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A combat sport (also known as a combative sport) is a competitive contact sport
Contact sport

Many sports involve a degree of player-to-player and/or player-to-object contact.The term "contact sport" is used in both team sports and combat sports, medical terminology and television game shows to certain degrees....
 where two combatants fight against each other using certain rules of engagement, typically with the aim of simulating parts of real hand to hand combat
Hand to hand combat

Hand-to-hand combat is a generic term often referring to weaponless fighting conducted from a military based point of view. This distinguishes it from combat sport....
. Boxing
Boxing

Boxing is a combat sport where two participants, generally of similar human weight, fight each other with their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee and is typically engaged in during a series of one to three-minute intervals called rounds....
, amateur wrestling
Amateur wrestling

Amateur wrestling is the most widespread form of sport wrestling. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games under the supervision of International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles : Greco-Roman wrestling and Freestyle wrestling....
, puroresu
Professional wrestling in Japan

Professional wrestling in Japan is commonly referred to as in Japanese language, short for "professional wrestling" . The word puroresu was made popular by Hisaharu Tanabe among the English-speaking fans in the early 1990s through Usenet and online services....
, mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts is a Contact sport combat sport that allows a wide variety of fighting techniques, from a mixture of martial arts traditions and non-traditions, to be used in competitions....
 and fencing
Fencing

Fencing is a family of sports and activities that feature armed combat involving cutting, stabbing, or slapping Club ing weapons that are directly manipulated by hand, rather than shot, thrown or positioned....
 are examples of combat sports.

The techniques used can be categorized into three domains: striking
Strike (attack)

A strike is an attack with an inanimate object, such as a weapon, or with a part of the human body intended to cause an effect upon an opponent or to simply cause harm to an opponent....
, grappling
Grappling

Grappling refers to the gripping, handling, and controlling of an opponent without the use of strike , typically through the application of various grappling holds, choke holds, and counters to various hold attempts....
, and weapon
Weapon

A weapon is a tool used to apply or threaten to apply force for the purpose of hunting, attack or defense in combat, subduing enemy personnel, or to destroy enemy weapons, equipment and defensive structures....
 usage.






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A combat sport (also known as a combative sport) is a competitive contact sport
Contact sport

Many sports involve a degree of player-to-player and/or player-to-object contact.The term "contact sport" is used in both team sports and combat sports, medical terminology and television game shows to certain degrees....
 where two combatants fight against each other using certain rules of engagement, typically with the aim of simulating parts of real hand to hand combat
Hand to hand combat

Hand-to-hand combat is a generic term often referring to weaponless fighting conducted from a military based point of view. This distinguishes it from combat sport....
. Boxing
Boxing

Boxing is a combat sport where two participants, generally of similar human weight, fight each other with their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee and is typically engaged in during a series of one to three-minute intervals called rounds....
, amateur wrestling
Amateur wrestling

Amateur wrestling is the most widespread form of sport wrestling. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games under the supervision of International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles : Greco-Roman wrestling and Freestyle wrestling....
, puroresu
Professional wrestling in Japan

Professional wrestling in Japan is commonly referred to as in Japanese language, short for "professional wrestling" . The word puroresu was made popular by Hisaharu Tanabe among the English-speaking fans in the early 1990s through Usenet and online services....
, mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts is a Contact sport combat sport that allows a wide variety of fighting techniques, from a mixture of martial arts traditions and non-traditions, to be used in competitions....
 and fencing
Fencing

Fencing is a family of sports and activities that feature armed combat involving cutting, stabbing, or slapping Club ing weapons that are directly manipulated by hand, rather than shot, thrown or positioned....
 are examples of combat sports.

The techniques used can be categorized into three domains: striking
Strike (attack)

A strike is an attack with an inanimate object, such as a weapon, or with a part of the human body intended to cause an effect upon an opponent or to simply cause harm to an opponent....
, grappling
Grappling

Grappling refers to the gripping, handling, and controlling of an opponent without the use of strike , typically through the application of various grappling holds, choke holds, and counters to various hold attempts....
, and weapon
Weapon

A weapon is a tool used to apply or threaten to apply force for the purpose of hunting, attack or defense in combat, subduing enemy personnel, or to destroy enemy weapons, equipment and defensive structures....
 usage. Some rule-sets specialize in one area, while others allow overlap.

History

Sports related to combat skills have been a part of human culture for thousands of years. The Ancient Olympic Games
Ancient Olympic Games

The Ancient Olympic Games, originally referred to as simply the Olympic Games were a series of athletic competitions held for representatives of various city-states of Ancient Greece....
 were largely composed of sports that tested skills related to combat, such as armored foot races
Hoplitodromos

The hoplitodromos was an ancient athletics , part of the Ancient Olympic Games and the other Panhellenic Games. It was the last foot race to be added to the Olympics, first appearing at the 65th Olympics in 520 BC, and was traditionally the last foot race to be held....
, boxing
Boxing

Boxing is a combat sport where two participants, generally of similar human weight, fight each other with their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee and is typically engaged in during a series of one to three-minute intervals called rounds....
, wrestling
Wrestling

Wrestling is part of the martial arts. A wrestling match consists of physical engagement between two people in which each wrestler strives to get an advantage over, or control of, the opponent....
, pankration
Pankration

Pankration is a martial arts sport introduced to the Ancient Greece Ancient Olympic Games in 648 BC and founded as a blend of boxing and wrestling....
, chariot racing
Chariot racing

Chariot racing was one of the most popular Ancient Greece, Roman Empire and Byzantine empire sports. Chariot racing was often dangerous to both driver and horse?they frequently suffered serious injury and even death?but generated strong spectator enthusiasm....
 amongst others. This tradition of Combat sports was taken even further by the Romans
Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC....
 with gladiator
Gladiator

A Gladiator was a slave, criminal or professional fighter in ancient Rome. Gladiators fought other gladiators, wild animals and condemned criminals, sometimes to the death, for the entertainment of Spectator sport in cities and towns of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, from the 3rd century BCE to the 5th century CE....
s who would fight with weapons, often to the death.

Through the Middle ages
Middle Ages

File:Karl 1 mit papst gelasius gregor1 sacramentar v karl d kahlen.jpgThe Middle Ages of European history are a period in history which lasted for roughly a millennium, commonly dated from the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century to the beginning of the Early Modern Period in the 16th century, marked by the division of Western Christi...
 and Renaissance
Renaissance

The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe....
 the Tournament
Tournament (medieval)

A Tournament, or tourney is the name popularly given to chivalry competitions or mock fights of the Middle Ages and Renaissance . It is one of various types of hastiludes....
 became popular, with the Joust
Jousting

Jousting is a sport played by two armored combatants mounted on horses. It consists of wiktionary:martial competition between two mounted knights using a variety of weapons, usually in sets of three per weapon , often as part of a Tournament ....
 as a main event. While the tournament was popular amongst Aristocrats, combative sports where practiced by all levels of society. Folk wrestling
Folk wrestling

Folk wrestling is a generic term for traditional wrestling disciplines which may or may not be codified as a modern sport. Most human cultures have some sort of grappling style, and "folk wrestling" is a catch-all term for such styles....
 exists in many forms and in most cultures.

Modern sports

Today athletes usually fight one-on-one, but may still use various skill sets such as strikes
Strike (attack)

A strike is an attack with an inanimate object, such as a weapon, or with a part of the human body intended to cause an effect upon an opponent or to simply cause harm to an opponent....
 in boxing
Boxing

Boxing is a combat sport where two participants, generally of similar human weight, fight each other with their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee and is typically engaged in during a series of one to three-minute intervals called rounds....
 that only allows punching
Punch (strike)

A punch is "a thrusting blow, esp. with the fist." In some sports and disciplines, such as boxing or martial arts, where punches are regularly practiced, hand wraps or other padding such as gloves may be employed to protect athletes and practitioners from injuring themselves....
, taekwondo
Taekwondo

Taekwondo is a Korean martial art and the national sport of South Korea. It is the world's most popular martial art in terms of the number of practitioners....
 where kick
Kick

In martial arts, combat sports or violence, a kick is a strike using the foot, Human leg, or knee . This attack is often used in hand-to-hand combat, especially in stand-up fighting....
s are the focus or muay thai
Muay Thai

Muay Thai is a form of hard martial art practiced in large parts of the world, including Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. The art is similar to others in Southeast Asian such as: pradal Serey in Cambodia, lethwei in Myanmar, tomoi in Malaysia, and Lao boxing in Laos....
 and burmese boxing that also allow the use of elbows
Elbow (strike)

An elbow strike is a strike with the point of the elbow, the part of the forearm nearest to the elbow, or the part of the upper arm nearest to the elbow....
 and knees
Knee (strike)

A knee strike is a strike with the knee, either with the kneecap or the surrounding area. Kneeing is a disallowed practice in many combat sports, especially to the head, downed opponent....
. There are also grappling
Grappling

Grappling refers to the gripping, handling, and controlling of an opponent without the use of strike , typically through the application of various grappling holds, choke holds, and counters to various hold attempts....
 based sports that may concentrate on obtaining a superior position
Grappling position

A grappling position refers the positioning and grappling hold of combatants engaged in grappling. Combatants are said to be in a neutral position if neither is in a more favorable position....
 as in freestyle
Freestyle wrestling

Freestyle wrestling is a style of amateur wrestling that is practiced throughout the world. Along with Greco-Roman wrestling, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic games....
 or Collegiate wrestling
Collegiate wrestling

Collegiate wrestling is the style of amateur wrestling practiced at the college and university level in the United States. Collegiate wrestling is sometimes known as folkstyle wrestling because by and large, it is the style that emerged out of the folk wrestling styles practiced in the early history of the United States....
 using throws
Throw (grappling)

A throw is a martial arts term for a grappling technique that involves off-balancing or lifting an opponent, and tossing them to the ground. It usually involves a rotating motion as opposed to a takedown )....
 such as in judo
Judo

, meaning "gentle way", is a modern Japanese martial art and combat sport, that originated in Japan in the late nineteenth century. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either Throw one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling manoeuvre, or force an opponent...
 and greco-roman wrestling
Greco-Roman wrestling

Greco-Roman wrestling is a style of amateur wrestling that is practiced throughout the world. Along with freestyle wrestling, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic games....
 the use of submissions as in brazilian jiu-jitsu
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art and combat sport that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting. It is a derivative of early 20th century Kodokan Judo, which was itself then a recently-developed system , based on multiple schools of Japanese jujutsu....
. Modern mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts is a Contact sport combat sport that allows a wide variety of fighting techniques, from a mixture of martial arts traditions and non-traditions, to be used in competitions....
 competitions are similar to the historic Greek Olympic sport of pankration
Pankration

Pankration is a martial arts sport introduced to the Ancient Greece Ancient Olympic Games in 648 BC and founded as a blend of boxing and wrestling....
 and allow a wide range of both striking and grappling techniques. Puroresu
Professional wrestling in Japan

Professional wrestling in Japan is commonly referred to as in Japanese language, short for "professional wrestling" . The word puroresu was made popular by Hisaharu Tanabe among the English-speaking fans in the early 1990s through Usenet and online services....
 is a popular combat sport in Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
 and is described as "bridging the gap" between mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts is a Contact sport combat sport that allows a wide variety of fighting techniques, from a mixture of martial arts traditions and non-traditions, to be used in competitions....
 and professional wrestling
Professional wrestling

Professional wrestling, or pro wrestling, is a non-competitive professional sport, where matches are prearranged by the Professional wrestling promotion List of professional wrestling terms#B, and is also considered an athletic performing art, containing strong elements of catch wrestling, mock combat and theatre....
. The term "puroresu" is a romanization
Romanization

In linguistics, romanization is the representation of a written word or spoken speech with the Latin alphabet, or a system for doing so, where the original word or language uses a different writing system ....
 of the English term "pro wrestling." Puroresu was inspired in part by a series of mixed martial arts matches were hosted by Antonio Inoki
Antonio Inoki

, real name , born February 20, 1943) is a professional wrestling promoter and retired Japanese professional wrestler and Mixed martial arts who now resides in New York City....
 a former star of New Japan Pro Wrestling in the 1970s.

Combat sports may also be armed and the athletes compete using weapons, such as types of sword in western fencing
Fencing

Fencing is a family of sports and activities that feature armed combat involving cutting, stabbing, or slapping Club ing weapons that are directly manipulated by hand, rather than shot, thrown or positioned....
 (the foil
Foil

Foil may refer to:Materials:* Foil , a thin sheet of metal* Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal* Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food...
, épée and saber
Sabre (fencing)

The sabre is one of the three weapons of modern sport fencing, and is alternatively spelled saber in American English language. The sabre differs from the other modern fencing weapons, the ?p?e and Foil , in that it is possible to score with the edge of the blade; for this reason, sabreur movements and attacks are very fast....
) and kendo
Kendo

, meaning ":wiktionary:? of the :wiktionary:?", is a modern Japanese people martial art of sword-fighting based on traditional Japanese swordsmanship, or Kenjutsu....
 (shinai
Shinai

is a weapon used for practice and competiton in kendo and are meant to represent a Japanese sword. Shinai are also used in other martial arts, but may be styled differently from kendo shinai, and represented with different kanji....
). Modern combat sports may also wear complex armour, like SCA Heavy Combat
SCA Heavy Combat

SCA Heavy Combat is a Combat sport or Contact sport/Martial Art based on historical combat, conducted by the Historical reenactment/Living history group, The Society for Creative Anachronism....
 and kendo
Kendo

, meaning ":wiktionary:? of the :wiktionary:?", is a modern Japanese people martial art of sword-fighting based on traditional Japanese swordsmanship, or Kenjutsu....
. In escrima sticks are used, sometimes representing knives, this concept has been expanded by the Dog Brothers
Dog Brothers

The Dog Brothers are a group of martial artists that have gained some notorietyin the Filipino Martial Arts community for their aggressive sparring methods...
. American style professional wrestling
Professional wrestling

Professional wrestling, or pro wrestling, is a non-competitive professional sport, where matches are prearranged by the Professional wrestling promotion List of professional wrestling terms#B, and is also considered an athletic performing art, containing strong elements of catch wrestling, mock combat and theatre....
 is based on the concept of combat sports but many of the match outcomes are predetermined.

See also

  • Hand to hand combat
    Hand to hand combat

    Hand-to-hand combat is a generic term often referring to weaponless fighting conducted from a military based point of view. This distinguishes it from combat sport....
  • Martial arts
    Martial arts

    Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat. While they may be studied for various reasons, martial arts share a single objective: to physically defeat other persons and to defend oneself or others from physical threat....
  • Ring girl
    Ring girl

    A ring girl is the common name for the girl who enters the ring between rounds of a combat sport event such as boxing, kickboxing, or mixed martial arts, carrying a sign that displays the number of the upcoming round....