Championship Judo - Taiotoshi And Osotogari Attacks

Author: T.P. Leggett and Kisaburo Watanabe
Pub: 1964 (Originally) Republished: 1994 by Ippon Books
Pages: 64
Ranking:

This is a wonderful book for the rather short length! However, this book fills 64 pages much better than other books do to twice the number of pages. Covering only Taiotoshi and Ouchigari, the book goes into the sort of detail that demands multiple re-readings. Just the sort of detail that will instruct even long-time black belts. With plenty of B/W photos, this is easily one of the more valuable books I've seen on Judo, don't hesitate to pick this one up!

 CONTENTS 

       INTRODUCTION                         7
   1. HOW TO BUILD UP ATTACKING MOVEMENT    9
   2. BASIC ANALYSIS OF TAIOTOSHI          11
   3. THE LEFT-HAND PULL                   15
   4. FOOT POSITION                        17
   5. CIRCLING UCHIKOMI                    19
   6. THE RIGHT HAND                       21
          I. -- The Slip                   22
         II. -- The Slip from on Top       23
   7. COMPARISONS                          24
   8. UCHIKOMI WITH A PILLAR               25
   9. THROWING THE WEIGHT IN TAIOTOSHI     29
 10. DIFFERENT POINTS OF CONTACT           31
 11. THE CHASE                             33
 12. THE SUKASHI COUNTER TO UCHIMATA       35
 13. TRICKS OF HOLDING                     39
 14. JUMPING TAIOTOSHI AS A COUNTER        41
 15. TWO COUNTERS                          42
        I. -- HIZA-GURUMA                  42
       II. -- KO-SOTO                      43
 16. THE Y                                 44
 17. RENRAKU-WAZA: OUCHI INTO TAIOTOSHI    46
 18. A FEEBLE OUCHI                        49
 19. THROWING THE WEIGHT IN OUCHIGARI      51
 20. OUCHIGARI -- TAIOTOSHI RALLY          53
 21. KOSOTO INTO TAIOTOSHI                 55
       I. -- Against a Taller Man          55
      II. -- Against a Shorter Man         57
 22. CONTEST PICTURES                      58

Preface
Championship judo -- Tai-Otoshi and 0-Uchi-Gari Attacks by Trevor Leggett and Kisaburo Watanabe was the first judo book written in English which truly revealed the hidden riches and complexities in judo technique.

In that sense, when it was published in 1964, it proved a milestone to many who read it. Here, at last, was a comprehensible account of the careful development of a throw -- Tai-otoshi -- from its very first beginnings to its full glory when, joined with a sister throw, it was ready to be executed under contest conditions.

Its clear description of crucial details -- whether the grips or the standards of uchikomi which need to be attained -- made it one of the very few judo books which could be usefully studied.

Like all important texts, it hasn't really dated. The photographs may not be up to modern standards but the content is as relevant now as it was 50 years ago. This, alone, means that it should remain in print.

However, there is an added reason why it was the only contender to launch Ippon Classics. When I first read it, I was a brown belt aspiring to a dan grade and it made an enormous difference to my personal understanding of judo.

More importantly, the effect of the book stayed with me for years, and proved to be a direct inspiration for the foundation of the Judo Masterclass series published by Ippon Books. Looking back at Tai-Otoshi and 0-Uchi-Gari Attacks, I wonder whether any judo book will be able to match it for sheer clarity, purpose and understanding.

In the end, this book is a model not just for two specific throws but for all our judo training. I cannot commend it to you more highly.

Nicolas Soames
Publisher
Ippon Books

INTRODUCTION

The main aim of this book is to introduce the reader to general attacking Judo movement, using as examples the throws which are centred round Tai-otoshi. We are trying to convey something of the spring and dash of a good Judo attacker; for this purpose the camera strips are not a series of individually posed pictures but are stages of one and the same continuous movement.

From the very beginning it is a good thing if the student tries to imitate to some extent the free and flexible action of the expert; analysis of individual techniques tends to cramp the movement, because a beginner may think that everything has to start off from a given position in order to succeed. Whereas the truth is that successful Judo is largely dependent on being able to keep balance and control in the fast interchanges. The standard of individual technique in world Judo is getting higher; the weakness is in the general movement, and this book aims at that. We are taking mainly the Taiotoshi movement to illustrate the themes because if too many throws are described the student once again falls into the error of supposing that until he has mastered every detail he can do nothing, and he also tends to suppose that for each position there is one appropriate throw.

This is quite a common delusion in Judo. Either Judo students fancy they have to learn a number of throws corresponding to a number of 'weaknesses' in the opponent's position or movement, or else they think they will learn one throw well, and just wait till the appropriate opportunity presents itself. As a matter of fact the basic technique of a throw is only the beginning of mastery; no Judo man has reached expert level at a throw till he knows how to manoeuvre the opponent into it, and till furthermore he can execute it from all sorts of unorthodox attitudes. Before reading further, try the 'flicker' at the top right corners of pages 63 to 13 of this book; the attacker is carried right up into the air, but manages to control his opponent's throw, and comes shooting down into his Taiotoshi. This is the kind of Judo which must be developed, and this is the spirit of attack.

The Judo student, from the beginning, must get spring into his movement. Have a look at the section called 'Tricks of Holding' and notice how the man rises on tiptoe and sinks right down, then rises again and sinks again, to come up for the last time as he executes the throw. Exercise yourself in thus changing the level in your Judo; if you look through the pictures in this book with this one point in mind, you will have learnt something very useful. Many Europeans hate bending their knees to go down; they would rather keep the knees straight and bend forward to pick something up than bend the knees and go down. Well, in Judo you have to train yourself to bend the knees flexibly and naturally, and at speed. Some experts do a hundred or two 'squats' every morning and evening to help them acquire the movement comfortably.

Again study the change of distance in the various attacks; it is no use keeping the same distance from the opponent and hoping he will somehow walk into your throw; you have to chase after him and cover the ground faster than he can. There is a Zen story about a man who was walking in a field one day when he saw a rabbit pop out of its hole suddenly and stun itself against a stake which the farmer had happened to fix there. He took the rabbit home and had it for dinner. Afterwards he used to sit there for hours every day waiting for the same thing to happen again. But it never did. Some Judo men are a bit like this; when they are beginners they manage to get hold of a technique which works when the other man happens to come right into it. But as they get on they meet better opponents, and then the opponent never walks into the throw again.

We have chosen Taiotoshi to illustrate these principles of movement because it is a throw where the whole body is moved, and where the principle of the throw is not confused by hooking, reaping or sweeping movements of one leg as in many other throws. If you learn the actions of going in to the opponent, chasing him, circling with him, and tricking him and so on with this throw, you can apply them to most other throws without more than minor changes in technique.

We are using 'I' and 'You' in this book because it is intended as a straight-forward training manual. The technical words are Tori (for the attacker) and Uke (for the one thrown). The other technical words mainly explain themselves: you can see a picture of Taiotoshi on the front cover and in hundreds of places in the book; Ouchi (short for Ouchigari) you can see in the section called The 'Y'; Kosotogari similarly you will see in Section 21.

The demonstrations in this book are almost all performed by K. Watanabe; no one man can be equally skilled in all Judo movement, but the techniques are mostly his. The pictures are taken from actual practice at full speed (except for a few such as the right-hand slip pictures where the action is not normally clearly visible and which have been posed) with a new camera specially designed for analysis of sports movement. We made a great number of pictures and then selected those where the point to be illustrated appeared from a favourable angle. It is hoped that a realistic effect has been achieved which will give a good notion of movement.

We are grateful to Mr. John Newman (4th Dan), teacher at the Renshuden Judo Club, for making a more vigorous and determined opponent than the lay figure of so many Judo books; thanks also go to Mr. T. Kawamura (7th Dan) for the pictures in Section 21, and to Mr. George Kerr (4th Dan), teacher at the Renshuden, and to the members of the Club for help and suggestions.

THE AUTHORS
Renshuden Judo Club,
William Road,
London, N.W. 1.