Welcome to the Canadian Savate Federation, a not-for-profit association promoting the practice and appreciation of the sports of savate, boxe-française and the associated disciplines in Canada.

What is “savate”?

Our art is best known as an elegant but intense style of kickboxing in which the fighters wear shoes (savate being a French word for “old shoe.”) Savate originated in in France and can be traced back to the early 1800’s.

Modern savate includes the growing international kickboxing sport (boxe-française savate,) a self-defense curriculum (savate défense,) and two weapons arts (“la canne” and “le baton”).

Who practices savate?

In Canada, savate is currently practiced at locations in Montreal, Toronto and Halifax.

National savate federations exist in 37 other countries and are part of the international savate federation.