Why shouldn't they be hitting? There's no objective reason for that, you're just being emotional.

If they hit in class, why not in competition?

When you spar in class, you learn your opponents well, since you have to fight them on a regular basis. Competition gives you the opportunity to fight someone new.

Are you concerned about the control of the unknown opponent? or is it something else? As I mentioned before, I just don't see the risk. While I have only been to maybe 15 tournaments, I just haven't seen a lot of injuries, and certainly no life threatening ones.

Granted, I haven't done any grappling, but it would seem to me there would be just as much a risk of injury as there would be in a striking competition, like TKD. Misplaced elbow to someones nose, pulled muscles or dislocations, etc...

oh, and what would you have all of the young TKD competetors do at a competition? See who could kiup the loudest?

Laura

Got nothing to do with Risk, I'd just prefer them to wrestle competitively then punch other kids in the face competitively. When they are all friends and it is non-competitive that is entirely different then in a competitive setting.

Wrestling is "fun" it's "play" kids do it instinctely for fun, but very few punch each other in the face for fun.

And if I had to choose a competive striking format for them, I'd definately favour one like the Pankration video over a TKD format without hesitation.

Interesting, you've got quite a different viewpoint from most people I've met.

While I was in mexico building houses, the kids there punched each other in the face and wrestled, both were just aspects of playing.

I know in the states we discourge punching someone in the face over wrestling.

I really don't know what I think of youth MMA. I love MMA. Its one of the few sports that I actually go out of my way to watch on TV. But, you also have to take into account that kids may not have the maturity to handle MMA. I am not knocking it. As I said, I really can't decide how I feel about this.

I have not been able to go look at the videos. I will have to wait until I get home. But I have some real concerns based upon the comments I am reading. First of all, are we talking sports or self defense? Two very seperate things. Second, if we are talking MMA as a contact sport what age group are we talking about ? High school age kids 16-17 I might say ok. Any younger not so much. Everywhere we look in our society nowadays it is all about "extreme". What is too extreme when we are talking about children ? As a medical professional, ma instructor and a parent (grandparent) I think we need to re think some of this. I started Judo at age 10 under one of the best sensei in the country. It only took about a year before I suffered my first serious injury, a shoulder seperation. In an 11 year old kid this is not a minor, suck it up and move on injury. Childrens bodies are not miniature versions of adults. They are different. And childrens minds are not miniature versions of adults. Kids in Mexico may slap the c**p out of each other and they consider it play. I have been in some places where I have seen 12 year olds carrying AK 47's and it's considered "normal" there. I think we need to be very careful about uping the violence level for kids in the MA's. As a nurse, I am duty bound to report even a suspicion of child abuse. Any instructor who told me that he/she considers broken noses or dislocated limbs to be a normal part of training youth in the dojo is going to be on my call list.

I saw this video recently:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlwEdx4BjGw

It's one thing to be pushing your boys to do this nonsense.. but making a little girl learn how to beat up other human beings is going to far. This little girl has no desire to do this.. it obviously her parents pushing her. If she wanted to do a sport it would be soccer or cheerleading, no little girl wakes up one day and says I want to learn to brutaly harm others. Boys and MMA might be be okay under the right cercumstances girls and MMA --> I dont think so