grappling
Cung Le And The Chinese Fighting Art Of Sanshou
Just recently I heard about a Chinese fighting art ….. on the tennis court!
As I was talking with a team mate, I learned from him that he had been a practitioner of a style I had briefly heard about years back, but I never really looked into any deeper.
Until today.
Originated in China the style is called Sanshou (free hand) and at times Sanda (free fighting).
It is both a self-defense system and a combat sport.
Sanshou combines a number of extremely vital and effective elements such as kicking, punching, throwing, grappling and applying joint locks.
One of Sanshou’s special emphasis is the so-called kick-catch, whereby one person throws a kick and the other person catches the kick and then trips the other person’s leg they are standing on.
Thinking about it, that’s what we even practiced way back in my Shotokan karate days. I just made that connection while writing this.
Sanshou as a sport is regulated by a bunch of different rules depending on amateur or professional status and also on the location of where the fights take place like China or the U.S.
Among all the successful and very skilled Sanshou fighters, one practitioner has really stood out for me during the years and he has without a doubt made a name for himself. He is the Vietnamese American kickboxer, mixed martial artist and actor, simply known as Cung Le from San Jose, California.
Cung Le has won too many titles and championships to list here, but I will mention that he won the Strikeforce Middleweight World Championship by beating legendary mixed martial arts champion Frank Shamrock about 2 years ago. Cung Le actually broke his opponent’s arm by executing devasting kicks during their fight.
Cung Le has been actively pursuing his career on the Big Screen and was awarded a role in Bodyguards And Assassins starring Donnie Yen which was released last December.
I found a video clip that I think you will enjoy if you like action-filled fight scenes. Warning: It can be a little rough and tough at times.
What A Week In Review At The MartialArtsReporter.com!
St. Patrick’s Day was awesome and the rest of the week wasn’t too shabby either.
If you are a single mom or know someone who is, please take note of this Personal Safety Alert For Single Moms.
We all know that Bruce Lee could punch and kick, but he also knew something about the art of fighting without fighting.
Surprise – surprise! What you didn’t know about pro golfer Phil Mickelson.
Going Green: Happy St. Patrick’s Day And Irish Stick (Shillelagh) Fighting!
This guy blows me and his opponents away: The Best Pound-For-Pound Fighter, Also The Best Ever Fighter In The World?
Amazing: Ultimate Fighting has become a household name, but what did the first ever Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC 1, Look Like?
Talk soon, my friends.
What Did The First Ever Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC 1, Look Like?
It’s amazing that more than 15 years have passed since the very first Ultimate Fighting Championship event UFC 1.
In only two weeks from now we are looking at UFC 111!
The original event took place on November 12, 1993 in Denver and was more of a tournament than just individual fights in various weight divisions.
There were 8 fighters and no weight classes and no rules! well, there were some rules such as no biting and no eye-gouging.
One of the basic ideas that the creators had was to get fighters/martial artists from different styles to determine the most effective style.
When everything was said and done the winner was Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner Royce Gracie, who was by far the lightest fighter beating a number of way heavier opponents.
He won the final match against Gerard Gordeau via rear naked choke and he put BJJ on the map especially here in the U.S.
And fighting would never be the same!
Today, I just wanted to reminisce and look at how it all started:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVCCVfQvUIE[/youtube]
UFC 111 Main Event GSP Vs. Dan Hardy
British contender Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy isn’t falling for the Gatorade’s recommendation that one should never EVER fight Georges St. Pierre.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-VIpCxyZaA[/youtube]
Dan Hardy is getting his title shot at the UFC World Champion Welterweight title on Saturday, March 27, in New Jersey.
The only hurdle he has to take is beating the one and only Franco-Canadian Georges St. Pierre, who is known as “The Perfect Fighter” and who is considered by many the best Welterweight ever.
Revered by many more, GSP is the complete package with extraordinary striking, kicking, takedown and grappling abilities that have put him at the top of the game.
His professional attitude toward preparation and analyzing his opponent is legendary.
I featured him here three months ago, with the title Meet The Amazing UFC-Champion Georges St. Pierre (GSP).
Dan Hardy is a very proficient striker with great timing and GSP will have to be very diligent in his approach to defending his title.
This could be a good one!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15K9T_XWAps[/youtube]
Tipping Off March Madness With The Week In Review
“Variety is the spice of life.”
I am trying to live up to that saying by posting about different topics that relate to martial arts or not. Anyway ….
In case you were too busy being busy, here’s what you missed:
Bulgarian Greco-Roman Wrestler Is Big In Japan: The David Beckham Of Sumo
It Happened In 1935 … Sarah Mayer, First Non-Japanese Female Judo Black Belt
The Question Is: “Honestly, Are You Really Prepared To Fight If You Have To?”
With ‘The Sensei ‘, She’s Creating Buzz In The Movie Industry And Let’s Just Face It … With A Name Like Lee Inosanto, She’s Got To Be Good
What Goes Up, Must Come Down. With This Guy, Things Appear To Be A Bit Different. Thai Action Movie Star Tony Jaa Defies The Law Of Physics.
There you have it: The Week In Review At TheMartialArtsReporter.com
Have a great Sunday!
I will be reporting again from here tomorrow.
Big In Japan: The David Beckham Of Sumo
So far I haven’t touched on the Japanese martial art known as ‘Sumo’.
That is about to change. Right here, right now.
Sumo is a contact sport in which a wrestler tries to force another wrestler out of a circular ring or to get him to touch the ground with anything else but the soles of his feet.
The sport includes a bunch of ritual elements, such as the salt purification, which we will see in detail in the video clip below. This goes back to the days when it was used in the Shinto religion.
From what I have been able to find out is that the daily life of a professional sumo fighter is very strictly regimented by the Sumo Association and that means even meals and traditional dress code.
Oh, by the way, Mongolian wrestling and Chinese Shuai jiao, both offer some resemblance to Sumo.
Most Sumo matches last only several seconds, as one wrestler is explosively ousted from the ring. In far fewer cases, a match can last several minutes, but this is more the exception than the rule.
The wrestling ring itself is 4.55 meters or somewhere around 14 feet in diameter. The whole square surface that holds the ring takes up 16.26 meters or about 140 sq. ft. I hope my former math teacher isn’t reading this and checking my conversions from meters to feet.
Japan is the only country that offers professional Sumo and there are approximately 700 fighters registered with 54 fighting stables.
Sumo’s hierarchy is strictly based on merit which can also mean that if a wrestler doesn’t continue his winning performances and starts losing bouts he can be demoted and lose his rank. This means serious competition and extreme pressure on fighters to perform at a very high level.
Currently, the Sumo Association only allows 1 foreign fighter per stable, which means a total of 54, right?!
And from what I understand the one foreign fighter who really stands out right now and who has attained the rank of ozeki or Champion (that’s right below yokozuna or Grand Champion!).
Born in Bulgaria as Kaloyan Stefanov Mahlyanov and former Greco-Roman wrestler, he is now fighting as Kotooshu Katsunori, at times referred to as the ‘David Beckham of Sumo’ and also the ‘Prince of Sumo’.
Kotooshu is 6’8″ tall and weighs 334 lbs., which, believe it or not, is fairly light considering his height and that’s because he is often compared to former Gand Champion Akebono from Hawaii, who at the same height weighed about 517 lbs.
I selected a fight between Kotooshu and Grand Champion Asashoryu that I really enjoy, even though I don’t really follow a lot of Sumo, but I can appeciate the traditional rituals, strategy, tactics and very proficient grappling with a bunch of explosive power.
I hope you like it, too.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra_-f-3IwTk[/youtube]
Another Diverse Week In Review At TheMartialArtsReporter.com
How’s it goin’?
Hope you had a great week, because I sure did, as you can tell from last week’s line-up of posts.
Enjoy all of them in their entirety along with the attached video clips.
Talk to you next week.
The Highest Ranking Female Judoka In The World
Finland: Sauna, Wodka And A Very Eclectic Korean Martial Art
Find Out Who Makes Matt Damon Look Tough In “Green Zone”
Breaking News: Budweiser-Mamas & Mardi Gras Madness
Mardi Gras And Why TheMartialArtsReporter Is Going Nuts
Happy Chinese New Year! It’s The Year Of The Tiger!
Finland: Sauna, Wodka And A Very Eclectic Korean Martial Art
Most of us would make the connection between Finland and Finnish sauna and even some of the most famous Wodka brands money can buy, right?
But Finland and a very eclectic Korean martial art?
Let me tell you how this post came together.
Last Sunday while getting ready for a tennis mixed doubles match I was talking with one of my team members and his wife about martial arts.
They told me that that they had studied some Korean martial art several years ago in Mississippi, which they referred to as Han Moo Do.
I actually had no in-depth knowledge of this style and they were kind enough to tell me a little bit more such as:
Han Moo Do is a fairly young style which consists of elements of Tae Kwon and Hapkido. They probably told me more, but that’s what stuck with me.
That sounded pretty intriguing to me, so I started to dig a bit deeper and here is what I found online:
Han Moo Do was created by 8th dan Young Suk (Yoon Soon Hwang) about 20 years ago, when the first club was established in Finland!
Lately it has been spreading to other Nordic countries, such as Sweden, Norway and Denmark.
The first club outside of the nordic region was recently set up in Limerick, Ireland. But also even in Mississippi in the U.S. Southeast as I mentioned above.
Hanmoodo is descended from other Korean styles, such as Hoi Jeon Moo Sool and Taekwondo, so Hanmoodo resembles these styles as well as Hapkido in many areas.
Hanmoodo’s techniques include kicks, punches, throws, takedowns, grappling , joint-locking techniques and chokes.
Kicks are mostly aimed at ribs or head.
Punches can be targeted to the body only.
Throws and takedowns resemble Judo and wrestling techniques but are done even more elegantly.
Joint locks mainly target the wrist and elbow but there are also leg locks.
Chokes are performed mostly with forearm and wrist.
The art contains three weapon styles: nunchaku, long staff e.g. Japanese bo; and sword e.g. Japanese katana.
Hanmoodo practitioners are also encouraged to engage in exhibitions where a practiced choreography is presented to an audience. These choreographies feature several practitioners performing self-defence techniques on each other.
In competition, Hanmoodo rules permit kicks above the waistline and punches between the waistline and the head.
All strikes must hit the front of the body and other kinds of strikes are prohibited.
Competitors may also grapple by throwing or taking down their opponent and controlling him/her on the mat but striking is prohibited when either competitor has a hold on the other or is considered to be on the ground.
I have found Han Moo Do or hanmoodo to be a rather interesting mixed martial art that covers the four combat ranges of long, medium and close as well as ground fighting. Oh, yeah, weapons, too.
Personally, I can do without the high-flying kicks, which in no way criticizes the style itself. High kicks might have their justification.
Summa summarum, I am impressed with Han Moo Do and to give you some visuals of it all, here is a clip I found. Hope you enjoy it.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XpDCRSHGAM[/youtube]
P.S.: My wife and I won our tennis match 6-0, 6-3.!
Valentine’s Day And The Week In Review At TheMartialArtsReporter.com
Happy Valentine’s Day, y’all!
I don’t understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine’s Day.
When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon.
Anyway …
Let’s get back to what really makes the world turn and that would be martial arts, right?! Just kidding around here.
Check out The Week In Review that took us from Russia (with love) to Japan to Brooklyn, New York to Hong Kong to Houston, Texas.
Russian Systema Or Just When You Think You’ve Seen It All
Masahiko Kimura, The Best Judoka Ever?
Martial Artist Wesley Snipes Co-Starring In “Brooklyn’s Finest”
Teenager Tried To Kick Bruce Lee In The Face
Linda Denley, Karate Superwoman From Houston, Texas
Have a great Valentine’s Day wherever you are!
I will talk to you tomorrow.
Masahiko Kimura, The Best Judoka Ever?
Can you believe this?
Even though I trained in judo for a brief period quite a long time ago, it wasn’t until I started doing research on Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and even rolling around on the mat for a short while that I became familiar with the term ‘Kimura’. And even then I thought it was just some technique that could really hurt you or your opponent, depending on who’s on the receiving end of it.
Well, after digging a bit deeper, I too finally saw the light! Man, I must have been living under a rock or something.
Masahiko Kimura (1917-1993) is considered by many the greatest Judoka to ever live. He stood 5’6″ (170 cm) tall and weighed 185 pounds (84kg).
Kimura became the youngest ever 5th-degree black belt when he was just 18 and by the time he reached the age of 29 he was a 7th dan.
In 1937, Kimura did something very remarkable: He won the All-Japan Championship and remained undefeated for the next 13 years in matches held throughout Japan.
But what he accomplished later in life on the international stage really cemented the legend of Kimura.
In 1951, he defeated Brazil’s Helio Gracie, a legend in his own right, who publicly said that he thought nobody in the world could defeat Kimura.
At age 42, Kimura faced a much bigger and younger opponent by the name of Waldemar Santana, who he even battled to a draw.
Kimura’s prime came before judo was an Olympic event, but in his senior years he trained a number of notable Olympian judokas, including Canada’s Doug Rogers, who won silver in the 1964 Tokyo Summer Games.
As far as I could find out, Kimura was never awarded beyond 7th dan and based on so many reports I am left to believe that Japanese judo officials were not quite amused with Kimura’s career moves from judo into professional wrestling.
What I find intriguing is how a guy like him standing at 5’6″ (170 cm) and weighing 185 pounds (84kg) could beat countless taller, heavier and at times way younger and faster opponents.
Kimura’s success is based on San Bai Ro Rioku. On this premise, Kimura did 300 pushups everyday in High School. While attending university he increased that number to 500.
After his first victory, Kimura decided to start doing 1,000 non-stop pushups to ensure future victories. As you can assume, doing pushups was just a small part of Kimura’s regimen. During his prime, he practiced 4 times a day, at least 6 hours every day. He trained at Taku-Shoku University, Local Clubs, Kodokan, and Police Academies.
Quite often he would practice against a tree, always at midnight. During one instance, Wushi-Zima, a two time champion, heard a commotion in the nearby woods. When he checked out the noise it turned out to be Kimura doing uchikomi against a tree. For better understanding of uchikomi: You actually practice a throw, where you take your opponent to the point just before he is thrown.
And coming full circle: So, what actually is a ‘Kimura’?
The Kimura lock is one of the most important submission holds in Jiu-Jitsu and other grappling styles. At times it referred to as hammerlock, chicken wing or ude-garami. Whatever you prefer, it is a very powerful and versatile attack. And wherever you see grapplers competing, you can be sure to see the Kimura lock used to submit opponents and win fights.
Le me know if you think that Masahiko Kimura is the best judoka ever.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkDBflFtPIw[/youtube]
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