Aikido: Thoughts on Multiple Attackers

Kyle Sloan

One of the things Aikido is known for is the way it deals with multiple attackers. We see it in Above The Law, Steven Seagal’s debut movie as a star. Here’s a little video of this idea in action:

And while it might look easy, it isn’t.

In practice, go slow. This is quite possibly the hardest part, once the adrenaline starts to hit your system. After all, you just tossed that guy who attacked you for no reasons… and now he’s getting back up from a shot that would keep most people down. The never-dying attacker.

Some key elements:

• Keep moving! Stationary targets are easy to hit.
• Use motion to put attackers in a line. They have to go through one of their own in order to reach you.
• Use wrist & arm locks and head controls to use an attacker as a human shield.
• Always look around to ensure you aren’t attacked from the blind side.
• In the real world, throw attackers into one another. Obviously we can’t do this at the dojo, but it isn’t all that hard to take it to the next level.
• Did I mention keep moving?