Some things take a while. Women got the vote in Saudi Arabia in 2015. Oral sex between consenting, heterosexual adults has been legal in Singapore since 2007, but only, of course, as a precursor to conventional intercourse. And now BJJEE reports that the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation is going to legalize heel hooks and leg reaps, in the brown and black belt divisions at No Gi competitions, beginning in 2021.
The news came via certified IBJJF ref and 3rd-degree black belt Thiago Stefanutti, who posted the news on the private Absolute MMA Academy Facebook group.
In 2021 heel-hoks will be allowed to brown and black belts on IBJJF NoGi Comps,” wrote Stefanutti. “This isn’t on the media yet but it is confirmed. For those who eventually didn’t compete IBJJF comps because of it, better find a new excuse. IBJJF is showing they are listening to the community and in my opinion, should be allowed in the gi as well. Good news team!
Stefanutti regretted that the news on his private page went public, noting that he does not represent the IBJJF. But FloGrappling has confirmed that the long-overdue rules change is coming.
The change will eliminate the following points in the IBJJF rule book (Version 4), Article 6.3.2 for Adult to Master Black Belts:
•Technical Foul 18 Heel Hook
•Technical Foul 19 Locks twisting the knees
•Technical Foul 20 Knee Reaping
The rule against heel hooks has multiple origins including a not-unreasonable fear of injury, the belief that leg locks go against the principles of BJJ, and a general distaste for lower body submissions in the more traditional Brazilian jiu-jitsu community.
The final point is similar to boxing aficionados who think hitting a man who is down is inherently dirty. And no one is immune to irrational beliefs as to what’s gross. In 1999, Egan Inoue won the Icon Sport middleweight championship after Marcelo Tigre was disqualified for spitting, among other fouls. SuperBrawl allowed stomps to the head. There is nothing inherently dangerous about spitting, it’s just considered really gross. But social mores in Brazil have changed around leg locks.
The belief that leg locks go against the positional dominance framework of jiu-jitsu and should therefore be prohibited is fundamentally flawed. For complex reasons, Taekwondo enthusiasts believe that kicks are inherently superior to punches, so created a rule system that only rewards kicks. That’s disastrous if your goal is reality.
And lastly, the fear of injury has not been borne out by the experience of competitors in the ADCCs, NAGA, EBI, and countless other progressive events. The simple fact is that the vast majority of injuries come from takedowns, but takedowns are real, so it’s a risk worth taking.
FloGrappling further reports that there will be additional amendments to the rulebook including manufacturing specifications about competition-legal gis.
