Lara Sullivan in the under 63 kilogram class in 1997. Catherine Arlove is one Australian who is confident she can win a medal. Arlove crashed out of the Sydney International Judo Challenge late last year in the first round of the women s under 70kg class and says the experience was shattering. It s always been a realistic hope. Australian Broadcasting Corporation Judo bouts take place between two combatants within a six metre square contest area.
Bouts last five minutes for men and four minutes for women.
Judoka must bow to each other and the contest area before and after each bout. The aim is to throw, pin or hold the opponent and score a point, called an ippon. If a judoka scores an ippon, he or she automatically wins the bout. If a judka almost scores an ippon, he or she is credited with half a point, or a waz-ari. This is awarded if the judoka s throw contains three of the four ippon criteria, or if a hold is successfully made for 20 seconds, but not 25.