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Kickboxing Although the true roots of kickboxing date back to Asia 2,000 years ago, modern competitive kickboxing actually started in the 1970s, when American karate experts arranged competitions that allowed full-contact kicks and punches that had been banned in karate. Because of health and safety concerns, padding and protective clothing and safety rules were introduced into the sport over the years, which led to the various forms of competitive kickboxing practiced in the United States today. The forms differ in the techniques used and the amount of physical contact that is allowed between the competitors. Boxing Boxing , also called pugilism , Western Boxing , prizefighting (when referring to professional boxing) or the sweet science (a common nickname among fans), is a sport in which two participants of similar fight each other with their in a series of one to three-minute intervals called "rounds". In both Olympic and professional divisions, the combatants (called boxers or fighters ) avoid their opponent's punches while trying to land punches of their own. Points are awarded for clean, solid blows to the legal area on the front of the opponent's body above the waistline, with hits to the head and torso being especially valuable. The fighter with the most points after the scheduled number of rounds is declared the winner. Victory may also be achieved if the opponent is knocked down and unable to get up before the referee counts to ten Knockout, or KO) or if the opponent is deemed too injured to continue Technical Knockout, or TKO. For record-keeping purposes, a TKO is counted as a knockout. On boxers' records, only KO's are mentioned. Technical knockouts are usually only mentioned in contemporaneous news articles Mixed Martial Arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a combat sport in which two competitors attempt to achieve dominance over one another by utilizing a wide variety of permitted martial arts techniques, including striking and grappling . Well-known MMA organizations include the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Pride Fighting Championships . MMA is also sometimes referred to as " NHB " or " No Holds Barred ," but this term is now out of favor: NHB is no longer an accurate description of the modern sport, with its formalized rules and banned techniques that were developed for the fighters' safety. Self-defense Self-defense strategies form the basis of numerous martial arts , especially East Asian martial arts, which usually provide self-defense classes as part of their curricula. The 1980's and 1990's saw the growth in popularity of systems that are termed 'Reality Based Martial Arts', that are based upon traditional martial artists experience and the techniques, strategeies and tactics that they have employed, or on systems used by Law Enforcement and/or Military Agencies (Such as Commando Krav Maga the system used by elite Israeli military units. Many schools of self-defense also teach strategies aimed at avoiding or defusing physical confrontations. The curriculum for such courses commonly teach positioning strategies and strengthening the defender's self-confidence, which is assumed to discourage some physical attacks. Some studies, for instance, including those by David Lesak, have shown perpetrators who sexually assault acquaintances test their victims first. The perpetrator will gradually cross the potential victim's boundaries through techniques such as touching or making inappropriate sexual comments. If the woman responds with discomfort or fear his intrusive behavior may escalate to sexual assault. Women who responded to these early tactics with consistent assertiveness avoided rape. Medicine Ball |
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