WHAT IS SAVATE? 

The following is Professeur Paul Buitron answering the question: WHAT IS SAVATE? The ever lasting question of what is Savate? Boxe Francaise? One is for the street the other the ring? Here is the answer that I used back in 2005 and has been manipulated to serve the petty politics of idiots that assume and teach what is not theirs… The following is going to sound harsh but it is what it is. Those that have lived the story of the ever evolving arts of French pugilism understand and those who proclaim what is not theirs will disagree.

Savate in the world today is actually 95% Boxe Francaise: Savate. Some of the Salles ( schools) have attempted to maintain the characteristics of Savate or Boxe Francaise, while others have developed their own uniqueness and styles.

After the merge of both the National Committee Savate Federation and The Federation of Boxe Francaise in 1978. The French Federation of Boxe Francaise Savate and Affiliated Studies, the style of Savate: Boxe Francaise was born.

There (French Federation of Savate & Affiliated Studies) teaching in the mid 1980’s to the 1992 was with the concern of proving to the world that Savate: Boxe Francaise was a pugilistic sport.

The control of the FEDE or French Federation of Savate & Affiliated Studies as it is known was immense in the development of Savate: Boxe Francaise. Bringing forth the sport to new and higher levels of training in my opinion, it also brought down the traditions of the martial art of Savate and Boxe Francaise and its appendage disciplines of la Canne , et Baton, Lutte Parissienne, panache and Zipota . To the point that several generations of instructors have been taught that the connections of the appendage disciplines ever existed.

Today in the World there are schools (salles), which I deem, belonging to the following stylistic approaches?

o Savate: Boxe Francaise (1980-Present) : The technical abilities of both Savate’s major kicking arsenal and Boxe Francaise’s Kicks were merged into a definitive sport of combat. This style is very much present in Europe.

o Contemporary Savate (1990- Present): That accentuates the basic techniques of Boxe Francaise Savate and the athletic aspects of the sport. That emerged from the seminars given by the French Federation of Savate. Without having ever walked into a salle or stable of Savateur’s. Care to the traditions of Savate play little role with in this structure.

o Danse De Rue Savate (1994- Present): The codification of the elements of Zipota, Boxe Francaise, Canne De Combat, Baton, Lutte Parissienne, Panache and Saca Tripa. Developed by me in 1995 , my goals are to maintain the fundamentals of traditional Savate as well as to create an understand to the respect and preserve the traditions.

o Renaissance Savate (1997 – Present): Are the arts that have emerged due to the codification of Danse De Rue Savate. In the past ten years several have tired to emulate the feeling of Danse De Rue Savate with in two of its disciplines. Example Canne and Lutte or Boxe Francaise and Lutte. To produce the following arts: Boxe De Rue, Canne De Rue, Lutte de Rue and Savate-Defense.

o Savate Defense(1998 -Present): is the predominant the creation of several entities after Michel la Roux came to Dallas Texas to see and train in Danse De Rue Savate in 1998. six month later credit to the formation of Savate Defense goes to Professeurs Michel la Roux, Eric Queque and Pierre Change

o Re-enacted Savate (2000 -Present): is the predominant teaching methods from old books . Written from instructors who have past away decades ago or centuries ago without leaving any heirs or students to continue teaching in there favor. Thus the essence of the philosophy of that school has been lost.

o Boxe De Rue (2001 -Present): Created by my Professeur Robert Paturel to fit the French mentality of a stylistic approach to Danse De Rue Savate. The name was given during an annual passage de grade in Laredo Texas 2001.

oChauss’Fight (2007): It is the new sport of savate to compete with the ever losing of boxers(savateurs) of the French Federation of Savate. It will consist of kicks with the tibia to draw boxers from the others Pugilistic Federations of Full-Contact, Kickboxing and Tai Boxing to transfer over to the French Federation of Savate. The new uniform will be patalons/pants similar to kick boxing no top and shoes. Many do not understand that the majority of the world champions of full-contact, kickboxing and tai boxing were either European or French champions of savate.

Remember that if you train with in any of the stylistic approaches. It is a blessing since Savate needs to grow, and without growth it will merely die