Perseverance pays off

Yellow belt... at last!

On Wednesday we had our first grading at Sunway University Judo Club. Two of the players had been waiting two years to do their first grading. Another one, who has had many years of training, decided to get re-graded since he is now training under a new coach and a new system.

At KL Judo Centre we are pretty strict about grading because we want to maintain high standards for our players. In many places, if a player knows just one or two techniques they can get a yellow belt. We require them to know much more than that if they want to be graded as a yellow belt.

It's natural and understandable for beginners to want to get graded. It's a very tangible indication of their progress in the sport. But what I always tell my players is that it's no use for them to get a yellow belt if they don't have a sound technical understanding of the techniques involved.

It's possible to demonstrate a technique without understanding the core principles involved through pure rote memory, just like it's possible to play a song on a piano or answer an exam question through pure rote memory. But what's the point of that?

When you do something though rote memory you are not really learning how to do that thing. You are merely regurgitating the action without understanding anything. In the context of judo, that won't be of much use to you because in a randori or contest situation, there are multiple variables at play and your opponent will be resisting you with all their might. Unless you understand the principles of a technique, you will not be able to make it work by repeating what you learned through rote memory. It really won't work.

I always tell my players if they wear a yellow belt, it means they have mastered the techniques that are in the yellow belt syllabus. So if an absolute beginner were to approach them and ask for instruction, they should be able to give very good guidance. Not only that but if the absolute beginner were to ask them questions about why they should do this or why they shouldn't do that, they must be able to answer convincingly and with authority.

Judo is a very technical sport. It might not seem so to the uninitiated. To a non-judoka, a randori probably looks like two people in pajamas pushing and pulling at each other with very little happening except for the occasional burst of activity that results in someone falling onto the mat. But anyone who has bothered to really take up judo will know that:

i) It's a lot more tiring than it looks
ii) Strength is important but it's never enough to make a technique work
iii) To pull off a throw against a fully resisting partner is incredibly difficult
iv) Even getting a grip on a fully resisting partner is quite a challenge

As an instructor my aim is to impart to my players very sound technical skills. That entails them understanding:

i) the correct stance for a technique to work
ii) the right grip to adopt
iii) the footwork needed
iv) the correct use of the hands

Kudos to Bruce, Nazrul and Nga for getting their yellow belt, which they fully deserve. Next up: orange belt!