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    Kata-guruma

    肩車 · かたぐるま · shoulder wheel · said kah-TAH goo-ROO-mah

    Also known as fireman's carry (wrestling)

    About this techniqueJump to step by stepPlain text version

    Barred in competition

    Demonstrations

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    Illustration: source not recorded. Rights and removal
    Kata-guruma illustration

    The IJF publishes an animation of Kata-guruma: watch it on judo.ijf.org.

    Where this technique is not allowed

    Penalised in competition in its classical form, where tori's hand passes between uke's legs: current IJF rules give a shido for the hand reaching the leg. The version that takes uke across the shoulders without touching the legs is thrown in contest today, so what is penalised is the form rather than the technique. The BJA sets kata-guruma as a 4th Dan fundamental skill.

    Under contest rules

    Depends on the form. Two rules meet here. The classical form, where the hand passes between uke's legs, draws a shido for the hand reaching the leg, while the version taken across the shoulders without touching the legs is thrown in contest and scores. Diving forward onto the head to complete either form is a direct hansoku-make.

    Sport and Organisation Rules of the International Judo Federation: refereeing rules, 2026 edition, Articles 18.1.2 and 18.2.1.

    Still taught, demonstrated and examined, so it is written up in full here. The restriction above is a contest rule, not a reason to skip it. See the prohibited techniques list.

    About this technique

    Uke is drawn across tori's shoulders and wheeled over them, in the fireman's-carry position.

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    A technique to uplift the opponent on both shoulders across the back of the neck and throw him down by breaking his balance forward while holding his right thigh from the inside with the right arm.
    The Kodokan's definition

    Key points

    1. Drop low with a wide, stable stance as you enter
    2. Draw uke across the shoulders with a strong sleeve pull
    3. Lift with the legs and wheel uke over, never with the back alone

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    Te-waza (hand techniques) · Gokyo 3rd set

    At a glance

    , classification, Gokyo set, Kodokan number, contest rules, grades that require it
    What it is
    Nage-waza (throwing techniques), Te-waza (hand techniques).
    Gokyo
    3rd set (Dai-sankyo).
    Kodokan number
    105 (KGU).
    Contest rules
    Depends on the form. Two rules meet here. The classical form, where the hand passes between uke's legs, draws a shido for the hand reaching the leg, while the version taken across the shoulders without touching the legs is thrown in contest and scores. Diving forward onto the head to complete either form is a direct hansoku-make.
    Required for

    Step by step

    These steps describe the standard right-handed form without relying on the video.

    1. From a right-handed grip, pull your partner's right sleeve out and forward so their arm extends and their weight starts to come towards you.
    2. Drop into a deep crouch and step in, your feet wide and stable, your head ducking to the right side of their body.
    3. Reach your right arm between their legs and wrap it around their right thigh, while the sleeve pull draws their upper body down across the back of your shoulders.
    4. Stand up with your legs, their body balanced across your shoulders like a beam, sleeve hand and thigh arm holding them steady.
    5. Dip your left shoulder and pull the sleeve down so they slide off your shoulders towards your left front.
    6. They land on their back in front of you and to your left; keep the sleeve until they are down.

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    Receiving it

    You are pulled low across their shoulders as they squat under you, an arm wrapping your thigh; for a moment you are carried, level, off the ground. The dip of their shoulder tells you the throw is coming. You slide off into a fall from height, so stay relaxed, chin tucked, and slap with your free arm as your back lands.

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    VI judo notes

    The classical form is barred in contest because the hand passes between the legs, and the shoulder version that is legal has to be taken with contact you can trust. Duck by sliding your head down their side, and reach the thigh by running your arm down their body to it rather than into open space. Stand only once their weight sits evenly across both shoulders; if it hangs to one side, put them down.

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    Named variations

    The Laats takedown

    Also called: side takedown, drop kata-guruma.

    The drop form thrown without touching the leg: tori drops to the side beneath uke, loads them across the shoulders from the sleeve and jacket alone, and tips them over sideways. It has been around far longer than its fame, which arrived when the IJF barred hand-on-leg attacks and this became the form of kata-guruma a contest judoka can still throw. Known in Europe by the Laats name; referees score it as kata-guruma, and some commentators loosely call it yoko-otoshi for the way it finishes.

    In competition

    , how often it scores at IJF level, and two contests where it worked

    Senior IJF competition, 2020 to 2026, from 73,099 contests. Counts scores, not attempts.

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    Grips that lead to it

    In combinations, counters and transitions

    , 1 recorded, 8 awaiting review

    8 more pairs involving it are recorded and awaiting review before they get a page. A video that shows one of them is what gets it reviewed: suggest one.

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    Reference pages elsewhere

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