Kata Flag (Head-to-Head) Scoring

Last updated October 2026  ·  6 min read

In flag-format kata, two competitors perform and each judge raises a flag for the better performance. The majority of flags wins the pairing and the winner advances through the bracket like a kumite winner. Taikai App supports the standard elimination format and the AAU two-round format.

Number of judges

The default panel size comes from the Kata Flags card in Scoreboard Setup (3, 5 or 7). Each kata flags division can also carry its own count of 3 or 5:

• In Brackets, the director sets Flags judges per kata flags bracket, or uses All with 3 / All with 5 for every bracket shown.
• In the Panel judges editor for a mat, choosing 3 or 5 changes the division running on that mat.

A match that already has flags entered keeps its panel; the new count applies from the next match.

Together or separate

The board header has a Together / Separate switch for each match.

• Together: both athletes perform at the same time and the judges vote right after.
• Separate: the WKF one-at-a-time format. AKA performs first, then press Next: AO; when AO finishes press AO done · Vote. Flags and the winner buttons stay locked until both have performed.

Finals and team kata start in Separate; everything else starts in Together. The schedule also times separate matches longer (5 minutes by default). While one athlete performs alone, the TV shows only that athlete: photo, name, corner with PERFORMING, flag and dojo, and the kata they announced, with the opponent small in their corner color.

Recording and showing the flags

The board shows one card per judge. When the judges are seated or set in the panel, each card shows the chair (J1, J2 and so on) with the name of the judge in it. The operator taps AKA or AO on each card as the flags go up; Clear resets a card and Reset Votes clears them all.

The TV shows no votes while they are being entered. Press Show flags and every flag appears on the TV at once. Then press Declare Winner. If some judges have no vote yet, the board asks before declaring with fewer votes. After the declare, votes are locked until you use Undo.

Judges can also vote from their own phones instead of the table copying the flags. See Judges voting from their phones.

Absent and disqualified

• Mark absent on a corner: the athlete didn't show or withdrew, and the opponent wins by forfeit.
• Disqualify on a corner (shikkaku): pick the reason, for example a different kata than announced, kata not announced, repeated kata (3rd kyu and up), kata not on the official list, belt fell off, no bow, conduct, or other. The opponent wins and the reason is saved on the match.

In both cases the TV shows the winner the same way as a flags decision.

Correcting a result

Right after a declare, Undo reopens the match. If the board has already moved on, the next match of the division shows ↺ Correct previous match with the two names. It clears that result (and takes the winner back out of the match they advanced to) and reopens exactly that match. It stays available until another result is declared. For older matches, use Re-score on the bracket; see Correcting a decided match.

Per-judge vote report

Every flags match stores each chair's vote and the judge sitting in it. Judge Analytics → Votes by judge lists each judge's flag against the panel's decision, and whether it came from the phone or was entered by the table. It needs the assign judges permission. Only matches scored with the judge panel loaded appear.

The AAU format

The AAU Kata Flags bracket runs in two rounds on a separate board. Round 1 (the Golden Round) decides gold; its runner-up is held for the Silver/Bronze Final. Round 2 (the Bronze Round) runs among the remaining athletes, and its survivor meets the Round 1 runner-up in the Silver/Bronze Final. The board tracks each side's queue, who is still in and who is eliminated. AAU votes stay hidden until HANTEI. An absent athlete (kiken) leaves the division and is not called again, and Undo works after a declare or an absence.