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Emphasis during KUMITE matches is to not to test power, but to test Fitness, Speed and Technical skill and these bouts can be very competative and exciting to watch when the Seniors are matched. Bouts are scored by points for techniques that connect cleanly just as with Olympic Boxing and Olympic Taekwondo with the most points at the end of the match declared the winner.

Kumite bouts are matched over 7 weight divisions. These competitions are a test of a Kickboxers Martial Arts Skills and are very popular, with opportunites for the more advanced students to compete for Kumite Championships.

For Kickboxers under the age of 16, there are Amateur Junior contests. The Kumite rules are very similar with Bodyshields, Gloves and Shinpads being worn, although no head gear is neccessary as no head contact is allowed at all ( as opposed to Controlled-contact to the head with Adult matches ). Again Championship titles are contested by the very best Juniors, and several of the U.K.'s leading Professional Champions today on the European and World Circuit, won their very first Titles in the Amateur Junior Division.

W.K.S. organises six Amateur Kumite Competitions per year, as well as attends similar Free-Sparring Competitions held by other schools throughout the North-West Counties of England ( Lancashire, Cheshire and Yorkshire) for those members that may be interested in this level of Amateur Kickboxing.

Level 2. Amatuer ( Pro-Am. / Full Contact Division):

The Pro-Am. level of amateur competition allows Full-Contact, but with protective equipment still being worn. These bouts are matched over 12 weight divisions. With Kickboxing, these are part of a well organised National and International Circuit and can lead to World Championships withs Bronze, Silver and Gold Medals awarded. This level of competition is usually only contested between Kickboxers, it is very rare for other disclipines such as Karate, Kung fu or Taekwondo to compete under Full-Contact rules.

Level 3. Professional : (Match-Fights). These bouts are where only very skilled fighters matchup against each other. This level of competition has opportunities for Kickboxers to compete for Professional Championship Belts and to compete on an International Level travelling to different countries and experiencing different cultures.

Level 4. Professional : (Tournment-Contests) : These are known as Grandprix's. An 8 man competition, whereby competitors have upto 3 bouts in one night ( very tough! ), you will see these under the banner 'K-1', and this is the circuit to which only the best of the best compete, with the eventual aim of the World K-1 Grandprix in the Tokyo dome.