Hiza Geri
膝蹴り
Literally: knee kick
Also known as: Hiza ate, Knee strike
Knee strike thrown straight up, in an arc or in a jump; Kyokushin trains it for full-contact fighting, banned in WKF kumite.
Quick Facts
Katas containing this technique
About
Hiza geri (膝蹴り), literally knee kick, is a knee strike to the groin, head, hips, ribs or solar plexus. Three basic mechanics are distinguished: a direct strike, where the knee is driven forward, often from a clinch with a grip on the neck; a lateral arcing strike thrown from the outside; and a strike thrown in a jump after a run-up, which gives greater momentum. The karate school Torakan names the variants mae kekomi hiza geri, mae age hiza geri, mawashi hiza geri, soto hiza geri and tobi hiza geri. Knee strikes are interpreted as a technique of Southeast Asian and Okinawan martial arts; the Japanese word hizageri is also used in professional wrestling. Styles approach them differently: Kyokushin fights with the knee in hard full-contact kumite, Shotokan considers it too dangerous for competition and leaves it to self-defense, and muay thai has the most developed use of it. In kumite under the 2024 WKF rules, attacks with the head, knee or elbow are banned.