Fighting in Tournaments(good or bad?)

Raiden · Yellow Belt

I love tournaments and once i'm a blue belt in BJJ, I plan on competing. As some of the others have stated before, it helps you realize where you are at skill wise, etc. The thing is,(TKDLadyInSC touched on this when she brought up the blackbelt match) the students in class, you see them spar, you know their weaknesses, their strengths. You watch the other students and learn. If you see them lose a few times, you can see indicators that maybe they are subsectable in a given area. When matched against someone you have never seen, you don't have those advantages, thus you can't rely on "research" to help you win. Just like you can't rely on that tactic in a street fight when someone attacks you. It is very different sparring someone at a tournament whom you've never even met compared to someone you practice with everyday.
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White Belt-Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Tigerclaw · Yellow Belt

Por2003,i know i don,t have to do it..please don,t get mad if i speak my opinion about something.Its like monkeygirl said..its a debate and lets keep it friendly..ok?One of the reasons why i don,t care much for it is because i would rather spend more time training for self defense then be using a watered down technique to goto some tournament to fight for points.
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tsdstud · Orange Belt

That is a good question and I can see you and your instructors points. I do disagree though. At my school we are only allowed to go to certain approved tournaments where it is known that the judging is most likely to be fair and the respect level is the highest. Most of our tournaments are closed. I think that those types of tournaments do a lot of teaching and more than how to kick and punch. The same way you can learn sportsmanship and teamwork in AYSO and t-ball you learn while honing your martial arts skills. It also helps nerves as far as getting up in front of people to perform. That is possibly what I have learned the most from tournaments, how to have no problem getting in front of a crowd. Our #1 tournament rule, Have fun and learn something.

ninjanurse · KF VIP

I agree with TigerClaw and that is what I was taught from my first Sensei-personal glorification was never part of the curriculum. When I switched styles my new school respected my "tradition" and never gave me pressure to enter tournaments. I fight when required to do so for promotion or to defend myself and others and it is not a game to me, however, I do not disrespect those that do and will encourage and support them.

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"A Black Belt is only the beginning."
Heidi-A student of the arts
Tae Kwon Do,Shotokan,Ju Jitsu,Modern Arnis
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theswarm · Blue Belt

i like tournaments - they teach you how to deal with neves, sparring with strangers, point tournaments tell you how to pick people off, continuous tournaments just teach you to have to be all around good.
I feel like i've learnt alot of stuff i wouldn't have otherwise.

ANGELO.B · White Belt

i right now dont take ma...but soon when i start i would like to compete in tourneys...its good practice and you get to fight other styles of ma not just the one that you do at your dojo!

aes · Green Belt

I don't really consider sparring fighting. It does mymic a fight but the intent is never to really hurt your opponent, but to show that your skills are good enough to be used.

Now Tournaments allow you to compare these skills with your piers and have some fun while doing it. It also gives you a target to train against helping you with being more motivated.
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43 Years old
Blue Belt (7th Kyu) Shorin-ryu
Roberts Karate

kajukenbo dad · Orange Belt

we went to a Tournament and it was lots of fun......some people like fords and others Chevy.....Good Luck
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The Saint · Green Belt

Well, it can be good to improve your skills. Fighting different people keeps your skills better. I Compete in tournaments to help improve myself. Wins/loses don't really matter, I love to train hard it makes my kicks faster and mind sharper for competition. Fighting the same person over and over for years gets repeatative and you find out all the little tricks they like to use. Fighting in tournaments is a good way to become a well rounded fighter. Point fighting isllistrates speed and accuracy, where Continuos fighting is the same without stopping. I think that competing against other people is a good thing to sharpen your skills and be a better fighter.
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"Pain is the best instructor, but no one wants to go to his class." Choi, Hong Hi ITF Founder

Shorinryu Sensei · Black Belt

This is our opinion on tournaments. Tournaments aren't mandatory, or even encouraged..but not discouraged either. I teach my students that they should be considered as "play tuime"..nothing more. Also, that tournaments are not a good indication of how you would do in a real fight, so if they win a trophy, don't start thinking you're tough and can kick butt. It just means you were lucky and can play "tag" better than anybody you fought that day.

Less than 1/4 of my students attend an occasional open tournament now and then, and the ones that they do, they do quite well at, which uis surprising for me, as we don't train for them at all.

I see no problem is tournament participation in regard to "using your skiklls except for selfdefense", as sparring is just another form of training, and tournaments give you the chance to spar against other people from other systems that may do things differently.

Variety is a good thing!

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