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I'll be honest...watching karate in the Olympics wasn't really on my priority list. But from what little I did see, I have to say I was very impressed with the incredible level of athleticism displayed by both the kata and kumite contestants.

​After learning that the gold kumite medal was won via a disqualification for excessive contact following what was in every other aspect a nicely executed jodan mawashigeri (see above), my initial thoughts were...well, there's some more fuel to add to the fire for those who view karate unfavourably and consider it very much a watered down system. The contestant who 'combatively' lost the match, ends up earning the win! However, I think it also emphasises a very important concept for the application of our art and indeed, something that all martial arts practitioners can learn from:

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