Sports
Combat sports & martial arts
Structured disciplines built around striking, grappling or weapons.
Karate
SportA striking art of forms, partner drills and graded belts — taught in several distinct styles that disagree more than beginners expect.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
Historical European martial arts
SportHobbyReconstructing longsword and other historical fighting from surviving manuals — a martial art with a reading list and no unbroken lineage.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsDemanding
Also in this category
Classified but not yet written up.
46 activities in the catalogue, 2 written up so far.
Aikido
SportRedirecting an attacker’s movement into throws and joint locks, non-competitively.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Amateur sumo
SportSumo practised as an amateur weight-class sport, with a small but real international circuit.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Arm wrestling
SportA table sport of hand control and specific tendon strength, with a real club and league structure.
Under £25 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Bartitsu
SportThe reconstructed Victorian self-defence system of cane, boxing and jujutsu, revived from its own manuals.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Boxing
SportPunching only, in weight classes, with an enormous fitness base underneath.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Boxing training
SportBag, pad and footwork training without sparring — the fitness half of the sport.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Brazilian jiu-jitsu
SportGround grappling and submissions, with full-resistance sparring from early on.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Capoeira
SportBrazilian art blending acrobatic movement, music and play in a roda.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Chess boxing
SportAlternating rounds of speed chess and boxing, won by checkmate, knockout or the clock.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Combat archery
SportTeam archery with foam-tipped arrows, run as a venue-booked group activity.
£25–£100 to startIndoors or outdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Épée fencing
SportWhole-body target, no right of way, and the fencing weapon closest to a duel in logic.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Fencing
SportSword sport in three weapons, decided by electrical scoring.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Filipino stick fighting
SportStick and blade-based martial arts from the Philippines, drilled in flowing partner patterns.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Foil fencing
SportThe fencing weapon with right of way and a torso target, and the one most beginners start on.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Glima
SportIcelandic folk wrestling fought upright on a fixed belt grip, with throws rather than groundwork.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Hapkido
SportA Korean art combining strikes, joint locks and throws, closer to jujutsu than to taekwondo.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Iaido
SportThe solo art of drawing, cutting and resheathing a sword, performed as precise set forms.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Jodo
SportJapanese short-staff forms practised in paired sets against a swordsman, with no free sparring.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Judo
SportThrows, holds and submissions from a jacket grip, on a mat.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Jujutsu
SportThe Japanese grappling and joint-locking tradition judo and aikido came out of, still taught in its own right.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Kabaddi
SportA raiding and wrestling team sport played on breath, enormous in South Asia and growing in Britain.
Under £25 to startIndoors or outdoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Kendo
SportJapanese sword sport in armour, with bamboo shinai and full-voice strikes.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Kickboxing
SportStriking with hands and feet, widely taught as a fitness class as well as a sport.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Kobudo
SportThe Okinawan weapon arts — bo, sai, tonfa, nunchaku — usually studied alongside karate.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Krav maga
SportA self-defence system taught as scenario drills rather than as a graded competitive sport.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Kung fu
SportThe Chinese martial arts as a family — forms, conditioning and application across many named styles.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Mixed martial arts
SportStriking and grappling combined under one rule set.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Muay Thai
SportThai boxing using fists, elbows, knees and shins.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Naginata
SportThe Japanese polearm art, practised as form and as armoured competitive striking.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Pencak silat
SportThe Indonesian and Malay martial art, taught as combat, as form and as cultural performance.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Push hands
SportThe partnered half of tai chi, testing balance and structure against somebody actively taking it.
Free or near-free to startIndoors or outdoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Sabre fencing
SportThe fastest fencing weapon, scored on cuts as well as thrusts, with right-of-way rules.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Sambo
SportThe Soviet grappling sport, close to judo with leg locks and its own combat variant.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Savate
SportFrench kickboxing fought in shoes, with a distinct emphasis on precision and footwork.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Stage combat
SportHobbyChoreographed fighting for theatre and film, where the whole craft is looking dangerous and being safe.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Sumo
SportAmateur sumo, where the whole contest is decided by leverage, timing and a very short burst of power.
Under £25 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Systema
SportA Russian martial practice built on breathing, relaxation and structure rather than fixed technique.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Taekwondo
SportKorean striking art built around fast, high kicking.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Tai chi
SportHobbyA slow martial form practised for balance, health and continuity of movement.
£25–£100 to startIndoors or outdoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Traditional folk wrestling
SportRegional jacket and belt wrestling styles kept alive at fairs and festivals across Europe.
Under £25 to startOutdoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Wheelchair fencing
SportFencing from frames fixed to the piste, with the full weapon set and no footwork.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Wing chun
SportA close-range southern Chinese martial art built on structure, centreline and sticking hands.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Wrestling
SportFreestyle and Greco-Roman grappling for control and pins.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Wushu
SportThe modern competitive codification of Chinese martial arts, judged on form, difficulty and execution.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet