Pugil stick

A pugil stick is a heavily padded pole-like training weapon used since the early 1940s by military personnel in training for rifle and bayonet combat.[1] The pugil stick is similar to a quarterstaff or Japanese bo, and may be marked to indicate which end represents the bayonet and which the rifle butt. Dr. Armond H. Seidler (1919-2017) of the University of New Mexico invented the Pugil Stick training method during World War II. It was initially adopted by the United States Marine Corps, but was later included in United States Army combat training as well. Dr. Seidler received an award from the Marine Corps for his invention.

Pugil bouts are a frequent part of combatives training in use of the bayonet.

US Army specifications for construction of a pugil stick.

Nicaraguan soldiers training using pugil sticks and protective gear

Pugil bouts are usually conducted with hard contact while wearing protective gear such as groin protectors, American football helmets, hockey gloves, and chest protectors or shin guards, such as those worn by baseball catchers. Some pugil sticks are made with integrated hand guards to reduce the potential for injury. Military procedures for pugil bouts are often detailed, with United States Army and United States Marine Corps both prohibiting pugil training by anyone who has recently suffered concussion of the brain, lest they suffer traumatic brain injury, or had a tooth extraction within the past 24 hours.

Pugil stick sparring was popularized in the United States by the American Gladiators, a physical game show which ran from 1989 to 1996, and again in the 2008 revival, as well as in the British version. In the "Joust" contest, competitors would try to knock each other off pedestals using pugil sticks.

The name "pugil stick" is a neologism from the Latin noun pugnus (fist), the source for other English words such as "pugilist" (boxer) and "pugnacious" (eager to fight).