The gi jacket, uwagi in Japanese, is the heavy woven top of a judogi or BJJ gi, and its lapel and sleeves are the grips the whole gi game is built on. Judoinfo.com lists the gripping points as eri, the collar and lapel, and sode, the sleeve.
- Japanese name: uwagi; judoinfo.com lists the gripping points eri (collar, lapel) and sode (sleeve).
- In judo: the jacket's measurements, colour and weave are set by the IJF rulebook for competition.
- In BJJ: IBJJF rules set the length, sleeve width and colour.
What are the parts of a gi jacket?
The lapel (eri) is a thick, stiff band running from the collar down the front; it is the main grip in judo and the handle for collar chokes in both sports. The sleeves (sode) end at the cuff, the second main grip. The body of the jacket is a single-weave or double-weave cotton, with a lighter weave below the belt line called the skirt. Side vents at the hips let you kneel and shrimp. Judoinfo.com's terms list names the two gripping hands as hikite, the pulling hand on the sleeve, and tsurite, the lifting hand on the collar.
How long should gi jacket sleeves be?
For BJJ, the IBJJF Rules Book says the jacket must reach the thigh and the sleeves must end no more than 2 cm from the wrist with the arm held straight out, parallel to the ground. The sleeve may have at most 7 cm of slack along its length, and the collar may be at most 1.3 cm thick and 5 cm wide.
For judo, the IJF Sport and Organisation Rules want the sleeves to cover the whole arm including the wrist bone, with room for the measuring stick, the sokuteiki, to slide inside. The skirt must cover the buttocks, at least 20 cm below the belt for athletes up to 73 kg and 25 cm above that. The lapel may be at most 1 cm thick and must be 4 cm wide, and the two sides must cross at least 25 cm apart at belt level.
Why is a judo jacket cut differently?
The judo rules set minimum room: the sleeve must take the measuring stick, the lapels must cross wide, and the skirt must be long, so the opponent always has cloth to hold. The BJJ rules set maximums instead, capping how thick and wide the collar may be and how much the sleeve may hang, so a gi cannot be made hard to grip.
How do you care for a gi jacket?
Cold wash after every session, hang to dry, never tumble. The lapel holds sweat and takes longest to dry, so hang the jacket open. Patch the sleeve cuff and the armpit seam as soon as they fray. Buy a jacket a size up if you prefer a looser grip game, or train in a competition-cut jacket so the gi check holds no surprises.
For no-gi rounds, our rash guards are cut long enough to stay tucked.
Sources
- Judoinfo.com lists, JudoInfo
- IBJJF Rules Book, IBJJF
- IJF Sport and Organisation Rules, International Judo Federation
Related terms
Gi, Gi pants, Gi check / uniform rules, Grip fighting, Cross collar choke, Pulling hand and lifting hand.