Shime-waza
絞技 / 締め技
Choking techniques in judo and jujutsu. The Kodokan lists twelve, and in competition a choke ends with ippon when the opponent submits or loses consciousness.
Quick Facts
Word breakdown
Definition
Shime-waza (絞技) means “choking techniques”: shimeru is to tighten, to squeeze, waza technique. A choke compresses the neck with the arm, the legs or the collar of the kimono. By effect, a distinction is made between a choke that compresses the carotid arteries and limits the blood supply to the brain, and a choke that presses on the windpipe and limits breathing. In judo they belong to katame-waza, immobilization techniques, and the Kodokan lists twelve of them, for example hadaka-jime, okuri-eri-jime and sankaku-jime. In competition a choke ends with ippon when the opponent submits or loses consciousness. One of the techniques, do-jime, that is squeezing the trunk with the legs, is forbidden in competition and in free practice, randori.
In practice
Chokes are practiced with a clear agreement: the partner submits by tapping twice or more, and the attacker releases immediately at that moment. A large part of the chokes in judo use the collar of the kimono, for example okuri-eri-jime. Without the kimono, chokes with the arm and legs remain, such as hadaka-jime and sankaku-jime.