Grappling as a sport and method of defense can trace its roots as far back as 3400 BC with the Egyptians. Recorded images of ancient grappling can be found on the tombs of Beni-Hasan and Vizier Ptahhotpe. Eventually different forms and styles of grappling started emerging all over the world. The ancient Greek Olympic Games featured matches with Greco-Roman wrestling and the Indians developed their own form of grappling called Pahalwani around 11 AD. Grappling began as a self-defense art, evolved into battlefield art, and finally into sport. Many different types of grappling grew independently throughout the world and with time these different arts came in contact and mixed. There is only a finite amount of ways to manipulate the human body meaning at some point, all styles of grappling are related to each other. Judo, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, and Japanese Ju-Jitsu are some of the most popular styles today and each style has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Ju-jitsu is a martial art from Japan that is a method of close combat for defeating an armed and armored opponent in which th...
As learners of Europe and Japan, the question “ who would win a battle-a samurai or knight” is commonly kept in mind. A samurai and knight are similar in many ways. A samurai would mostly win the battle because they have better weapons, armor, and training. While knights and samurai have many similarities, in a one on one battle, the advantage would be to the samurai and this can be seen in weapons, armor, and training.
Tae Kwon Do is a Korean, unarmed martial art and is best known for its kicks (Park, 2001). The roundhouse kick is a turning kick and happens to be the most commonly used kick during competition (Lee, 1996). For this reason, the roundhouse kick will be analyzed in reference to sparring competition.
Have you ever wondered, “What is the difference between MMA and boxing?” Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fights originated as hand-to-hand combat performed as a sport called Pankration from the greek words Pan and Kratas, meaning “all powers” (Shamrock). Often a practitioner of one of the skill groups in martial arts challenged a practitioner of a different skill for ultimate bragging rights (Shamrock). In 393C.E. Roman emperor Theodosius the first banned the Olympic games,spelling the end of Pankration as a popular sport (Shamrock). This style of fighting later resurfaced in the twentieth century in Brazil via a combat sport known as vale tudo”,anything goes” (“Encyclopedia Britannica”). MMA
Professional wrestling is, and will always be, one the premier social, entertaining spectacles in our society. The masked-luchadore, the 500 pound hairball, even the beautiful valets at ringside. The glitz, the glamour, and the spotlight. Every man that steps in the ring knows their duty; to perform in front of capacity crowds while enveloping each fan in the stands with a passion and characteristic of self-worth. The reassurance that even in a world where entropy seems destined to live, the good shall always prevail. The actors and playwrights in the drama explode through the camera using various different techniques or styles, which present each as having a "unique" quality to them. These artistic styles can be classified into one of the following categories: Technical, Lucha Libre or High-Flying, and Ground Grappling.
The first style of wrestling is Folkstyle. Folkstyle is mainly wrestled in College, High School and Middle School Events, although some kids practice and participate in elementary school. Folkstyle has a rich heritage going back to the beginning days of the United States and has touched every part of American Life. The first real traces of the development of wrestling date back to Sumerians over 5,000 years ago. The Epic of Gilgamesh written in cuneiform, the sculptures and low beliefs, are numerous sources that reveal the first referred competitions, accompanied by music. There are also many historical and archaeological traces of wrestling in Ancient Egypt. Worthy of mentioning, among them is in particular the drawings discovered in the tombs of Beni-Hassan representing of 400 couples of wrestling. Many United States Presidents were Folkstyle wrestlers. This list includes Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt, and the speaker of American House of Representatives, Mr. Denny Hastert, who also became a distinguished Folkstyle coach. Folkstyle wrestling is the fifth most popular sport in American High Schools and most commonly practiced style of wrestling in the United States. The pinnacle of the sport, the national university tournament, is br...
To a person not conversant with this art, Jujitsu may be considered as a foul or derogatory term in Japanese. However, Jujitsu us one of the most effective and deadly forms of martial arts taught today. Unique among other forms of combat, Jujitsu holds the position of a “parent art”, of from which other forms of martial arts such as Aikido, Judo and several Karate styles were extracted. Jujitsu is a combination of all levels of combat. It incorporates chokes, striking, grappling, nerve and pressure point attacks, joint locks, redirection of momentum and throws.
Capoeira is the common name for the group of African martial arts that came out of west Africa and were modified and mixed in Brazil. These original styles included weapons, grappling and striking as well as animal forms that became incorporated into different components and sub styles of the art.
Through my advanced training in the martial art of tae kwon do, I have come to realize the numerous benefits that this sport has to offer. I have gained many things including knowledge of self-defense, excellent physical conditioning, and a refreshing outlook on life. The rewards are abundant, however they require an immense amount of effort to achieve. Each martial art is unique and has distinct contributions of its own. This is why it is difficult to hear people generalize they are all the same. What people do not realize is the enormous difference between the individual martial arts. Today, the two most popular martial arts in the world are karate and tae kwon do. On the outside, they both seem very similar, in actuality they are on opposite sides of the spectrum.
The film demonstrates the long-lasting martial arts through the sword fight between the warriors. Chinese martial arts are a unique mixture of self-defense, exercise, meditation, harmony, and self-discipline. Additionally, it uses the strength of body and brain. Each battle scene in the movie depicts that martial arts virtue peace instead of violence. It is shown in the scene, where nameless (Jet Li) is fighting with broken sword while floating on the lake and drawing a pattern with their sword. The martial arts define the styles of Chinese tradition and life of the warriors. It is one of the important aspects of Chinese culture as it is deeply imbedded in China, and it serves as a representative of the culture. It has enhanced my understanding on importance of martial arts in Chinese culture.
Louis, Thomas and Thomas Ito. Samurai: The Code of Warrior. New York: Sterling Publishing, 2008.
"The earliest depiction of a fencing match is a relief in the temple of Medin at Habu, near Luxor in Egypt, built by Ramses III about 1190 BC. This relief depicts a practice bout or match, because the sword points are covered and the swordsmen are parrying with shields strapped to their left arms and are wearing masks (tied to their wigs), large bibs, and padding over their ears" (Beumont).
Wrestling holds the title of the oldest sport in known history. The legends of Greek mythology tell the tale of Greek God Zeus defeating Cronus in a wrestling match for the possession of the universe at the beginning of time. Wrestling appeared all over the ancient world, from France to Mongolia, in artwork, writing, and even cave carvings, wrestling appears everywhere.
The primary, and much older, contributor to the start of martial arts was the religion of
Stories about war and implements of such can be observed throughout the course of Japanese history. This shows the prevalence of martial training and the profession of arms as a tradition that has not faded since ancient times (Friday and Humitake 13).
It was drilled into me that karate was for self-defense only. In fact, if a karate instructor heard that I used karate for anything else they would kick me out of class. I learned a lot of self-defense techniques that could save my life. Some of the thing I learned were how to get out of different kinds of choke holds, knife disarms, stick disarms and much more. I am lucky enough that I have never had to use any of these techniques; no one had better mess with me.