How To Perform Ushiro Goshi – The Rear Hip Throw

Ushiro goshi is a nage waza technique as developed by Jigoro Kano. The ushiro goshi is sub classified as a hip throw. Although the throw is classified this way, it differs greatly to other koshi waza techniques since it does not require you to turn your back towards the opponent. Instead, ushiro goshi is almost exclusively a counterattacking throw within judo. Whilst it does not have a set technique to counter a single throw, it can be used to counter a variety of other hip throws and ashi waza, such as osoto gari.

The benefit of attempting ushiro goshi is that it is a low risk throw compared to other koshi waza. Since you have already dodged the attack of your opponent, it is little risk to attack them from this position. Whilst you aren’t at 0 risk of being thrown yourself, you should definitely be able to control the position and have a far greater chance of scoring a throw on your adversary.

Another positive of ushiro goshi is that since you have such control of your opponent, it should almost always be finished with ippon. It will be very difficult for the uke to turn onto their side whilst mid-air. Almost always they will be forced to land on their back.

Entries To Ushiro Goshi

The most standard entries to ushiro goshi are from pure counters. A standard collar and sleeve grip is commonly used in judo for both the aggressor and the defender. In this case you would be defending, but quickly time your counter attack. This way you are both defending, followed by attacking and do not need to change grips.

An example of a hip throw entry would be from uki goshi. From here the opponent will keep their grips and try to allign their hips parallel with your own. From here you can do a couple of counters depending on your opponents entry. In an ideal scenario you will be able to beat the opponent to the squat. If they have not pulled your posture upwards correctly you will simply be able to squat underneath them and throw them.

If however the opponent is very fast and dynamic with their entry you may either have to stap sideways or backwards. Once you are safe from being thrown, you can step back in and then attempt and ushiro goshi of your own.

Throw Mechanics

Ushiro goshi is a fairly unusual judo throw with simple mechanics. The positive aspect of the throw is that you do not need too much upper body strength. It is a good idea to be able to lift your opponent with your arms to assist in where you will be throwing them. But the majority of the heavy lifting is done by your own hips.

By beating your opponent to the punch, you are able to squat lower than them and get underneath their centre of gravity. As they enter into your hips for a throw of their own, it is absolutely imperative you’re ready before they are. By doing this, you will be able to thrust your hips inwards and upwards, driving them into the air.

Variations

A common defense for ushiro goshi is to either try to re-counter the throw or get a leg entanglement to weigh yourself down. If you are able to entangle the power leg of ushiro goshi, you are essentially able to anchor yourself to the tori and not get thrown.

This is why it’s crucially important to understand where the opponents legs are at all times. If there is no entanglement at all, you will be able to perform a standard hip throw ushiro goshi without using your legs.

If however, the opponent manages to trap one of your legs with their own, either for a counter or an anchor. The counter to this counter is to lift your leg into the air and use this to throw your opponent as well. If you are not fast enough to raise your leg from the floor, you may find yourself stuck and vunerable to being thrown. When you are fully aware of what your opponent is trying to do, it should be an easy re-counter by simply using the entangled leg to throw the uke.

This method applies to both inner and outer reaps of your leg. You must always throw with the entangled side.

Dangers Of Ushiro Goshi

The dangers of ushiro goshi are that you are throwing your opponent upwards with your own hips. Whilst this is not dangerous on it’s own, it is quite an unusual technique, especially from the front.

Due to the nature of the technique, it’s possible that you don’t know your own power from this position. This can cause the uke to get thrown a lot higher than you were originally intending. In a competition setting this won’t matter so much as everyone wants to win and accepts the risks of being injured.

However, when training in the dojo with your sparring partners, it is very important to take care of each other. This is why it’s a good idea to throw your partner into the air, but to lower them down with your hands. You do not want to slam each other to the mat when training. It’s possible that you sometimes land head or neck first when you’re on the receiving end of a ushiro goshi. For this reason your grips should be used to guide your opponent to the mat, rather than slam them.

Ushiro Goshi In Other Grappling Sports

Ushiro goshi is common in other sports such as BJJ, wrestling and sambo. It is used as a counter throw in these sports as well, although due to the ruleset, it wouldn’t be uncommon to be in this position from a non-counter.

Grappling sports like wrestling and bjj feature a lot of arm and collar drags. These are used to get to the back of the opponent. Whilst these do not really happen in judo due to grip legalities, it is quite normal outside of judo rules.

In a no gi setting, obviously there aren’t any grips to be had on the collar or sleeve. However, the lift is still done in the same way by squatting underneath the uke and raising them up with your hips. Ushiro goshi is a legimate technique in other grappling martial arts but is more interchangable than judo. In wrestling for example, you have the option to choose between ushiro goshi and a german suplex. Due to the less constraining rules, you’re able to adapt to where the uke distributes their weight and throw them either forwards or backwards.