Leg grabs and the standing-groundwork boundary
IJF · 2026In standing judo, grabbing legs, gripping trousers or using hands or arms to hook or block the opponent's legs is prohibited. Jacket grips and grips below the belt down to the top of the inner thigh are allowed when used positively; contact farther down is not a general permission to attack the legs.
The rule
In standing judo, grabbing legs, gripping trousers or using hands or arms to hook or block the opponent's legs is prohibited. Jacket grips and grips below the belt down to the top of the inner thigh are allowed when used positively; contact farther down is not a general permission to attack the legs.
In practice
Leg gripping becomes possible when both athletes are clearly in groundwork and the standing action has stopped. An athlete dropping to the knees is not automatically free to grab a standing opponent's legs. Transitional positions have specific rules, so the referee evaluates the entire action rather than treating any knee contact as groundwork.
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