AJJF Sumo Rules

Rules

1. PURPOSE

1.1. The sumo contest is a competition among contestants, who are trying to win the contest with spirit of kokua in one of three ways.

1. Contestant may force the other contestant to touch any part of his body outside of the sumo circle.
2. Contestant may force the other contestant to touch any part of his body, other than his feet, to the mat while inside the circle.
3. Contestant may lift the other contestant off of his feet and carry him outside the sumo circle. Contestant must have the other contestant completely off of the mat in this matter of ending the contest.
4. Contestants may not punch, kick, gouge, pinch, pull hair, choke or perform any joint locking techniques.

2. DIVISIONS AND POOLS

2.1. At the registration stage of the contest all competitors will be weighed in and notation will be taken as to their age and experience in martial arts.

1. While rank can be used to judge experience in the adult division, length of time in class should be used to judge experience of juniors.

2.2. Junior pools usually are for ages up to 15 inclusive. Senior pools are for those over 16.

2.3. Pools will be created utilizing standard pool sheets containing groups of 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 contestants.

2.4. Pools should be created with the objective of having the highest amount of competitors in each pool with regard to weight and experience.

2.5. Setting up the pools are the most important part of the contest, not only for the enjoyment of the competitors but for their over all safety as well. The standard weights used in judo contests are as follows. This can be used as a guideline when creating the pools. However the people in charge of the pools should carefully weigh both the age and experience of contestants in the creation of the pools.

2.6. In junior divisions weight is a good way to divide pools. Senior pools should be divided first by rank (white, yellow/blue, green, brown, black) then by weight. Ranks can be combined if pools are short.

2.7. Standard Judo Weight Divisions

Junior Weight Divisions to age 16
-57lbs	111-120
58-67	121-130
68-78	131-140
79-89	141-150
90-100	151-160
101-110	161 and over

Senior Men Weight Divisions
-122	180-198
123-132	199-220
133-146	220 and over
147-161
162-179

Senior Women Weight Division
-97	127-139
98-106	140-154
107-115	155-172
116-126	173 and over

3. ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS OF THE SUMO TOURNAMENT

3.1. Referee-Controls action of the match. Responsible for the safety of the competitors. Should be a higher ranking individual

3.2. Pool Controllers-Calls contestants to report to their pool. Announces when competitors are to compete. Chiefly in charge of reporting winning and losing competitors on the pool sheet. Then determining places on the pool sheets. This person can be any person trained to complete the pool sheet.

3.3. Auditor- This person or team reviews the pool sheets to ensure that they are correct and complete.

4. CREATING THE SUMO CIRCLE

4.1. Although various methods exist to creating the sumo circle, the best way is to use a piece of standard outside chalk.

4.2. An official sumo circle is a little over 15 feet in diameter. However consideration should be made for those competing. Junior circles might need to be made smaller.

5. SCHEME OF CONTEST

5.1. Introduction- After pools are completed and the sumo circle is created, the referee will take his place in the sumo circle. Pool controllers will be positioned around and at a safe distance from the sumo circle. At this time an introduction should be made of the referee and the pool controllers. Following this should be a demonstration and explanation of the rules of the contest. Next a question and answer period should be held. After this all competitors should make a bow of respect and sportsmanship. First to the head of the class and then to the referee/contest director. Pool controllers will then call contestants in their pools and the contestants will go to and sit down next to the pool controllers.

5.2. Start of Contest- The referee will then start by pointing to the pool controller. The controller will send the first two contestants up as indicated on the pool sheet.

1. The referee should make a determination whether he wants to start the contestants apart at the edges of the circle or together with contestants holding each other's shoulders.
   1. Starting Apart-Older children, and adults can be started apart on opposite ends of the circle, facing each other.
   2. Starting Together- Smaller children should be started together with their hands on each other shoulders at the center of the circle. The advantage to this method is that the referee can help the small children overcome nervousness and shyness. By starting together the children will be more apt to push each other out of the circle rather than shying away from their opponent.

5.3. The Contest- After the contestants are ready to begin, the referee should shout "Hajime" which means begin or blow a whistle and the contestants should begin to fight. The contestants should try to end the contest in one of three ways:

1. Forcing opponent outside of circle- The contest ends when one of the contestants makes contact outside of the circle with any part of their body.
2. Forcing opponent to the mat inside the circle- The contest ends when one of the contestants makes contact outside of the circle with any part of their body except their feet.
3. Carrying opponent outside of the circle-The contest ends if one competitor lifts his opponent of the mat completely and carries him outside of the circle.
4. Methods of Attack
   1. Pushing/Pulling- The contestant may push or pull his opponent outside of the circle at any angle and by grabbing any legal part of the opponent's body (any area that is not a vital area) or by grabbing any part of the opponents uniform, except in vital areas.
   2. Throwing-Since the contest does not have any divisions by rank, the referee and the senseis of the competitors must decide pre-contest whether throws will be allowed in certain divisions. Generally intermediate level junior competitors, those that have studied over six months should be allowed to throw. Generally all adults should be allowed to throw. THROWING IS THE MOST DANGEROUS PART OF SUMO ESPECIALLY IN THE JUNIOR DIVISIONS. THE REFEREE MUST ENSURE THE SAFETY OF THE COMPETITORS TO THE BEST OF HIS ABILITY.
5. After the contest ends the referee should clearly signal the winner to the pool controller. The winning competitor should also report his win to the pool controller.
6. The referee should then going clockwise or counter-clockwise move on to the next pool controller who should send up the next competitors.
7. After a pool has been competed, it should be taken to the auditors to check it for accuracy.

5.4. End of Contest

1. After all pools have been called all competitors should be dismissed.
2. Auditors should complete their job of checking pool sheets for accuracy.
3. Awards should then be determined and the award ceremony should commence.
4. After award ceremony is completed and final remarks are made. All competitors should bow out to the referee/contest director and to the head of the class.

6. USING AND COMPLETING POOL SHEETS AND DETERMINING PLACEMENT OF COMPETITORS

6.1. Those completing pool sheets will complete pool sheets as follows.

1. Under Name-Enter Name of Contestant and Weight and enter division (rank or experience) on top of pool sheet.
2. During the contest pool controllers will make a tally mark under wins indicating how many matches the competitor has won. In addition they should circle the corresponding letter of the winner in each match.
3. After the end of the pool the pool controller should tally the number of wins. The winner is the one with the most wins. Second place goes to the person with the second most number of wins, etcetera.
4. Ties should be broken by looking at the head to head matches of the competitors that are tied.
5. If there is a 3-way tie or a winner cannot be determined from some mishap then a run off match or matches should be held.

7. PENALTIES

7.1. If a competitor violates the rules, i.e. punches, kicks, and grabs inappropriately, then the referee should give a warning. If a competitor clearly violates a rule a second time, the match should be ended and the match awarded to the other competitor. If the competitor clearly demonstrates a willingness to maliciously injure the other opponent then the referee at his discretion should consider baring the individual from the remainder of the contest.

8. INJURIES

8.1. During the course of a contest if a minor injury occurs a rest time of not more than 5 minutes should be given to the injured party. If he cannot continue after this time, the referee at his discretion should declare the match a tie. In scoring a tie no point should be issued on the pool sheet.

Contacts

• Chair of Clinics and Contests Committee
• Rule and Judging Committee