Background Karate is a popular combat semi-contact sport among juniors, but there are only few studies available on the epidemiology of injuries in karate junior athletes.AimThe aims of this study were to determine the incidence and pattern of injuries in top-level karate competition for athletes aged 16 to 20 years, and to compare injury rates between age groups (ie, under 18-year-old [U18] and under 21-year-old [U21]) and genders, following the introduction of new weight categories.MethodsA prospective injury surveillance was undertaken at four consecutive World Karate Championships (2009 to 2015), following the same protocols used in previous investigations.ResultsDuring the four championships, a total of 257 injuries were recorded, with an incidence of 41.4/1,000 athlete exposures (AEs, 95% CI 36.4 to 46.3). The injury rate was significantly lower for females with a rate ratio 0.63 (95% CI 0.48 to 0.82). Most of the injuries were minor ones: contusions (n=100), followed by abrasions (n=63) and epistaxis (n=62). Only 10% of the injuries were time-loss injuries (injury incidence rates 4.2/1,000 AEs; 95% CI 2.7 to 6.1). Face injuries represented 69.6% of the injuries, most of them were minor ones (light abrasions 24.5%, epistaxis 24.1%, contusion 16.7%). Change of rules (raising the number of weight categories from three to five) reduced injury incidence in the U21 category.ConclusionsThe total injury rate in junior competitions is lower compared with elite adult athletes and higher compared with younger elite athletes. Time-loss injuries are rare. The implementation of the new competition categories in U21 karate has been associated with a significant reduction in injury rate.

In recent years, much effort has been made to reduce the injury rate in combat sports. However, the question remains to what extent these measures are effective. Analysis of studies could provide evidence of the effectiveness of measures aimed at reducing the incidence of injuries. This scoping review aims (1) to map research articles dealing with the effectiveness of proper use of protective measures in reducing the incidence of injuries in combat sports; (2) to investigate to what extent the proper use of protective measures and compliance with sports rules help to reduce the incidence of injuries in combat sports; and (3) to identify gaps in the existing literature and suggest future research on this topic. The literature search was conducted on articles published between 2010 and 2023. The main inclusion criteria were studies investigating the effect of sports rules and protective equipment used during training or competition in combat sports on reducing the incidence of injuries. After meeting the criteria, only seven articles from boxing, karate, and taekwondo were included in this study. Results showed that mandatory head guards, along with modern thicker gloves, significantly reduced the rate of knockouts (KOs) and head injuries in boxing despite an increase in the number of head blows. However, the number of facial cuts increased significantly due to the removal of head guards as a piece of mandatory equipment. The use of mouth guards has significantly reduced the number of oral injuries. Changes in rules, such as shortening the duration of bouts, along with the introduction of greater competencies of referees in the supervision of bouts (the standing count, outclassed rule, and medical stops) have helped to reduce the rate of injuries in boxing. The application of a computerised scoring system also contributed to the rate of injuries reduction. The increase in the number of weight divisions had the same effect on U21 karate athletes. However, a higher incentive to attack the head area in taekwondo did not increase the incidence of injuries in youth athletes. It can be concluded that the proper use of protective measures (head and mouth guards) in combination with the rules established for health protection (higher competencies of referees and more weight divisions in competitions) effectively reduces the occurrence of injuries in combat sports. In all Olympic combat sports, the injury incidence should be regularly assessed using the Injury Incidence Rate (IIR) per 1000 min exposures (MEs). Nonetheless, further studies are needed to monitor how established rules (e.g., prohibited behaviour) affect the IIRs.

Objective: To determine the injury incidence rate (IIR) and injury pattern, and to identify risk factors for injury, among elite adult European judo athletes.Design: Prospective cohort study.Setting: The 2015 Under 23 European Judo Championships, Bratislava, Slovakia.Participants: All registered athletes (N = 295).Independent Variables: Sex, weight division, and fight outcome.Main Outcome Measures: Injury incidence rates were calculated per 1000 athlete-exposures (IIR_AE) and per 1000 minutes of exposure (IIR_ME) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Subgroups were compared by calculating the injury incidence rate ratio (RR) with a 95% CI.Results: The overall IIR_AEand IIR_MEwere 35.6 (95% CI, 22.8-53.0) and 10.9 (95% CI, 7.0-16.2), respectively. The most frequently injured anatomical region was the head/neck (41%), whereas the most common type of injury was contusion (33%). The risk of injury was almost 4 times greater for defeated athletes compared with winners [RR_ME3.80 (95% CI, 1.47-9.82)]. Athletes in middleweight divisions had a greater risk of injury compared with their lightweight [RR_ME3.58 (95% CI, 1.24-10.35)] and heavyweight [RR_ME2.34 (95% CI, 0.93-5.89)] counterparts. The risk of injury for women was not significantly different from their male counterparts [RR_ME1.33 (95% CI, 0.61-2.90)].Conclusions: Weight division (middle) and fight outcome (losing) are significant risk factors for injury. The IIR in elite adult judo competition is lower than that in taekwondo and karate. Future research is encouraged to investigate the actual severity of judo injuries, and to investigate potentially modifiable risk factors to mitigate the risk of injury in judo.

Aim: To determine the injury incidence rate and injury pattern among youth karate athletes competing in national tournaments in Slovakia, and to identify risk factors for injury.Methods: Data were collected at nine national youth karate tournaments in Slovakia in 2015 and 2016. Injury incidence rates were calculated per 1000 athlete-exposures (IIR_AE) and per 1000 min of exposure (IIR_ME) with 95% CIs. Subgroups were compared by calculating their rate ratios (RR) with 95% CIs.Results: The overall IIR_AEand IIR_MEwere 45.3 (95% CI 38.7 to 52.6) and 35.9 (95% CI 30.7 to 41.7), respectively. The most frequently injured anatomical region was the head/neck (57%), while the most common type of injury was contusion (85%). The risk of injury for the 12–17-year-old age group was almost twice that of the 6–12-year-old age group, after accounting for exposure time (RR_ME1.92 (95% CI 1.39 to 2.65)), and the difference was more pronounced for girls than boys (RR_ME2.47 (95% CI 1.52 to 4.00) vs RR_ME1.62 (95% CI 1.06 to 2.49), respectively).Conclusions: Youth karate has a relatively large proportion of head injuries. Adolescent and female youth karate athletes are at higher risk of injury compared with their child and male counterparts.

Background Although it is well known that injuries occur in combat sports, the true incidence of concussions is not clearly defined in the literature for karate competition. Aim To determine the incidence of concussions in top-level (World Karate Federation World Championships) karate competition. Methods Injuries that took place in 4 consecutive World Karate Championships (from 2008 to 2014) were prospectively registered. A total of 4625 fights (2916 in the male category and 1709 in the female category) were scrutinised, and concussions were identified and analysed separately for frequency (rate per fight) and injury risk. Results A total of 4 concussions were diagnosed by the attending physicians after carrying out athlete examinations. Globally, there was 1 concussion in every 1156 fights, or 0.43/1000 athlete-exposures (AE). In male athletes, the rate of concussion was 1/5832 min of fighting, and in female athletes, it was 1/6836 min. OR for concussion in women is 0.57 (95% CI 0.06 to 5.47; z=0.489; p=0.6249) and risk ratio for concussions in men is RR 1.478 (95% CI 0.271 to 8.072), p=0.528, representing a higher risk of definite concussions in men than in women, but not statistically significant. There is not a significantly higher risk of concussions in team competition (no weight limit) when compared with individual competition (held with strict weight limits for each category). Conclusion The risk of concussions in top-level karate competition is low, with a tendency for an increased risk for men and for competition without weight limits, but not statistically significant with respect to women or individual competition.

Background/Objectives: To address the inconsistent provision of specialist physical education (PE) in primary schools, this study investigated the comparative efficacy of distinct team teaching configurations. The objective was to compare these instructional models’ impact on students’ basic motor competencies (MC) and self-reported physical literacy (PL). Methods: This cluster-randomized trial involved N = 266 students (grades 1–4) in Slovakia, assigned to one of five instructional models (PE teacher; GT+PET; PET+AT; GT+C; and GT+AT). The five-month intervention included two 45 min PE lessons weekly. Given the cluster design and non-normal data, the Wilcoxon singed-rank test and Kruskal–Wallis H-test were applied to assess the differences, and Cohen’s r was applied to determine effect size. Results: Comparative analysis showed no significant differences across teaching models for Self-Movement (p = 0.544), Object-Movement (p = 0.138), or PL (p = 0.219). Significant within-group MC gains were found in 4 teaching models, yet the practical effect size was generally weak to moderate (r ranging from 0.21 to 0.69). The strongest practical improvement was observed in the AT+PET Self-Movement group (r = 0.69). In contrast, the GT+PET configuration achieved no significant MC gain. For PL, only the AT+PET and GT+PET models showed significantly positive but moderate changes (r = 0.32 and 0.37). Conversely, the GT+C model resulted in a moderately significant decline in PL (Δ = −9.16, r = 0.43). A positive but practically weak correlation emerged between the MC subscales and PL (ρ ranging from 0.135 to 0.238, p < 0.05), with the highest limited association for Catching (ρ = 0.377, p < 0.01). The frequency of organized out-of-school physical activity was positively correlated with MC subscales (ρ = 0.195–0.282, p < 0.01) but not significantly correlated with PL. Conclusions: No single teaching model proved superior for improving overall motor competence or self-perceived physical literacy. While most effective configurations yielded moderate practical gains, the GT+C model presents a key paradox: while effective for objective skills, it proved detrimental to self-perceived physical literacy. These findings lead to explicit policy and implementation recommendations focused on strengthening collaborative instruction. Policymakers should consider strategies to support the integration of specialist PE teachers (PETs), such as establishing co-teaching as a recommended practice and allocating dedicated resources for funding and collaborative planning time to leverage the specialized knowledge they bring. Furthermore, schools are encouraged to focus on the effective implementation of PET-involved team teaching approaches (e.g., AT+PET and GT+PET). These models are not only effective but also support the co-professionalization of the generalist teacher, which is essential for ensuring that high-quality, evidence-based PE practices are consistently embedded.