Annabelle Shoob delivers a round house kick to the midsection of opponent Kay Sumner during an IKF English Title fight (09/08/13)
Summary
Keeping true with legacy of new generation of combative styles, Kickboxing is another hybrid martial art which has taken the world by storm. This fighting style has been crafted with techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, and western Boxing, all wrapped under one umbrella and given the name Kickboxing. Innovation has been written in its blood, as this art form evolved with the passage of time. And though it was initially considered as a stand-up combative sport, it became all the more dynamic and effective by further incorporating ground fighting techniques of Jujutsu, and Folk Wrestling. Its various manoeuvres include kicks, punches, blocks, elbow strikes, knee strikes, head butting, and even takedowns and throws.
History / Origins
ETYMOLOGY
People got wind of the term ‘Kickboxing’ in 1960s, courtesy to Osamu Noguchi, who was a Japanese boxing promoter. The basic term implies to the style of Japanese and American Kickboxing. Though broadly speaking, it also refers to other stand-up combats which include punches and kicks involved in Muay Thai, Burmese Boxing, Indian Boxing, Savate, and other styles of Karate, etc.
BEGINNINGS
The art of Japanese Kickboxing came to the forefront in 1960s, and its popularity graph is still high. Since Kickboxing is a hybrid of ancient martial arts, its seeds were sown quite early, and its roots can be traced to the Indochinese martial art, Muay boran, which later evolved into Muay Thai. The ground work was later taken on by Tatsuo Yamada a Karate champ from Japan in the 1950s. He roughly laid down the plan of a new fighting art by blending Karate and Muay thai. Then, in the early 1960s the competitions between Karate and Muay Thai were on the rise which necessitated for the formation of new rules, and thus by the middle of 1960s new rule sets were formed, and the first true-blood Kickboxing event was organized in Osaka.
PRESENT DAY
Today, the patronizing work for Kickboxing is in the hands of different international governing bodies including, World Association of Kickboxing Organizations, International Combat Organization, World Kickboxing Association, International Kickboxing Federation, to name a few. Today Kickboxing exhibits its self in different forms, and goes under various names like Shoot Boxing, which is popular in Japan and adopts standing submission such as arm locks, chokeholds, and wristlocks along with kicks, punches, and throws. Then there is the Sanda form of Kickboxing which was originally meant for the Chinese military.
You will find Kickboxing competitions all over the world, including North America, Europe, and Asian countries, etc. And these competitions have produced many champions, who have become celebrities on their own terms.
FOLKLORE
It is said that on December 20, 1959, a Muay Thai event was organized in Tokyo Asakusa town hall in Japan. Tatsuo Yamada was the Japanese Karate expert, but he was dissatisfied with the rules of Karate which disallowed directly hitting the opponents. Hence, in November 1959 he formulated rules for a new game ‘Karate-boxing.’ He was helped in the unification work by a Thai champion of Muay Thai.
Then, Karate Vs Muay Thai fights became the call of the day, and it attracted crowds in huge numbers. On February 12, 1963, three Kyokushin Karate fighters from Japan competed with three Muay Thai fighters at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Thailand, which Japan eventually won 3-1, and the one loss it suffered was because a substitute fighter had to replace the original one. Eventually Osamu Noguchi, studied Muay Thai in fuller detail, and came forward to name the new hybrid sport as ‘Kickboxing.’
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: | Japan |
TIME OF ORIGIN: | c. 1960's |
PRACTISED: | Approx 64 years |
FOUNDERS: | |
FOCUS: | Striking |
ALSO KNOWN AS: | - |
PARENTHOOD: | |
DESCENDANTS: | Shoot Boxing |
OLYMPIC SPORT: | No |
NOTABLE FEMALE PRATITIONERS
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NOTABLE MALE PRATITIONERS
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NATIONALITY: | |
DATE OF BIRTH: | |
AGE: | Approx 64 years |
BORN: | Shoot Boxing |
RESIDENCE: | - |
ALSO KNOWN AS: | - |
OCCUPATION: | Striking |
JOB TITLE: |
RELATED FEMALE INDIVIDUALS
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RELATED MALE INDIVIDUALS
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COUNTRY: | Japan |
LOCATION: | - |
FOUNDED: | c. 1960's |
OPERATIONAL: | Approx 64 years |
FOUNDERS: | |
ALSO KNOWN AS: | - |
SECTOR: | Striking |
DESCRIPTION: | |
WEBSITE: |
ACOSSIATED INDIVIDUALS
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ACOSSIATED ATHLETES
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Pro Gel Hand Wraps
Engineered-woven gel padding on the exterior providing the required extra protection to the vulnerable areas of the hand.
£12.99
Open Palm Gloves
Made from Nama Hide™ Leather, this semi contact open palm glove is designed for semi contact, full contact or bag work.
£24.99
Shin & Instep Pads
Padded elasticated slip on shin and instep pads. Ideal for all types of martial arts. Cushioned padded protective outer. Sold in pairs.
£9.99
Dipped Foot Guards
Minimise the risk of injury and train in confidence with the incredibly lightweight Blitz Double Padded Dipped Foam Foot Guards.
£31.99
Diablo Fight Shorts
Designed with kickboxers in mind, Diablo Training Fight Shorts are ultra-lightweight to allow for a full range of movement.
£28.99
Centurion Shin Guards
For heavy sparring and training drills, the Blitz Centurion Shin Guards absorbs the hardest of blows giving high impact protection.
£45.99
Training Boxing Gloves
Multi-purpose glove used for boxing, kickboxing, semi/full contact or ring work. Superior comfort design for a snug, lightweight fit.
£22.99
Kickboxing Drum Bag
Single zip barrel design with two carry handles and one adjustable shoulder strap that's easy to remove when not needed.
£22.99
Full Contact Trousers
Suitable for all styles of Martial Arts. Incredibly comfortable during intense training sessions. Polycotton with reinforced stitching.
£12.99
Blitz Hand Wraps
Extra durable hand wraps with Velcro straps and thumb hole to easily start wrapping. Excellent for use in protecting the hand.
From £3.99
Practices
PHILOSOPHY
Like all martial arts, the basics of Kickboxing lie in self defence. The trainees learn the various tricks of nullifying any attack by developing the time tested techniques of this combative style. All these techniques led to the development of the physical health of the trainees, and they become more health conscious. It is also meant to be taken as a spectacular sport meant for competitions, and is to be practised in a sporting manner. It also helps a person to grow physically and mentally.
TECHNIQUES
Information coming soon
TRAINING
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RANKS & GRADING
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WEIGHT CLASSES
Information coming soon
Rules / Rulesets
RULES / RULESETS
Since there is many more than just one cook for the broth of Kickboxing, the different governing bodies have their own version of rules for the sport, like allowing or disallowing certain manoeuvres. There are some governing bodies which allow the knee strikes, and low kicks, and some restrict the use of strikes with punches, and higher kicks.
Though, all forms of Kickboxing have similar scoring parameters. In case of submission, the winner can be declared in the middle of the bout. Then there can be knockouts (KO), or the referee can stop and announce a technical knockout (TKO), and if no one is able to secure a KO, the ball is in the court of 3 judges, and their scores are taken into account to declare the winner. There can be a split decision when all the judges don’t agree, or a unanimous decision indicating that all the judges saw the event in the same way.
Organisations & Historical Places
ORGANISATIONS
Information coming soon
HISTORICAL PLACES
Information coming soon
Popular Culture
POPULAR CULTURE
Kickboxing owing to its popularity, was not destined to be limited to Japan, and in the 1970s and 80s, its horizons expanded and spread to other corners of the world, including North America, and Europe. This made governance an issue, and hence cropped up different governing bodies to regularize the sport in the way they thought appropriate.
The sport had its share of roller coaster rides with it becoming a household name in Japan, thanks to the TV broadcasts, and then plunging into darkness during the 1980s. On the other hand, The North Americans had difficult times differentiating the rules of full contact Karate, and Kickboxing. And in Europe also, after getting an initial foothold, the sport did not find wings until the 1990s.
With the promotion works of K-1, and other promoters including the existing governing bodies who initiated competitive events, the sport began to flourish. Nevertheless, it was the exposure given to Kickboxing by the mass media that turned the embers of Kickboxing into flames, the major role being played by Hollywood blockbusters, unleashing fitness crazy freaks that went all out for it.
Useful Links
USEFUL LINKS
Links coming soon
References
REFERENCES
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kickboxing
- http://martialarts.about.com/od/styles/a/kickboxing.htm
- http://www.angelfire.com/rings/kickboxing/kbhis.html
COLLABORATORS
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