Octopus Kosoto Sweep
Kosoto gake (small outside reap) from octopus guard: using the body-lock and leg connection to reap the far ankle while pulling
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The octopus kosoto sweep applies the judo foot technique kosoto gake — small outside reap — from octopus guard. Octopus guard is the position where the bottom player has an arm wrapped around the passer’s back (the “octopus arm”) and an underhook on the same side, creating a body lock that constrains the passer’s upper body movement and prevents them from posting or straightening up freely.
Kosoto gake reaps the ankle from outside: the attacking leg inserts between the passer’s legs and contacts the far ankle, then reaps outward and upward to remove that base point. In the octopus context, the body lock arm provides the coordinating pull — pulling the passer’s shoulder back and upward at the same moment the ankle is reaped removes the passer’s ability to step and recover. The passer is pulled backward by the upper body while their far base point is simultaneously removed, forcing a backward fall.
This is not a strength-based throw. The mechanical logic is: unload the far leg first with the upper body pull, then reap the ankle once it has minimal weight on it. Trying to reap a loaded ankle is ineffective — the sequence of pull then reap is the technique.
Ruleset context This technique is legal in all major competitive formats.
INV-G03Invariant "Connections to the inside of the top player's elbows — or to the outside of the elbows — control the top player's weight distribution and passing options. Losing both connections simultaneously is the guard being passed."
Why it works hereThe underhook reaches past the inside of the passer's near elbow and drives upward into the armpit, displacing weight to the far side and making it impossible for the passer to drop that elbow as a brace. With the near elbow elevated, the passer's body cannot resist the backward pull, and the loaded weight transfers cleanly to the far ankle the kosoto is targeting. The elbow connection is what makes the upper-body pull a load-shifter rather than a tug-of-war.
See full invariant page → The octopus arm (wrapped around the passer’s back) and the underhook together function as a full upper body lock — but the critical connection is the underhook, which reaches the inside of the passer’s arm and controls the near elbow. When the bottom player’s underhook drives upward into the passer’s armpit, it displaces the passer’s weight to the far side and makes it difficult for them to drop that elbow to base. This elbow displacement is what sets up the backward pull that loads the kosoto reap.