Judo Approach and Handgrip Analysis: Determining Aspects of World Circuit High Performance

In judo, the moments of approach and gripping are relevant for defining the next actions of athletes. In understanding these action phases, the coach can plan the training according to the specific patterns of each weight division. Therefore, this study analyzed the time spent in approach and in performance of different types of gripping by athletes in all male weight divisions in world judo matches. For this, we analyzed 548 combats, with time-motion analysis performed through a previously-validated protocol. The main results indicate a significant effect, in which lighter athletes are more differentiated in the approach and in the gripping types, and heavier athletes spent more time on gripping phase with more defensive grips. There was a significant correlation between anteroposterior positioning of the right and left foot (p≤0.05) with the all gripping attempts, except right sleeve, left dorsal, left and right sleeve, right dorsal and right sleeve, and left dorsal and left sleeve. In conclusion, our results can be applied to planning and prescribing specific training for the different weight divisions, taking into account the specific frequencies obtained in these combat phases.