber of techniques
seems to be the ideal when considering the technical mastery or skill of exe-
cution and the increased unpredictability of their actions. O n the other hand,
as the time allowed for groundwork fighting has decreased considerably
(Franchini & Sterkowicz, 20031, these high performance athletes seem to
have chosen to be highly specialized \\.hen applying specific groundwork
techniques.

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Accepted iXlay 2008.

.i,