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    British Judo Association

    4th Dan Technical Examination

    The BJA technical route to 4th Dan: twenty set techniques in their traditional form, prior learning chosen by the examiner, and performance skills in combination, counter and transition. Every section is passed at 80 per cent. The promotion also requires a BJA kata certificate in Kime-no-kata at Level 2, examined separately from this examination.

    Plain text version

    Source: 4th Dan Grade TECHNICAL Mark Sheet, October 2025. Transcribed from the official BJA mark sheet. The marking scale comes from the Guide for Dan Grade Evaluation of Competitive Skills and Technical Exam, issued 1 July 2025, and the framing from the Technical Dan Grade Scheme Assessment Guide. The forms are the authority; where this page and a current BJA form disagree, the form wins.

    Pass marks and requirements

    Every demonstration is scored from 0 to 10 in whole marks against the BJA's published criteria, where 10 is a close-to-perfect execution, 7 is a competently executed technique meeting all basic expectations, 6 lacks effective kuzushi, tsukuri, kake or core elements, and 0 is an omitted or unrelated technique. Sections 1 and 2 are demonstrated in the Kodokan canonical form with traditional grips; variations and unorthodox grips are permitted in Sections 3 to 5, discussed with the examiner first. The pass mark is 80 per cent of every section and of the whole, which is the difference from the competitive route rather than the content.

    Promotion toPass markMaximumRequirements
    4th Dan536670Fundamental Skills: All twenty techniques set for the grade. Pass mark 160. (200)Fundamental Skills, Prior Learning (examiner's choice): Five techniques from each grade below, chosen by the examiner: 15 in all. Pass mark 120. (150)Performance Skills, Nage-waza: Six nage-waza, candidate's choice, each shown as a renzoku-waza, a renraku-waza and a kaeshi-waza. Pass mark 144. (180)Performance Skills, Katame-waza: Six katame-waza, candidate's choice, each shown as a combination, an escape or a complex entry. Pass mark 48. (60)Performance Skills, Transitions: Four nage-waza into osaekomi-waza and four into kansetsu-waza or shime-waza. Pass mark 64. (80)

    Also required for this promotion

    Examined on its own terms and need not be taken on the same day.

    Section 1: Fundamental Skills

    Twenty techniques set for the grade, demonstrated in the Kodokan canonical form with traditional grips. A technique the syllabus marks as dangerous must not be applied: it is explained only so far as the examiner can judge that the candidate understands it.

    Te-waza

    Koshi-waza

    Ashi-waza

    Ma-sutemi-waza

    Yoko-sutemi-waza

    Osaekomi-waza

    Shime-waza

    Kansetsu-waza

    Section 2: Fundamental Skills, Prior Learning (examiner's choice)

    Five techniques from each of the 1st Dan to 3rd Dan fundamental skills, 15 in all, chosen by the examiner rather than the candidate. This is what makes the technical route broader as it goes up: nothing already passed stops being examinable.

    • Five techniques from the 1st Dan fundamental skills
    • Five techniques from the 2nd Dan fundamental skills
    • Five techniques from the 3rd Dan fundamental skills

    Section 3: Performance Skills, Nage-waza

    Select six different nage-waza from the whole dan grade syllabus, including at least one from Section 1. Use each with any other nage-waza from the syllabus to show a renzoku-waza, a renraku-waza and a kaeshi-waza.

    Section 4: Performance Skills, Katame-waza

    Select six different katame-waza from the whole dan grade syllabus, including at least one from Section 1. Use each to show a combination, an escape, or the technique with a complex entry.

    • Combination
    • Escape
    • Complex Entry

    Section 5: Performance Skills, Transitions

    From the whole dan grade syllabus, demonstrate four nage-waza into osaekomi-waza and four nage-waza into kansetsu-waza or shime-waza.

    The syllabus behind this form

    This page is what is asked on the day. The techniques set for the grade, with somewhere to tick off what you have learned, are here.

    Flashcards

    Drill exactly what this paper names: an Anki deck of this form's techniques alone, rather than the whole grade behind it. A technique you already hold from another deck stays one card, with your review history.

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