r/judo • u/DailySportsHistory • May 05 '25
Judo News Is open Weight class more fun, than multiple weight classes?
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u/disposablehippo shodan May 05 '25
As a lightweight guy: no.
For watching: sometimes. Some of the match-ups are really interesting to watch, especially when you have a lighter guy who is much higher skilled. But for the most part open weight is mostly heavyweight and I gotta say that the plus category is not that fun to watch for me.
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u/Dracoaeterna May 05 '25
Its fun trying to trip the big guys but i lose like 90% of these. Im 160 fighting 250's and it sucks
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u/disposablehippo shodan May 05 '25
I'm 130. 160 is already big guys to me 😭. The 200+ guys get mad when I get them in ne-waza though.
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u/Dracoaeterna May 05 '25 edited May 05 '25
ive only done yoko guruma(i just sacrifice myself on a hip throw like ogoshi) seoi nage(really low, like im squatting) and uchimata but some big guys idk man, i feel like even if i tug on em they wont budge
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u/disposablehippo shodan May 05 '25
I'm really afraid to put myself under the center of weight of somehow who weighs twice as much. So I end up trying Sasae and de-ashi a lot.
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u/Batso_92 May 05 '25
You guys are huge... I'm only 73kg
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u/u4004 May 06 '25
Me: “Is this guy doing judo on the place where France produces new Riners when the current one breaks or what?”
Then I realized: pounds.
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u/MadT3acher sankyu May 05 '25 edited May 05 '25
Have you ever sparred with somebody several weight categories above you of the same level as you are? As a -73kg, sparring with -90kg guys is beyond exhausting.
Don’t even mention anybody over 100kg, it feels I would be more lucky to uproot a tree.
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u/Ciarbear nikyu | u66kg | 35+ May 06 '25
I'm <66kg 39y/0 our national grading competitions are open weight only. Last grading I went for my wins for Brown belt, the lightest guy there was 10kg heavier and 15 years younger. The rest where still 10 years younger and 80kg plus. No brown belt for me. We have veterans grading but just once a year and although they try to keep to your weight category there are not enough veterans to do it and almost none at my weight. It sucks especially as I'm picking up more and more injuries along the way.
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u/Strange_Bite_2384 May 05 '25
lol not for the player. 100kg guys are hard to even move depending on your weight class. Strength is very important in judo. I find newaza can be a bit easier than tachiwaza with larger players for me personally but pin escapes close to impossible for me . Strategy for smaller guy is to move move move and attack so they can’t get two hands on the gi . An amateur power lifter mauls I’ve trained with mauls me if I let him grab me with two hands I have no chance
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u/amsterdamjudo May 05 '25
My take on the issue comes from being a dad/sensei. Back in the mid 90’s, continuing for eight years, my daughter was an elite athlete, competing at both the over 78 and open weight divisions. She was National Champion in both 1997 and 2004.
What was fun for her was having as many matches as possible with new people around the world.
Her Harai Goshi and O Soto Gari were unstoppable. Her goal was to win each match with an Ippon throw.
Having referees tell me how beautiful her judo was, was the highest compliment.🥋
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u/Just_Being_500 nidan May 05 '25
More fun from a spectators perspective yes. More fun for the vast majority of competitors under 81KGs probably not.
I tell everyone there is a reason that we have weight classes in every combat sport
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u/LactatingBadger -90 kg shodan May 05 '25
Somewhere in the 80-90kg weight is where I tend to sit, but I've been up to 120kg at my heaviest. My power to mass ratio was of course much lower, but I don't think people realise just how much of an advantage mass, even dead weight, gives you.
People I have to work my arse off to beat at 90 I could casually flatten at 110, and went right back to struggling at 90. Obviously I'd dial it way back to give them an opportunity to learn too, but realistically they had no chance. This was in no way related to a change in skill on my part, and I actually tended to hit high skill ceiling techniques far less often at the higher weights...
I would win more, but my Judo was ugly and neither me nor my opponent were having nearly as much fun. That's not something I'd want to pursue in a competition format.
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u/Chysmosys May 05 '25
It's entertaining when money's on the line. More seriously though, it's about the same. It really speaks to the skill and practice, it really taught me that I rely way too much on my stature compared to my technique. Those little dudes tossed me about like I weighed nothing.
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u/Blastronomicon May 05 '25
Yellow belt. I’m in open trying to cut down for health and because screw this class. I was 240lb in my first tournament and hated it because I just don’t have the skills yet. Now I’m 210 and last tournament I still got put into open class. Was horrible. My personal goal weight is 170lb.
I would love to still fight in higher weight classes just for the fun of taking on giants when I have a better grasp of skills, right now it’s just getting me getting bodied while I try to put the basics together against a comparatively overpowered opponent while I try to keep up on a deep cut diet.
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u/Haunting-Beginning-2 May 05 '25
Yes it’s awesome to fight open and especially awesome to win. Of course it means you know how to use ju in judo. It’s a supreme test of your ability to get fitness, and focus your skills. We still have opens because we have a relatively small population and old judoka like me grew up with this challenge.
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u/Even_Resort1696 May 06 '25
Openweight is a neccesity for true Judo.
Here a argument and article by isao okano.
https://www.nipponbudokan.or.jp/pdf/shupan/202504/rensai.pdf
Translate with KI.
Very good article.
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u/jaredtheredditor rokkyu May 06 '25
I mean in my dojo everyone is roughly 10-15kg heavier than me on a low ball the heaviest are probably around 30kg heavier so I can say it’s pretty fun I don’t win a lot but the closest to my rank is an orange belt so I’m also outclassed In experience by a fair amount
I’d like it if it was included in tournaments since it’s not like people will be forced into it but it would be a fun skill test for people that wanna test themselves plus it’s pretty fun
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u/Black6x ikkyu May 05 '25
Fun for who?
I'm in the 90kg category, so it's that sweet spot where I'm "heavy" but not HEAVY.
I find the lighter people are faster, so I have to play a game that slows them down. The heavier guys are sometimes stronger (or just gravitationally enhanced) so now I have to move more and make them tired so that I can eventually get a throw.
In training, it can be fun.
Fighting/working with people of very different size can be very beneficial in training. If you're the smaller/lighter person, it's like weight training which will translate to more strength when you fight people your weight. If you're the taller/heavier training, you have to bend your knees more so it makes you do it. You also don't have to focus on power to move their weight, so you can focus on technique.
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u/uthoitho gokyu May 06 '25
it's like weight training which will translate to more strength when you fight people your weight. If you're the taller/heavier training, you have to bend your knees more so it makes you do it. You also don't have to focus on power to move their weight, so you can focus on technique.
As a 67kg aging newish Judoka, I find it hard to agree with any of this because of practicality/reality of it all.
This would be very true if everyone is experienced, is very well aware of how much weight gap plays into things but reality is nothing close to that.
Once things like stiff Uke (inexperience), arrogance (win or loss attitude), cluelessness about weight gap by heavier tori are taken into account, training with 10-20kg+ partners can end up with very frequent injuries. I'll agree that it builds strength, but for a lot of inexperienced Judoka building strength is not the goal / can be done outside of dojo safely than practicing with someone two weight class and above.
I find that newish heavier tori practicing with me is also more likely to not get the technique correct speaking from experience. Higher belts are mindful of these, but inexperienced heavier tori usually get away with a very bad technique because it takes a lot less effort to execute throw wrong with lighter weight uke.
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u/Black6x ikkyu May 06 '25
It sounds like you train at a terrible place.
If someone asked if Judo was fun and I said "it can be," someone making the counter argument of "it's not fun, it's super dangerous. I've seen people break their elbow when they fell incorrectly," isn't the norm of the community.
I've trained with people 50 lbs heavier than me. Over trained with women that I was probably 70 lbs heavier than.
Your sensei and upper belts should be better at controlling the training of new people and who they train with
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u/uthoitho gokyu May 06 '25 edited May 06 '25
You are resorting to insult over a civil disagreement.
Fighting/working with people of very different size can be very beneficial in training.
As a light weight, fighting / working with people of 'very different' size (i.e. 20kg+) provides pretty mediocre benefit than going with someone same weight class or one~two above. The risk to injury is greater (regardless of dojo, this is true) and saying 'you'll become stronger!' is just copium.
Your sensei and upper belts should be better at controlling the training of new people and who they train with
They do and still, what I said rings true. They have to address much heavier partner a lot more frequently when they go with lighter weight due to being able to perform without correct technique. I'm disagreeing that;
You also don't have to focus on power to move their weight, so you can focus on technique.
I think it's the opposite - as a light weight, you need to focus more on technique to perform a throw correctly. Heavier weight can morote-seoi me all day while not realising incorrect form, but lighter weight will need to perform more technically otherwise we're risking hurt / injury while performing our own throw (and be stronger per bodyweight).
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u/zombosis May 05 '25
More fun for the big guys probably