Turnovers · turning a defending partner
Arm roll from the side
Rolling a turtled partner by taking one arm out from under them, working from beside them. It is the standard answer to a defensive turtle and appears in every scheme in this reference, usually paired with the version from the front.
No demonstration linked yet, and this is one of the places footage helps most. Know a good one? Suggest a video.
Key points
- Take the arm near the elbow, not the wrist
- Drive with your chest and shoulder, not with your arm alone
- Follow them over into a hold; the roll is not the finish
Step by step
Left-handed: these steps are written right-handed, as the syllabuses write them. Read every left as a right and every right as a left, and the throw is yours.
- Your partner is on all fours. Kneel close at their right side, facing across them.
- Put your chest firmly on their back so their weight is loaded onto their arms.
- Slide your right hand under their right upper arm, close to the elbow, and grip the sleeve.
- Lift that arm up and inwards so it comes off the mat and crosses under their own body.
- Drive your chest forward and over, rolling them over their right shoulder as the post disappears.
- Travel with them and settle into a hold as they land on their back, keeping your chest on them throughout.
From the other side
The moment an arm is lifted off the mat you are on two posts instead of three. Keep your elbows tucked in tight and your hands flat and wide, and drop your hip on the side they are working to make yourself heavy.
VI judo notes
The arm is found by sliding your hand along the mat until it meets their elbow, so no sight is needed. What tells you the roll is on is the arm leaving the mat: from there, drive forward and stay attached.