What gets an athlete disqualified in kata?
A · Advanced · Judging · 2 of 3Some errors mean disqualification, shown as a mark of 0.0. They include performing a kata other than the one announced, not bowing, not starting facing the judges, a distinct pause or stop, leaving out or adding movements, a fall or a corrective step after a total loss of balance, and the belt falling off.
How it works
- The kata itself: not announcing it, announcing the wrong one or performing a kata other than the one notified.
- The bow: failing to bow at the beginning and at the end.
- The start: not facing the judges.
- A stop: a distinct pause or stop in the performance.
- Changed content: omitting or adding movements, or otherwise substantially changing the kata.
- Theatrics: persistent and obvious repetition.
- Balance: a corrective step to recover from a total loss of balance, or a fall.
- The belt: falling off.
- Team time: more than five minutes for kata and bunkai.
- In bunkai: a scissor takedown to the neck.
- Conduct: failing to follow the chief judge's instructions, or other misconduct, for which the judges are called together first.
- Not appearing: kiken, which disqualifies the athlete from that category.
The glossary has the kata faults and disqualification, the disqualification, the kiken, the belt, the rei and the bunkai.
Tricky cases
An athlete freezes for a moment, remembers the next move and carries on. Is that a foul or a disqualification?
Disqualification, if the judges see a distinct pause or stop. A kata has deliberate pauses in its rhythm, and telling the two apart is the judges' task.
Both athletes are disqualified in a medal bout. Who gets the medal?
They each perform an additional kata to decide the result. For teams, no bunkai is needed in that extra performance.
An athlete is disqualified in one round-robin bout. Is their competition over?
No. A technical disqualification loses that bout only, and the athlete completes the remaining round-robin bouts. Disqualification for misconduct is different.
An athlete does not come when called. What is recorded?
Kiken. The athlete is disqualified from that category, though not from any other category entered.
Why the rule exists
A kata is a fixed form, and these errors break it: the wrong form, a form with a hole in it or one that stops. A lower mark cannot fairly compare such a performance with a complete one, so it is not marked at all. The conduct clauses are there for the same reason as in kumite.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Technical disqualification | That bout lost; shown as 0.0 | WKF Kata 5.4.1; 5.8 |
| In a round robin | The athlete carries on with the other bouts | WKF Kata 3.7.7 |
| Both disqualified in a medal bout | An extra kata each | WKF Kata 3.7.10 |
| Kiken | Out of that category | WKF Kata 6.4 |
| Misconduct (shikkaku) | The opponent in the next round gets a bye | WKF Kata 3.7.8 |
From the rule book
World Karate Federation, Kata Competition Rules (version 2026.0, valid from 1 January 2026), Articles 3.7.7 to 3.7.10, 5.4.1, 5.8 and 6.4. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: the federation's Kata Competition Rules.