Was Kano right? Does technique overcome power

Teddy Riner does weights for sure!!

I was talking with a team mate of mine recently and we came across an interesting point regarding competition.

Have you ever entered a tournament, and your first fight was against someone you have never fought before, and you didn't know anything about them?

Usually you try to get a sneak peak of them in the weigh in room. You may think to yourself:
-Do they look strong?
-Do they look fit?
-Do they look tough?

You try to have a look at their physical appearance you try to size them up.
-Do they have big traps and forearms?
-How big are their calves and quads?

Now it's fight time! The referee says 'hajime" and the fight begins. You and your opponent begin circling and engage in some grip fighting, then your opponent gets a hold of you.....and a little voice in the back of your head says, "Wow, this guy is soooo strong! This is going to be a battle"
Does this sound familiar?
Have you been there before? 

Did you notice that throughout the entire 'sizing up' process, nothing regarding their technique went through your mind?

When the fight starts the first thing you notice is your opponent's strength or lack of strength.

>>>>Discover the strength training exercises all Judoka should be doing<<<<

Strength does play a big role in competition Judo and being stronger than your competitor really helps. At a basic level, if you are stronger than your opponent you will be able to dictate the grips and in doing so prevent yourself being thrown.

Have you ever talked to someone after they got thrown within a minute? They never say: "That guy was just so technical, wow he had beautiful Judo." 

People who lose inside the first minute usually say something like "Wow he got a hold of me and he was just so strong, I couldn't break his grips or do anything. He was too strong for me to do anything."

Strength does make a difference. 
Was Jigoro Kano right, does technique really overcome power? Yes, Kano was definitely right.
Technique does overcome strength.

But, here is the problem!
Most people put technique and strength into two separate baskets, saying that you can have one but NOT the other.

What if you DID have both strength and technique?
I am a big believer in the fact that if you are physically strong and have great technique then you will become a very tough Judoka to beat.
In order to get strong for Judo you need to do a few strength movements including:
-Overhead presses (Javelin press, Seesaw press)· 
-Bench pressing movements· 
-Power cleans ·
-Squats (or squatting movements)·
-Deadlifts· 
-Chin-ups or rope climbs
-Box jumps
-Rotational core

In case you don't know what some of these exercises are I have filmed them into a short video for you here.

I look forward to talking with you soon, 

Matt.

>>>>Discover the strength training exercises all Judoka should be doing<<<<