Combat sport
A sport in which competitors fight under rules governing permitted techniques, scoring, and safety.
Weight class: A division that groups competitors by body mass to reduce size disparities. Weight classes shape matchmaking and weigh-ins in many combat sports.
Boxing: A combat sport in which competitors use gloved punches under defined rules. Boxing illustrates a sport restricted mainly to hand strikes.
Martial arts: Systems of combat techniques and training traditions, practiced for fighting, sport, health, or cultural purposes. Combat sports draw techniques from martial arts but require competitive rules.
Concussion in sport: A brain injury caused by an impact or force that disrupts normal brain function during athletic activity. Head impacts make concussion prevention and assessment central safety concerns.
Combat sports rules: Regulations that define legal techniques, prohibited conduct, scoring, and match procedures in a combat sport. Rules determine which fighting skills can be used and how officials judge them.
Wrestling: A combat sport centered on grappling, takedowns, and control, with rules varying by style. Wrestling shows how a combat sport can exclude striking entirely.
Self-defense: Actions taken to protect oneself or another person from an imminent threat. Self-defense responds to uncontrolled threats rather than a mutually agreed contest.
Combat sports medicine: The medical practice concerned with injuries, health risks, and fitness in combat sports. It addresses both acute fight injuries and risks from repeated exposure.
Combat sports judging: The evaluation of a contest by officials who score performance under a sport's rules. Judges decide outcomes when neither competitor wins by stoppage or submission.
Judo: A Japanese martial art and Olympic combat sport emphasizing throws, pins, and submissions. Judo combines grappling techniques with a formal scoring system.