Divisions · Oil
Oil
Oil work on a table, front and back, across the whole body. Swedish is the trunk, but deep tissue, aromatherapy and lymphatic drainage all belong here. No school or lineage is prescribed.
- Dates
- 2027-05-26 – 2027-05-27
- Venue
- Yoyogi National Gymnasium, Second Gymnasium
What judges look for
Judges are not looking for unusual moves. They are looking at what is happening to the person on the table.
- Consistency of pressure — does it hold from the start of a stroke to the end, without dropping or spiking
- Transitions — when you move from one area to the next, do the hands leave the body and break the flow
- Use of body weight — are you pushing with your arms, or generating pressure from stance and weight transfer
- Draping — modesty, warmth, and how quietly you work
- Design of the whole session — how the 30 minutes are allocated, and how much of it goes to the recipient's requests
How judging works, at a glance
Entry
Each person may enter up to two categories
Competition
Consultation, then a 30-minute treatment. Up to 15 at a time; fellow competitors take turns as recipients
Scoring
Judges score the 8 criteria, each out of 10
Totalling
The scores of the judges who gave the highest and the lowest are excluded; the rest are totalled and averaged
Placings
Placings are decided per category. Ties are broken in a set order
Who this division is for
Therapists who deliver oil treatments day to day, in salons, spas or hotels. No school is prescribed — bring the session you already give. Not having a signature flourish is not a disadvantage. This division rewards the quality of the fundamentals.
Techniques competed in this division
From our world massage encyclopedia — the techniques that belong to this division. No school or lineage is prescribed; enter with the work you already do.
Bali (Indonesia)
Balinese Massage
バリニーズマッサージPijat Bali
A name used for oil massage in Balinese spas and other settings, often combining long strokes, kneading and scent. Local everyday care and tourism-spa menus should not be treated as identical traditions.
Oil · Pressure · Herbal
Traditional massageSpa treatmentView →Kerala (India)
Ayurvedic Massage (Abhyanga)
アーユルヴェーダ・マッサージ（アビヤンガ）अभ्यङ्ग (Abhyaṅga)
Oil-based manual work within Ayurveda, involving the spreading of oil, stroking and kneading. Its role differs in household routines, specialist facilities and spas. Concepts such as dosha are presented as explanations within that tradition.
Oil · Herbal · Heat
Traditional healing systemView →Tibet
Ku Nye (Tibetan Massage)
クニェ（チベット伝統マッサージ）བསྐུ་མཉེ་ (bsku mnye)
Ku Nye is the manual therapy of Sowa Rigpa, Tibetan traditional medicine, in three stages: ku, anointing with warm medicated oil or butter; nye, kneading, pressure and joint movement; and chi, wiping the oil away with flour. Recorded in the Four Tantras (Gyud Zhi) compiled between the 8th and 12th centuries, it uses heated stones and herbal compresses alongside the hands, on a theory of balancing the three humours (lung, tripa, beken). It is taught today in Dharamsala, in Tibet and at schools in Europe.
Oil · Herbal · Stone · Heat
Traditional healing systemView →Hawaiʻi
Lomi Lomi (Hawaiian Massage)
ロミロミ（ハワイ伝統マッサージ）Lomilomi
A name for manual practices carried forward through families and communities in Hawaiʻi. Some use hands and forearms, with accounts emphasising aloha, place and relationships. Practice, including prayer and sequence, varies; a single spa form cannot stand for the whole tradition.
Oil · Breath · Stone · Abdomen
Traditional healing systemTraditional massageView →Turkey
Hammam (Turkish and Moroccan Bath Massage)
ハマム（トルコ式・モロッコ式浴場マッサージ）حمّام / Hamam
The hammam is the steam bath-house that developed in the Islamic world from the Roman and Byzantine public baths, and the sequence of body care performed there. In the Turkish form, the tellak (bath attendant) scrubs the skin with a coarse kese mitt and kneads the whole body in foam (köpük) on a heated marble platform (göbek taşı). The Moroccan form uses black soap (savon beldi), a kessa glove, ghassoul clay and argan oil. It carries both the religious meaning of purification and the role of a social gathering place.
Steam · Water · Heat · Tool
Traditional massageSpa treatmentView →Sweden
Swedish Massage
スウェディッシュマッサージKlassisk massage
Swedish, or classic, massage was systematised in Europe and spread through varied educational and spa settings. Terms such as effleurage and pétrissage describe gliding, kneading and friction. This vocabulary is not a universal framework for describing or judging every massage tradition.
Oil · Pressure · Percussion
Modern bodyworkClinical massageView →Denmark
Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD)
リンパドレナージュ（マニュアル・リンパ・ドレナージュ）Manuelle Lymphdrainage
Manual lymphatic drainage uses light movements of the skin and is taught in systems including the Vodder method. Clinical decisions should be distinguished from use of similar names on beauty menus. Suitability for a medical condition requires assessment by a qualified clinician.
Lymph
Clinical massageView →France
Aromatherapy Massage
アロマテラピーマッサージMassage aromathérapique
Massage combining manual techniques with preparations such as appropriately diluted essential oils. Training includes effleurage (gliding) and petrissage (kneading). Techniques and scent choices vary, with the recipient’s preferences respected.
Oil · Herbal · Lymph
Spa treatmentModern bodyworkView →Finland
Sports Massage
スポーツマッサージSports massage
An umbrella term for manual work in sport and activity settings. Touch and timing are discussed around training, events and the person’s preferences. The label does not guarantee better performance, injury prevention or faster recovery.
Pressure · Stretch · Fascia
Sports massageView →
Past winners
Therapists who placed in this division at previous championships.
Asia Massage Championship 2024
Oil Massage Category
- 1Rukacoordinate salon CREDO
- 2川仁 康成メンズセラピストSPAカラダビューティー
- 3吉井 まお脳と体のデトックスサロン リリース東京
Frequently asked questions
- Do I bring my own oil?
- You bring it. No oil is provided at the venue, so please bring the one you normally use — scent and viscosity change how the work lands.
- Do I bring my own model?
- No. Competitors take turns acting as each other’s models, so you do not need to bring anyone (a companion cannot serve as your model). If circumstances make this impossible, please contact the organising office before entering.
Enter this division
33,000 yen (tax included) per entry. You can enter up to two divisions; each entry is charged separately.
Entries open at 19:00 JST (10:00 UTC) on Tuesday 27 October 2026 and close at 23:59 JST (14:59 UTC) on Monday 15 March 2027.
Enter the championship