Osoto Gari
Takedown · Standing
Takes you from a collar-and-sleeve grip to a top position as they fall straight back. The moment is when their weight sits on their heels. Pull the sleeve down to your side and drive the collar hand up and back so the near leg carries all their weight; step your supporting foot beside that leg, level with their foot and not past it, chest to chest and shoulder to shoulder. Swing the other leg past and reap the loaded leg from behind, back of your knee to the back of theirs, and keep it rising until the sole faces the ceiling while your chest keeps tilting them back. Leaning back yourself invites the same throw back at you. If they lean forward into you instead, turn in for o goshi. The partner must breakfall with the chin tucked.
How to do it
- Grip the collar and sleeve. Pull the sleeve down to your side and drive the collar hand up and back, so their weight comes onto their heels.
- Step your supporting foot beside their near leg, level with their foot and not past it, your chest against theirs, shoulder to shoulder.
- Swing your other leg past theirs and reap that near leg from behind: the back of your knee meets the back of theirs, your thigh against theirs.
- Keep swinging the reaping leg up until its sole faces the ceiling, while the chest stays over theirs and keeps tilting them back.
- Keep the upper body pressure so they fall straight back; stay on your feet or follow them down.
Key details
- The upper body tilts them back before the leg reaps: the reap only takes away a leg that is already carrying all the weight.
- Reap the leg that carries their weight, back of the knee to back of the knee. An unloaded leg simply lifts over your reap.
- Keep your chest over theirs so they cannot counter: if you lean back, the same throw comes back at you.
- Step your supporting foot beside theirs and make shoulder-to-shoulder contact: from further away the reaping leg does not reach behind theirs.
- Keep swinging the reaping leg up until its sole faces the ceiling: stopping at contact leaves their foot on the mat.
- The collar hand controls the head: lift the elbow and bring their ear to your ear, so they cannot turn the head away or shift its weight into you. With a gap between your hand and their chin the throw is gone.
Common mistakes
- Reaping while they stand upright. — Their weight is centred and they step over the reap. — Push them onto their heels with the grips first.
- Leaning back yourself as you reap. — Your weight goes behind your supporting leg and they counter with the same throw on you. — Keep your chest forward over theirs.
- Reaping low at the calf. — They bend the knee, the contact slides off and they stay standing. — Reap with the back of your thigh against theirs, back of the knee to back of the knee.
- Driving your hip all the way past theirs. — Your back arches behind your supporting leg and he lifts you with his hip for the counter. — Keep your hip in front of his, only level with it; just the leg slides through to reap.
If they defend
- They counter with their own osoto. → Stay close, chest forward, and step through the reap.
How to drill it
Uchikomi 3 × 10 without the throw; 5 throws with a controlled fall; then from movement backward.
Safety
The partner falls straight back: they must know how to break the fall and tuck the chin.
What comes next
Where it comes from