left kote from Jodan

[NukF]

I got a question you might answer me:
Standing in Jodan you make as much pressure as you can, doing sème and make your waza. When you make sème your opponent lifts from chudan kamae both handy but not much, a little lower than a kendoka in hasso kamae. My opponent drew his handy so that i wasn`t able to attack the right kote properly but i could attack left very well.
After the jigeiko i was told that the left kote is not allowed to hit for ipon. But why is that so?
If your opponent stand in hasso you can attack both of his kote but why not standing in chudan?

Thx very much in before!

Ulf

[Neil Gendzwill]

The rules say that the left kote is legal only if the opponent is not in chudan. A rule of thumb I've been told is that the left kote becomes legal when it rises above the mune. It may be that your opponent wasn't that high, or also that the interpretation is that your opponent is still in chudan. Case by case I think. Personally if I was judging a match and the person used seme to cause the aite to attack men and thus open the left kote I wouldn't give it to them.

[kendomushi]

Hand at mune level when rising from chudan is the same basic interpretation I have been given here. Below that the judges will not give a point. The exception being of course attacking when the opponent is in a kamae other than chudan to start with.

[moocow65]

well, i was in a tournament a few months ago, and i was doing nito. my opponent had a kamae where his right kote was totally guarded and it was impossible to hit, but it left his left kote wide open. umm to make it clear, it's when you're motodachi for kirikaeshi. that's the kind of kamae he was doing. so his left kote was still below his mune, but he wasn't exactly in chudan. so i went for the left kote and i got a point. i later asked my sensei if that was truly a valid point, and he said, well as long as he's not in seigan, then it's a point.

[Kendoka]

The above three responses are my understanding as well.

If your opponent is in chudan you would be silly to attempt a left kote cut.

But when ever your opponent is not in chudan, go for it.