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The belt system is a distinctive
feature of judo. A player can test his ability be
entering for examination within a system of grades,
and by demonstrating superiority over a cross-section
of players at the same level as him/herself he wins
promotion to the next rank. In this way successive
ranks become populated by increasingly skilful players
until eventually all judoka who participate consistently
are distributed throught the hierarchy according to
their prove ability.
The time-honoured distinction is between kyu (student)
and dan (advanced) grades. Put simply, the distinction
marks the point at which the emphasis shifts away
from the acquisition of technique on to its effective
application.
A raw novice begins by wearing a plain white belt,
but as soon as he has satisfactorily completed a course
of elementary instruction at a recognised club, his
Coach can, if his coach holds a valid BJA coach award,
award him/her 9th kyu. Thereafter promotion
upto 1st kyu must be earned by entering official promotion
examinations: beyond 1st kyu promotion can be based
in part on winning performances in certain other types
of contest. (see Dan Grade
Page)
There are nine kyu grades in use and their designated
colours are as follows:
| Grade
|
Belt
Colour |
Traditional
Name |
9th Kyu |
yellow |
kukyu |
8th Kyu |
orange |
hakkyu |
7th kyu |
orange |
shikkyu |
6th kyu |
green |
rokkyu |
5th kyu |
green |
gokyu |
4th kyu |
blue |
yonkyu |
3rd kyu |
blue |
sankyu |
2nd kyu |
brown |
nikyu |
1st kyu |
brown |
ikkyu |
To successfully
hold a kyu grade a player must have completed a
theory and a contest element. The theory examination
can be carried out by a BJA qualified Club Coach
(Club Coaches can examine theory upto one grade
below their own grade upto a maximum of 1st Kyu),
Examiner or Senior Examiner. Theory is normally
completed at your club.
Procedures adopted at gradings can
vary from place to place, but the normal practice
is for players to be classified by grade and sex.
Groups of compatible names are then entered onto
grading sheets from which the contestants can be
drawn.
The selection of contestants is quite
arbitrary and as player generally do not weigh in
at a grading it will be possible that players of
differing weights will compete. Where possible
examiners do try to prevent gross disparities occurring
and to avoid matching players from the same club,
because undeserved stalemate can result when two
players are familiar with each other's style.
Every
candidate is given two or three contests against
opponents of the same grade in which to prove their
ability. At grades below 1st kyu the examinee
must win at least one contest before they can be
considered for promotion; the only scores recorded
for this purpose are ippon and waza-ari. It
must be stressed that one win is the bare minimum;
promotion will not inevitably follow, but by the
same token it is possible for a candidate to advance
two grades if their performance is outstanding.
Examiners use their discretion to correctly grade
players taking into account many factors including
age of the candidates being examined.
If you have
any query about a grade you must first seek clarification
with the Senior Examiner at the grading.
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