Rules

Result of the bout

Jiu-jitsu bouts will always conclude with a result. There are no draws. Bouts will be decided by:
Submission:

The referee signals a win by submission when a technique applied by a competitor forces his opponent to admit defeat by:

• Tapping with his/her hands on the ground
• Tapping with his/her feet on the ground
• Making a verbal request to the referee

The referee may end the fight in the following cases:

• In case of injury or physical incapacitation.
• When the opponent is in ‘lock’ position and expressing pain
• If the player is in danger of sustaining serious physical injury
• When a coach requests the referee to end the bout either by clearly signaling to the referee or by throwing a towel on to the mat on behalf of their athlete.
• The match referee may end the bout in the case of an injury or a doctor’s examination that proves physical incapacitation of an athlete. Victory will be awarded to the opponent if the match referee deems that the injury was not caused intentionally.

1. Disqualification:

Serious fouls are those that the referee deems grave enough for immediate disqualification:

• The use of foul language or immoral acts of disrespect towards the referee or other technical officials.
• Biting the opponent, pulling his hair, poking his eyes or nose, intentionally seeking to injure an opponent, or striking him through the use of fists, elbows, knees, or the head with the intention to cause physical harm or gain an unfair advantage.
• In the event of any damage coming to a competitor’s Kimono during a bout, the referee will allow him a set amount of time to replace the Kimono. If the athlete fails to change during the allotted time, he will face disqualification.
• An athlete who has been subjected to a ‘lock’ by his opponent cannot flee the mat to avoid a tap-out. In case of fleeing the mat, he will face immediate disqualification
• When an athlete intentionally breaks any of the sport rules

Unconsciousness:

An athlete is defeated through the loss of consciousness through the use of any valid move – strangling, pressuring, take-downs, or accidents in which the opponent has not committed any foul according to the referee.

Points:

The sport of Jiu-Jitsu encourages the athlete to utilize their technical abilities to attempt to neutralize their opponent. Any valid move on the opponent that the match referee deems to be successful results in the awarding of points to the initiating athlete.

Advantage

A fighter is awarded an advantage if he attempts to perform any of the basic moves without achieving completion.

• Disbalancing an opponent:An advantage is awarded if the fighter causes his opponent to lose balance without the opponent falling to theg ground.
• Closed defence advantage: The referee grants an advantage to the fighter on the ground who his legs twisted around his opponent’s waist.
• A fighter is awarded an advantage because he started an attack in an attempt to gain a control position over his opponent and the referee decides that the player attempting to control has passed the defence of the opponent, forcing the latter to make an effort to return to his position. An example can be a half-defence or anchor position.
• The fighter receives an advantage if he partially executes the sweep movement against his opponent placing him in a critical position such as holding control over the opponent or forcing resistance

Note:

If the result of the bout is a tie, then a decision as to the winner is returned by the referee by giving precedence according to the follow;

• The player who the referee deems to have initiated the greater number of moves, advantages earned by putting his opponent to ground, and by getting into advantage position forcing the opponent into defensive moves.
• The referee deems that a player has hurt the balance of his opponent through the use of his skills and technique, a position where the opponent was in danger of going to ground but ultimately did not.

Penalties

The referee may penalize the player in the following cases:

• The athlete kneels before exhibiting a complete hold of the opponent’s Kimono.
• When either of the athletes proceed out of bounds or attempt to flee the mat to avoid combat, or avoid expressly engaging with the opponent, or expressly step out of bounds to gain time.
• When either of the athletes takes off his or her Kimono or actively allows it to be taken off with the intention of allowing himself rest or avoiding combat.
• When either of the athletes insert their finger(s) inside the sleeves or any other part of the opponents’ Kimono or inserts his or her hands into the opponents’ belt.
• When the athlete stalls the fight, holding his opponent but avoids engagement or attempts to submit when in guard, on top or at the bottom
• When the referee notices a fighter attempting to stall the bout, the referee signals the fighter to make an active move in 20 seconds and in case of failure to initiate activity, awards the opponent an advantage after 20 seconds. If the fighter continues to stall, the referee will then stop the bout, and award the opponent two additional points. The two fighters then will stand in the start position at the center of the mat. The referee retains the right to award the opponent the bout in case of repeated stalling from one fighter.

Note:

The match referee is authorized to award a penalty of two points against an athlete who the match referee deems to have ‘fled’ the mat in order to avoid a sweep that the match referee believes would have been completed or in the case of an athlete ‘fleeing’ the mat to avoid a ‘lock’ being fully applied