Referees & Judges - WKF Kumite Rules

ARTICLE 12: POWERS AND DUTIES - VERSION 6 MADRID JANUARY 2009

REFEREE COMMISSION
The Referee Commission’s powers and duties shall be as follows:

  1. To ensure the correct preparation for each given tournament in consultation with the Organising Commission, with regard to competition area arrangement, the provision and deployment of all equipment and necessary facilities, match operation and supervision, safety precautions, etc.
  2. To appoint and deploy the Match Area Controllers (Chief Referees) to their respective areas and to act upon and take such action as may be required by the reports of the Match Area Controllers.
  3. To supervise and co-ordinate the overall performance of the Refereeing officials.
  4. To nominate substitute officials where such are required.
  5. To pass the final judgement on matters of a technical nature which may arise during a given match and for which there are no stipulations in the rules.

MATCH AREA CONTROLLERS
The Match Area Controllers powers and duties shall be as follows:

  1. To delegate, appoint, and supervise the Referees and Judges, for all matches in areas under their control.
  2. To oversee the performance of the Referees and Judges in their areas, and to ensure that the Officials appointed are capable of the tasks allotted them.
  3. To order the Referee to halt the match when the Arbitrator signals a contravention of the Rules of Competition.
  4. To prepare a daily, written report, on the performance of each official under their supervision, together with their recommendations, if any, to the Referee Commission.

REFEREES
The Referee's powers shall be as follows:

  1. The Referee (“SHUSHIN”) shall have the power to conduct matches including announcing the start, the suspension, and the end of the match.
  2. To award points.
  3. To explain to the Match Area Controller, Referee Commission, or Appeals Jury, if necessary, the basis for giving a judgement.
  4. To impose penalties and to issue warnings, before, during, or after a bout.
  5. To obtain and act upon the opinion(s) of the Judges.
  6. To announce and start an extra bout (SAI SHIAI).
  7. To conduct voting of the Referee Panel (HANTEI) and announce the result.
  8. To resolve ties.
  9. To announce the winner.
  10. The authority of the Referee is not confined solely to the competition area but also to all of its immediate perimeter.
  11. The Referee shall give all commands and make all announcements.

JUDGES
The Judges (FUKUSHIN) powers shall be as follows:

  1. To assist the Referee by flag signals.
  2. To exercise a right to vote on a decision to be taken.
    The Judges shall carefully observe the actions of the contestants and signal to the Referee an opinion in the following cases:
    a) When a score is observed.
    b) When a contestant has committed a prohibited act and/or techniques.
    c) When an injury, or illness or inability of a contestant to continue is noticed.
    d) When both or either of the contestants have moved out of the competition area (JOGAI).
    e) In other cases when it is deemed necessary to call the attention of the Referee.

ARBITRATORS
The Arbitrator (KANSA) will assist the Match Area Controller by overseeing the match or bout in progress. Should decisions of the Referee and/or Judges, not be in accordance with the Rules of Competition, the Arbitrator will immediately raise the red flag and blow his whistle. The Match Area Controller will instruct the Referee to halt the match or bout and correct the irregularity. Records kept of the match shall become official records subject to the approval of the Arbitrator. Before the start of each match or bout the Arbitrator will ensure that the contestants’ are wearing approved equipment.

SCORE SUPERVISORS
The Score Supervisor will keep a separate record of the scores awarded by the Referee and at the same time oversee the actions of the appointed timekeepers and scorekeepers.

EXPLANATION:

  • When three Judges give the same signal, or indicate a score for the same competitor, the Referee will stop the bout and render the majority decision. Should the Referee fail to stop the bout the Arbitrator will raise the red flag and blow his whistle.
  • When two Judges give the same signal, or indicate a score for the same competitor, the Referee will consider their opinions but may decline to stop the bout if he believes them to be mistaken.
  • However, when the bout is halted, the majority decision will prevail.
  • When the Referee decides to halt the bout he will call “YAME" at the same time using the required hand signal. The Judges will lower their flags and await the Referee’s opinion. When the Referee returns to his starting line, he will convey his reason(s) for stopping the bout by using the appropriate signal(s). The Judges will then signal their opinions and the Referee will render the majority decision.
  • In the event of a two/two decision the Referee will indicate with the appropriate signal why the other contestant’s score is not considered to be valid and then award the score to the opponent.
  • When three Judges each have different opinions, the Referee may give a decision, which is supported by one of the Judges.
  • At HANTEI the Referee and Judges each have one vote. In the event of a tied SAI SHIAI the Referee will have a casting vote.
  • The Judges must only score what they actually see. If they are not sure that a technique actually reached a scoring area, they should not signal.
  • The role of the Arbitrator is to ensure that the match or bout is conducted in accordance with the Rules of Competition. He is not there as an additional Judge. He has no vote, nor has he any authority in matters of judgement, such as whether a score was valid or if JOGAI occurred. His sole responsibility is in matters of procedure.
  • In the event that the Referee does not hear the time-up bell, the Score Supervisor will blow his whistle.
  • When explaining the basis for a judgement after the match, the Referee Panel may speak to the Match Area Controller, the Referee Commission, or the Appeals Jury. They will explain to no one else.

    This is provided for your information. Please check the WKF website for any amendments or changes to this information or for the latest news. www.wkf.net

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