Point sparring vs. Free sparring at Rose and River

Apologies for the late post, yesterday was very busy.

Sparring is a topic that comes up in almost all martial arts schools, types of sparring, rules, etc. There are basically two different types that you might encounter, Point sparring, and Free sparring.

Point sparring is usually considered a sport, opponents must reach a pre-determined number of points to win a match, there is a referee to call the points, and after each point the fighters line up on the line again. Points are determined by the area of the body, 2 points for some areas, 1 point for others, and striking to joints, the face, or below the belt is usually not allowed. There is an agreed upon set of rules that is set down by a "governing body" per region for point sparring used in multi-style tournaments. Many open tournaments in Texas use the A.O.K. rules found here http://www.theaok.org/rules2004.pdf The goal of point sparring is fairly straight forward...To score points on your opponent in order to win the match.

There are many different views on free sparring so it will not be possible to go into all of them. Free sparring is usually rougher than point sparring, and there are fewer rules. Opponents still line up on the line to start the fight, and usually fight for a pre-determined length of time, one to two minutes is the most common. The fight is not usually stopped unless there is a safety issue (such as safety gear coming off by accident, or getting too near sharp corners or mirrors) or if one opponent has been pinned by the other.

The goals in free sparring are somewhat more complicated and depend largely on the atmosphere of the school itself as well as the student's personal goals. Some goals at the level of the school could include the students' learning to defend themselves in a fight, learning what the limits of their endurance are, and learning what they are capable of. Student goals could include learning new moves, building endurance etc. In Free sparring there are no points, the referee is only there to ensure that things don't get too out of hand, and determining a winner is often not the desired result of a match. The students are there to test their skills against the skills of another, not to collect "glory", and as such, if both students have had a good fight, and no one got hurt, then they are both winners.

At Rose and River we do both kinds of sparring, but focus primarily on Free Sparring. Students do not begin any kind of sparring until they have completed the beginner's Cun Tao class and passed their white sash test. At white sash students begin learning the basics of Poekoelan which includes some sparring. Point sparring is for student who wish to participate in open tournaments.

For more information about classes at Rose and River please visit our website at http://www.roseandriver.com or call us at (512) 587-9189.