What Is The Relationship Between Yudo and Judo?

There are two different types of twins, identical twins and fraternal twins. Fraternal twins may look nothing alike.  Indeed, one may be female and the other male.  They are still twins, however, and have those irreversible and irrevocable bonds of blood and family.

ChungTongKwan Yudo is a kwon of the Korea Judo Association.  The Korea Judo Association is a member of the International Judo Federation (IJF), the international governing body for Olympic Judo.

ChungTongKwan Yudo is also a traditional Korean military art, teaching self-defense and self-development based upon the principles established by Kano, Jigoro.  Thus, while we may be a twin of what is currently taught as Kodokan Judo, we are a fraternal and not an identical twin of what is taught under the auspices of the International Judo Federation.  That having been said, we are of the same blood and we are family.

While the overwhelming majority of ChungTongKwan Yudo practitioners and schools have no interest in competition or the sport form of Judo, there are always a few who want to test their skills in one-on-one competition.  Thus, the International Yudo Federation is faced with the same dilemma that faced Judo’s Founder.  This is simply that he, and we, teach a system of self-defense that must be effective in the "real world", while the sport derived from the earlier martial art restricts the techniques that can be used and the manner in which those that are allowed can be applied. 

Further, the scoring system of Olympic judo pays little tribute to the finishing techniques that may be needed in "real world" self-defense applications.  There is an old truism among experienced warriors: You will fight the same way that you train.

Our answer to this problematic duality is totally pragmatic. We do not teach sport judo nor do we encourage participation in sport competition.  We do acknowledge that a small number of our members, especially the younger members, will want to "give it a go".  Our policy is therefore quite simple..... "go for it".  Here are the conditions, however:  (1) You must participate in such competition under the auspices of the national governing body for the sport in your country, i.e. the member of the International Judo Federation for your nation, or one of its authorized subsidiaries:  (2) You must fully comply with all of the rules and regulations of the sport governing body for your country;  (3) You must have the prior permission of your ChungTongKwan Yudo instructor; and, (4) You must inform your sport judo coach that you are a practitioner of ChungTongKwan Yudo. You should also understand that the national Yudo association for your country will not promote you based upon your sport ranking.

In some countries, such as in the United States, the national Yudo association may maintain a registered club or other chartered body under the Olympic organization.  This provides a "save haven" for ChungTongKwan Yudo practitioners participating in sport judo competition, with special knowledge of the cross-over issues that may arise.

[Note:  Due to International Judo Federation (IJF) regulations, national Yudo Associations will NOT process requests for Korea Judo Association rank promotion for any ChungTongKwan Yudo members living outside the Republic of Korea.  All such requests must be submitted through the IJF recognized national governing body for the nation in which the member resides.]