Kickboxing
What is Kickboxing?
What is called Kickboxing today came out of Full Contact Karate competitions in the sixties. Competitors included such fighters as Bill Wallace, Joe Lewis and Chuck Norris. Each had different backgrounds in Karate and boxing, as well as other martial arts. New fighting styles, techniques and strategies developed out of the need for a comprehensive form of fighting that was effective in the ring.
Kickboxing is a Western fighting method practiced worldwide with the kickboxer using both hands and feet, as in Karate. Because it is a realistic, practical method of fighting, it has grown into a popular sport. Kickboxing is similar to Full Contact Karate, as the goal of Kickboxing is to knock out the opponent. Also in Kickboxing, strikes are delivered full force.
Kickboxing combines elements from Karate and Thai Boxing; both the strategy and techniques from kicking and boxing. It mixes foot techniques from Karate and fist techniques from boxing. There are four different types of combat competitions: Semi-Contact, Light-Contact, Full-Contact and Low-Kick. Musical Forms are the fifth style of Kickboxing competition. All these systems are the same worldwide and follow precise rules and regulations.
To minimize the risk of injury during Kickboxing competitions, competitors must wear protection for the feet and head, as well as shin guards, safety gloves, mouth guards, groin guards for men and chest protection for women. Kickboxing competitors use sparring, kicks, punches, kick blocks, shadow boxing, and wood breaking that is learned and applied under professional instruction.
While Kickboxing was first developed as a martial art for tournament fighting, it has more recently become very popular; especially with women, because the Kickboxing workout (Cardio Kickboxing) is excellent for developing body toning and burning fat while also helping students gain confidence in self defense.
Kickboxing
The History of Kickboxing
Kickboxing is a modern sport with Western origin. It began during the early seventies when American Karate competitors became frustrated with strict controls and the primitive scoring system in martial arts competitions. Competitors wanted full contact kicks and punches to the knockout. The new sport was born and names such as Full Contact Karate and Boxe Americane eventually evolved into that of Kickboxing.
Early bouts were fought on open matted areas. Kickboxing competitions were later staged in regular size boxing rings. Between 1970 and 1973 a handful of Kickboxing promotions were staged across the United States. However, in these early stages of the sport the rules were never clear. In fact, one of the first tournaments had no weight divisions and all the competitors fought until there was only one competitor left. Many questions were raised about the high risk of injury in this new full contact sport. The development of specialized protective equipment helped speed up the evolution of Kickboxing and safety rules were also improved.
As the sport evolved, Americans sent teams of Kickboxers to Japan under the banner of the World Kickboxing Association (WKA). From this point Kickboxing developed into a true international sport. Some of the other organizations that were created to promote Kickboxing include the United States Kickboxing Association (USKBA), the International Kickboxing Federation (IKF) and the World Sport Kickboxing Federeation (WSKF).
The sport has undergone changes and has been refined over the last two decades. As this is a fairly new sport, there are of course no long-term traditions for Kickboxing. However, it has gained recognition as a highly effective martial art for both ring fighting and for holistic fitness.
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What is Kickboxing?
What is called Kickboxing today came out of Full Contact Karate competitions in the sixties. Competitors included such fighters as Bill Wallace, Joe Lewis and Chuck Norris. Each had different backgrounds in Karate and boxing, as well as other martial arts. New fighting styles, techniques and strategies developed out of the need for a comprehensive form of fighting that was effective in the ring.
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Kickboxing combines elements from Karate and Thai Boxing; both the strategy and techniques from kicking and boxing. It mixes foot techniques from Karate and fist techniques from boxing. There are four different types of combat competitions: Semi-Contact, Light-Contact, Full-Contact and Low-Kick. Musical Forms are the fifth style of Kickboxing competition. All these systems are the same worldwide and follow precise rules and regulations.
To minimize the risk of injury during Kickboxing competitions, competitors must wear protection for the feet and head, as well as shin guards, safety gloves, mouth guards, groin guards for men and chest protection for women. Kickboxing competitors use sparring, kicks, punches, kick blocks, shadow boxing, and wood breaking that is learned and applied under professional instruction.While Kickboxing was first developed as a martial art for tournament fighting, it has more recently become very popular; especially with women, because the Kickboxing workout (Cardio Kickboxing) is excellent for developing body toning and burning fat while also helping students gain confidence in self defense.
Kickboxing
The History of Kickboxing
Kickboxing is a modern sport with Western origin. It began during the early seventies when American Karate competitors became frustrated with strict controls and the primitive scoring system in martial arts competitions. Competitors wanted full contact kicks and punches to the knockout. The new sport was born and names such as Full Contact Karate and Boxe Americane eventually evolved into that of Kickboxing.
 |
As the sport evolved, Americans sent teams of Kickboxers to Japan under the banner of the World Kickboxing Association (WKA). From this point Kickboxing developed into a true international sport. Some of the other organizations that were created to promote Kickboxing include the United States Kickboxing Association (USKBA), the International Kickboxing Federation (IKF) and the World Sport Kickboxing Federeation (WSKF).The sport has undergone changes and has been refined over the last two decades. As this is a fairly new sport, there are of course no long-term traditions for Kickboxing. However, it has gained recognition as a highly effective martial art for both ring fighting and for holistic fitness.
The Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA) was founded in 1920. Boxing made its Olympic debut at the 1904 St Louis Games.
ReplyDeleteBanned and dangerous
When the modern Games started in 1896, the Athens organising committee omitted boxing, deciding it was too dangerous. The sport reappeared in 1904 in St Louis thanks to its popularity in the United States, but was absent again at the 1912 Stockholm Games because Swedish law banned it. Only in 1920 did boxing make a permanent return to the Olympic Games.
Special rules
Since the 1952 Helsinki Games, there has been no contest for third place. Instead both losing semi-finalists are awarded bronze medals. More recently, from the 1984 Los Angeles Games, the wearing of head guards was made compulsory.
Current events
Boxing at the Olympic Games is organised into weight divisions. This is so men face opponents of similar size, making ability the key factor in any contest. There are eleven weight divisions from light flyweight (under 48kg) through middleweight (64-69kg) up to super heavyweight (91kg and over)
Competition procedure
Boxers qualify for the Olympic Games through regional qualifying tournaments in Europe, Asia, the Americas, Africa and Oceania. The number of boxers accepted from any region depends upon the strength of boxing in the region and the weight division. The boxers are paired off at random for the Olympic Games, without regard to ranking, and compete in a single-elimination tournament.
Federation name change
At the end of 2007 the Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur removed the word Amateur from its name to become the Association International de Boxe. The initials AIBA still remain using the combination of the French and English acronyms – AIB and IBA.