History of Judo in the Olympics

Judo is one of the many martial arts forms and is an offshoot of a much older martial art, jujitsu. Jujitsu began in the 1530's, and by the mid-1800's there were over seven hundred different jujitsu systems. In 1882, Dr. Jigoro Kano, then the President of University of Education in Tokyo, Japan, combined the best and most effective techniques from the numerous forms of jujitsu to form the marital art known as judo. Originally, judo was practiced in feudal Japan as a fighting method.

For years, judo students have enjoyed learning this martial art for reasons of fitness, conditioning, knowledge of self-defense, and increased self confidence. However, judo was not included in the Olympics as a competitive sport until the 1964 games in Tokyo, Japan. At this time, only twenty-seven countries participated in the judo events. Only men were allowed to compete in the judo competitions, and there were three weight categories. The popularity of judo as an Olympic event has grown considerably over the years. Women were first given the opportunity to compete in the judo events at the 1992 Barcelona, Spain Olympics. Seven weight categories for both men and women were available in 1992, with the men's categories ranging from 60 - 100+ kilograms and the women's categories ranging from 48 - 78+ kilograms.

The popular sportswear manufacturer, Adidas, is the official partner of the 2008 Olympic Games, hosted by Beijing, China. Adidas will supply the staff, volunteers and officials of the Olympics with sportswear. Chinese Olympic team members will also be supplied with Adidas sportswear. Known world-wide for manufacturing sportswear and equipment for the more well-known sports, such as basketball and running, Adidas also manufactures judo uniforms and supplies.

Judo, like other martial arts, requires specialized clothing, supplies, sparring equipment, and protective gear. Judo uniforms are made for comfort and ease of movement. It is important that judo uniforms do not hinder the speed or concentration of the judo student or competitor. During judo training, sparring equipment and protective gear is used to allow the student to imitate judo moves without causing injury. Although judo does not employ the more forceful moves of other martial arts forms, there is still a chance that the student will suffer an injury during practice. Protective gear includes mouthguards, padded headgear, and chest and stomach protectors. Sparring equipment for the judo practitioner includes padded shields for the sparring partner to hold. This helps to prevent injury to the sparring partner. The Mixed Martial Arts Zone