Martial Arts in Nigeria

Martial arts in Nigeria

What are martial arts?

Martial arts comprise of distinct styles of systemised combat practices in other words called combat practices, fighting systems or arts. They are practised for different reasons such as law enforcement applications, mental orientations, entertainment purposes, self-defence and military purposes among others.

Today the term martial arts is linked most strongly with the fighting arts of eastern Asia, but it was first used for the European combat systems of the 1550s.

Martial arts is made of series of different styles and fighting systems which include fencing, sambo, savate, stick-fighting, shooto, systema, taekwondo, jujutsu, aikido, boxing, mixed martial arts, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai, Karate, hapkido, judo, krav maga, kickboxing, wing chun, silat, arnis, capoeira, marine corps martial arts, kenpo, shotokan, wrestling, Tai chi and Jeet Kune Do among others.

All these consist of a large number of distinct styles of defence in martial arts but only a few of them are been practised in Nigeria presently. The kinds of martial arts mentioned below are been practised in Nigeria purposely for entertainment, self-defence as well as a sports game: boxing, kickboxing, karate, mixed martial arts, wrestling, taekwondo and judo game.

Checked 30 September 2026

Nigeria at the Commonwealth Games and African Games

The combat sports are among Nigeria’s richest sources of African Games medals. In Accra, Nigeria topped the boxing table and won six golds in women’s wrestling. Kickboxing was not on the programme, and MMA and sambo were demonstration sports only.

The next African Games are in Cairo, Egypt, from 20 January to 7 February 2027. See the full medal stories on our Commonwealth Games and African Games pages.

The martial arts of Nigeria

On a separate basis, boxing as a martial art is a combat sport in which two people throw a striking blow at each other for a programmed set of time in a boxing platform in other words called boxing ring. Competitive boxing today comprises the amateur and professional boxing games which are both Olympics and Commonwealth games known as common fixtures in international tournaments.

Kickboxing is a group of hand to hand combat between two or more opponents taking a standing position while engaging in the fight. It is known to be a competitive fighting combat that involves one on one punch throwing and kicking strategy. This type of martial art got its historical origin from boxing and karate.

Mixed Martial Arts abbreviated to MMA is a full contact combat sport that permits grappling and striking, both standing and on the ground, as they apply several other techniques involved in martial arts for self-defence.

Wrestling is a type of combat sport that involves grappling with an opponent using different techniques such as takedowns, throws, clinch fighting and other forms of holds to control the opposing partner. In this type of martial art, one of the opponents struggles to hold the other down to the ground according to the code of rules and as well within the predetermined time.

Professional Wrestling, on the other hand, is a type of sports entertainment combining theatrical performances and competitive sports/games that require physical skills, there is another type of wrestling known as arm wrestling and is very popular as well in Nigeria.

Taekwondo is a combat sport, specifically a Korean martial art and a recognized way of life for enthusiast across the globe. It is characterized by jumping and several kicking techniques such as head height kicking, spinning kicking and fast kicking against the opponent.

Judo is a modern Japanese martial art and competitive combat sport in which a player throws the opponent to the ground and can win with a pin, a joint lock or a choke.