THE RULES OF KATA BUNKAI KUMITE CONTEST
ARTICLE 1 CONTEST AREA
- In general, the same match area conditions that apply to Shiai matches should also apply to Kata Bunkai Kumite contests.
- If the conditions above cannot be met, the Chief Referee should make alternative arrangements that adhere to the above as closely as possible.
ARTICLE 2 ATIRE
- The attire worn by contestants, referees and judges shall be identical as that defined in the shiai competition rules
- Any person who fails to comply with the above may be disbarred from participation in the contest at the discretion of the chief referee.
ARTICLE 3 ORGANISATION OF THE CONTEST
1a. The Bunkai Kumite consist of a team contests, each team made up of three individuals.
1b. The contest shall be held in one category only.
- The contestants may be asked to perform a Kata Bunkai Kumite of either a "Toroku" Kata (Registered Kata) or a "Tokui" Kata (Favourite Kata). For the elimination round, a Kata Bunkai Kumite of a Toroku Kata shall be performed. In the following rounds, a Kata Bunkai Kumite of a Tokui Kata may be performed, which may be any of the Toroku Kata, or any other Kata of the contestant’s style or school. The list of Registered Kata shall be updated regularly by the World Koshiki Karatedo Federation
- Kata Bunkai Kumite includes the technique of Goho (hard way, blocking, punching, striking and kicking), Juho (soft way, throwing (nage), arm lock (gyaku) techniques) and Bukiho (Weapons techniques).
- The defending contestant should be weapon less for the performance.
- The defending position can be changed between the contestants of the Team.
ARTICLE 4 JUDGING PANEL
- The contest shall be conducted at the hands of one referee and four judges previously selected by the Chief Referee. If there are insufficient judges, the Chief Referee may elect to appoint one referee and two judges.
- The referee shall be seated in the front central position, while the judges shall take positions in each of the four corners.
ARTICLE 5 CONTEST OPERATION
- The contest shall proceed in the following manner: When the contestants’ names are called by the announcer, the contestants shall enter the contest area from the area directly opposite the referee. Prior to entering the contest area, the contestants shall sit down and bow to the shomen (Zarei). After rising again the contestants shall bow again (nyujo) and proceed to the designated starting position. The contestants shall then bow to the referee (shomen ni rei) and announce the name of the Kata Bunkai Kumite to be performed in a loud voice, with Kiai. At the referee’s call of “Hajime” (start), the contestants shall commence the performance.
- Upon completion of the performance, the contestant shall return to the designated position, and wait for the referees announcement of the score. The contestants shall then bow to the referee (shomen ni rei), and exit the contest area bowing as they do so (taijo). After exiting the contest area the contestants shall sit down and bow to the Shomen again (Zarei).
- All matters relating to the contest during its conduct shall be handled under the exclusive direction of the referee.
ARTICLE 6 VICTORY AND LOSS
- The result of each team shall be determined by adding the points awarded by each member of the judging panel. Each judge shall have up to ten points to award each team, in a mark range previously designated by the referee.
- The highest and lowest scores, respectively, awarded to each team by a member of the judging panel shall be subtracted prior to adding the total score. The score awarded by the Main referee shall not be eliminated.
- At the end of the elimination round, a pre determined number of teams shall be selected to proceed to the next round. This is repeated until the final round, when the final place getters will be determined. The sole criteria for selection to proceed to the next round, or selection of place getters, will be the scores calculated using the above process.
- In the event of a tie for a placing, firstly the scores of the referee will be compared to determine the result. Secondly the lower scores eliminated shall be compared. If there is still no result, the higher scores eliminated shall be compared. In the event that the results are still tied, the tied teams shall be requested to perform a further Kata Bunkai Kumite to determine the outcome. This Kata Bunkai Kumite shall be a Tokui Kata (Favourite Kata), and shall be judged according to the standard criteria. However, for this moment it can be decided by the judging panel that this Kata Bunkai Kumite can also be one of the two performed already.
ARTICLE 7 CRITERIA FOR JUDGEMENT
- All judgement shall be made and passed in compliance with the criteria contained in Articles 4 and 5 of the Rules of Judging the Kata Bunkai Kumite Contest.
ARTICLE 8 RULE VIOLATION AND DISQUALIFICATION
- No teams’ participation in a contest shall be considered valid unless the team correctly follows the instructions of the referee.
ARTICLE 9 PROTESTS AND OTHER MATTERS
- The coach of a team shall be entitled to protest to the arbitrator if he or she believes that the judging panel has acted in violation of the Rules of Judging
- If the arbitrator feels the protest is justified, he or she can request the judging panel to explain its decision and/or revise it.
- The decision of the arbitrator shall be final.
- In the event of the occurrence of a case not covered in these rules, the matter shall be handled by the Chief Referee, in consultation with the judging panel.
THE RULES OF JUDGING KATA BUNKAI KUMITE CONTESTS
ARTICLE 1 PURPOSE
- These Rules have been conceived in order to ensure fair and impartial judging, and for establishing the authority of the referee and judges.
ARTICLE 2 METHOD OF JUDGING
- A match shall in principle be attended by one referee and four (4) judges. In addition, Announcers, Record Keepers and Contest Expediters shall be available to ensure smooth contest operation.
- ANNOUNCERS. An announcer serving a contest shall inform the Recorders, in consistent form and order, of the points awarded by the referee and judges, starting from the referee and proceeding clockwise. The announcer shall then clearly announce for the benefit of the judging panel and other officials concerned the points added up by the recorders.
- RECORDERS. A recorder shall accurately record on the designated "Point Addition Form" the points reported by the announcer, and in compliance with Article 3, Item 2b of these Rules, correctly record the total score.
- CONTEST EXPEDITERS. A contest expediter shall perform the following functions to help smooth contest operations:
(a) Matters related to the efficient and smooth operation of the contest;
(b) Contact with contestants;
(c) Contact with the judging panel;
(d) Insure impeccable order in the contest area; and
(e) Any other matter which may be considered necessary by the organizing authorities.
ARTICLE 3
- The contestants may be required to perform either a "Toroku" Kata (Registered Kata) or a "Tokui" Kata (Favourite Kata), according to the Kata Bunkai Kumite Contest Rules.
- Hantei (Decision) of the Judging Panel
- All judges shall, at the signal of the referee, simultaneously indicate the hantei points awarded, which shall in principle be in a range designated by the referee.
- Of the hantei points awarded by the judging panel, the highest and lowest points awarded by the judges (excluding the referee) shall be excluded. The points awarded by the referee and the remaining judges shall then be added to obtain the score awarded to the contestant.
ARTICLE 4 CRITERIA FOR JUDGEMENT
- The following criteria are the basis for judgment of a Kata Bunkai Kumite performance (kata bunkai kumite no hantei no yoso):
- The performers manner and attitude (reigi saho to taido);
- The performers expression of their level of achievement in martial arts training (tanren no do ai);
- The performers focus, technical strength, and completeness of execution (kime to zanshin);
- As this is a Koshiki Karatedo competition, similar to Kumite, in Kata kicking techniques should be scored higher than other techniques.
- The performers expression of inner fighting spirit (seishin ryoku); and
- The harmony and rhythm of the contestants’ performance (choshi).
- In addition the judging panel should consider the performers’ use and understanding of the five elements of Kata Performance.
- Mettsuke. Eye control when and where to look, understanding the target, the opponent's intention, technique and strategy. Also involves the expression of self confidence and fighting spirit.
- Kokyu. Breath control. When to inhale and exhale, and how the breath is retained during a particular sequence. Also how well the performer concentrates his/her mind, body and technique into one.
- Chikara No Kyojaku. Power control. When to use power and when to relax. Often, especially in the basic kata, offensive techniques require power, and defensive techniques involve the release of power.
- Waza No Kankyu. Speed control. When to be fast, and when to slow down. Again, offensive techniques are often faster then defensive ones;
- Tai No Shinshuku. Body and motion control. When to expand the motion, and when to contract. Expansion often occurs with offensive movements, and contraction with defensive ones. How well are the body dynamics related to the effectiveness of the technique.
- Technical excellence
- Technical realism, proper execution
- Timing and distance
- Three minds: Zenshin (preparatory mind), Tsushin (concentration mind) and Zanshin (mind of completion)
ARTICLE 5 FOUL AND DISQUALIFICATION
- A team shall be disqualified when it interrupts the performance of the Kata Bunkai Kumite, or when it performs a kata which is at variance with the Kata Bunkai Kumite announced.
ARTICLE 6 OTHER MATTERS
- All matters relating to the function and competence of the referee and judges, as well as other relevant matters, shall be based on the provisions and stipulations of the Rules of Kumite Competition, and the Rules of Judging of Kumite Competition.
Matters not explicitly specified or implicitly covered in these Rules shall, if the need arises, be handled at the discretion of the Chief Referee, in consultation with the members of the judging panel. These matters shall be communicated to other officials and others concerned prior to the commencement of the contest, and if necessary, be announced publicly.