Eye-gouging
Historical fighting technique involving pressing or tearing the eye.
Eye-gouging involves using fingers or tools to press or tear at someone's eye, which carries a high risk of causing blindness or losing the eye entirely. In the 18th and 19th centuries, rough-and-tumble fighting in rural parts of the United States sometimes included eye-gouging, but it was not a codified sport. Modern sports ban eye-gouging; it is a serious infraction in rugby football codes, where it rarely occurs, and is also prohibited in combat sports. Some self-defense systems, however, still teach it. Training typically includes extensive grappling to gain control, with the actual gouging practiced only when the opponent wears protective gear like swimming goggles. In the 1995 Vale Tudo Japan tournament, fighter Yuki Nakai continued to win his bout after an illegal eye-gouge by opponent Gerard Gordeau temporarily impaired his vision; he later regained some vision after surgery.
- Field
- Fighting style, self-defense, prohibited sports technique
- Known for
- High-risk eye injury, historical rough-and-tumble fighting in back-country United States, modern prohibition in sports
- Associated event
- Vale Tudo Japan 1995 tournament (Yuki Nakai's vision temporarily impaired by illegal gouge)
Lore & Background
Eye-gouging as a fighting technique was sometimes used in rough-and-tumble fighting in the back-country United States in the 18th and 19th centuries, though it was never a codified sport. It involves pressing or tearing the eye using the fingers or instruments, with a very high risk of eye injury such as eye loss or blindness.
Reader's Guide
Eye-gouging is prohibited in modern sports, including rugby football codes where it occurs rarely, and in combat sports. However, some self-defense systems teach it. Training in eye-gouging can involve extensive grappling training to establish control, with the eye-gouging itself practiced against an opponent wearing eye protection such as swimming goggles. A notable incident occurred in the Vale Tudo Japan 1995 tournament, where Yuki Nakai went on to win a bout after his opponent, Gerard Gordeau, performed an illegal gouge that blinded him in his right eye. The practice is a serious offense in rugby football codes, with a list of rugby union players banned for eye gouging existing as a related topic.
Did You Know?
- Training in eye-gouging can involve the opponent wearing eye protection such as swimming goggles.
- Yuki Nakai won a bout in the Vale Tudo Japan 1995 tournament after an illegal gouge temporarily impaired his vision; he later regained some vision after surgery.
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