The debate over leg grabs in competitive judo is heating up again, and judoka and YouTube personality Shintaro Higashi is making the case that the International Judo Federation (IJF) should take notice.
In a recent video, Higashi highlighted the 2026 All Japan Judo Championships, where leg grabs were once again permitted.
He stated, “So, the 2026 All Japan Judo Championships just happened and they allowed leg grabs as they did last year and it was a spectacular result.”
Beyond the entertainment value, Higashi used the tournament as a platform to call on the judo community to push for leg grabs to return to IJF competition.
“When such a high-level event just such as the All Japan Judo Championships does leg grabs and results of it is just so amazing, the IJF has to be watching,” he said.
Higashi was also candid about why the IJF removed leg grabs from international competition in the first place. He acknowledged that athletes, himself included due to a wrestling background, often used leg grabs as a defensive maneuver rather than as an offensive tool.
“I would get out gripped by a bigger, stronger opponent and I would be sort of losing position. I would go in on a leg just kind of escape that bad position,” he explained.
He further noted that the IJF was able to statistically demonstrate that leg grabs reduced the likelihood of spectacular throws. With low success rates on attempts and scoring rule changes making it easier to secure a small advantage and stall, the technique became more of a negative tactic than a dynamic one.
Higashi was careful to note that Japan’s judo culture carries unspoken standards around attacking intent that naturally curb the kind of negative judo that led the IJF to ban leg grabs internationally.
Still, he views the 2026 All Japan Championships as a powerful argument for revisiting the rule.
“We really have to be vocal about it,” he said. “Hey man, we want this back.”
