British Judo to Adopt Judogi Rules from 2019 British Championships

Following changes to the international rules to require judoka to tidy their judogi after each “mate” call, British Judo can confirm that these changes will be adopted with effect from the British Championships and all events thereafter.

The rules will only be applied in full at Level 4 Performance events, with limited application to Level 3 and below Development events. These changes will ensure that performance level athletes compete in an environment close to international competition and development athletes learn positive competition habits.

All Levels

Contestants must themselves, without instruction, adjust their judogi, so that the front and back of the jacket are inside the belt after every mate.

Level 4

Contestants will be warned once with the official signal if they fail to tidy their judogi. If they are requested to tidy their judogi a further time, they will be penalised with shido on each occasion.

Coaches will be able to remind their athletes to adjust their gi, during the mate period.

Referees will be directed to avoid the over-application of penalties for this rule, providing opportunity for judoka to realise their error before making an official gesture.

Level 3 and below

Contestants will be asked to tidy their gi if they fail to do so, using the official signal. We would request coaches assist in their judoka’s development by encouraging them to tidy their judogi without the referee needing to request it.

Penalties will only be applied if the judoka fails to follow the referees instructions.

A briefing on these changes will be provided to both referees and coaches at both British Championships weekends and at Level 4 events in the new year.

Updated contest rules will be published shortly.