The armlock is one of the most successful groundwork skills of modern judo. This Masterclass Techniqes study by Neil adams, one of the finest exponents of the technique of the last twenty years, will ensure its continued dominance.

Drawing on unusual archive material, the author takes us through the history of armslocks before considering the politics and controverises of their use in modern-day competition. The book studies, in detail, variations-including ude-gateme and the spectacular fllying armlock-which have been developed and successfully used in competition by leading names from the world of judo such as Iaskevitch, Divinsenko, Seinsenbacher and Great Britain's Karen Briggs. These armlocks are fully illustrated with stunning shots of the players in action.

Step-by-step instruction and superb sequence photography clarify the mechanics of the more basic forms to ensure that this book will prove invaluable whether you are learning the armlock for the first time or are keen to develop your own version for competition.

The most successful British competitor in judo, Neil Adams's own reputation is built largely upon his use of the armlock. World Champion in 1981, he won two Olympic silver medals and a total of five European Senior Championships; he set up the Neil Adams Judo Club in Coventry and is currently the head coach of the British national team.

Front and back cover photographs by David Finch.

FORWARD

Armlocks have always been accorded a prominent role in judo, not least because of their immediate effectiveness. Practised in most ju-jitsu schools, they came under the general terminology of kansetsu-waza, or joint locks. The third section of the groundwork kata, katame-no-kata, was devoted to armlocks, with the main five demonstrated: ude-garami, juji-gatame, ude-gatame, hiza-gatame and ashi-garami.

When Yukio Tani brought judo to widespread notice in Britain in the first decade of the twentieth century by touring the music-halls to take on all comers, the armlock was much in evidence. One of his special techniques was a flying armlock which had powerful boxers and wrestlers submitting anxiously. That Tani's exploits made a noted impression on his British audience is borne out by Bernard Shaw's reference to him in his play, Major Barbara: the character Todger Fairmile confesses to having submitted to the 'Jap wrestler' but only when his arms were going to break!

But as the competition side of judo developed over the following decades, it was the West that took the lead with armlocks. In men's judo in the United Kingdom today as many as sixty per cent of contests won on the ground are armlock victories, while the percentage in Japan is much smaller-often less than twenty-five per cent.

Ever since winning the 1981 World Championships with juji-gatame, Neil Adams has been regarded as one of the finest exponents of armlocks and there could have been no more appropriate author for a specialist book on the subject. It came as no surprise that, when invited to teach a technique at the Kodokan in Tokyo, he was specifically asked to demonstrate juji-gatame.

But in addition to the variety of turns into juji-gatame which he demonstrated throughout his extensive contest career, he has also made a specialist study of other armlocks- and their use in tachiwaza as well as newaza. Here, for the first time, he concentrates on armlocks alone, including most of the techniques that are seen on the modern contest mat. it is an absorbing and fascinating study which will doubtless be regarded as the handbook of the subject for decades to come.

Nicolas Soames
Masterclass Series Editor

Contents

Foreword
Armlocks: a Personal View
A History of Armlocks
Juji-gatame
Finishing Juji-gatame
Ude-gatame
Ude-garami
Waki-gatame
Standing Armlocks
Hara-gatame
Special Combinations
Self-defence
Competition Armlocks
Afterword
Index