[5][6][7][8] Unlike kickboxing styles such as Muay Thai, which allow knee and/or shin strikes in competitive bouts, savate involves kicking exclusively with one's feet, but participants can nonetheless target any part of the body.

[13] Contact with African and Brazilian fighting styles also occurred through interaction between French sailors and martial arts practitioners in the country's colonial holdings.

Traditional savate was a northern French development, especially in Paris' slums, and always used heavy shoes and boots derived from its potential military origins.

Street fighting savate, unlike chausson, kept the kicks low, almost never targeted above the groin, and they were delivered with vicious, bone-breaking intent.

Parisian savate also featured open hand blows, in thrusting or smashing palm strikes (la baffe) or in stunning slaps targeted to facial nerves.

The two key historical figures in the history of the shift from street fighting to the modern sport of savate are Michel Casseux (also known as le Pisseux)[14] (1794–1869) and Charles Lecour (1808–1894).

Casseux opened the first establishment in 1825 for practicing and promoting a regulated version of chausson and savate (disallowing head butting, eye gouging, grappling, etc.).

Charles Lecour was the first to add English boxing gloves to the martial art which allowed his students to train their punches without injuring their hands.

Savate was later codified under a Committee National de Boxe Française under Charles Charlemont's student Count Pierre Baruzy (dit Barozzi).

The Count is seen as the father of modern savate and was 11-time Champion of France and its colonies, his first ring combat and title prior to the First World War.

In April 2010, the International Savate Federation was accepted as a member of SportAccord (previously known as AGFIS) – a big step forward on the road to Olympic recognition.

In France the professional professeur must have a French state certificate of specialized teaching (CQP AS, BEES 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree, 1st de CCB BPJEPS, DEJEPS, DESJEPS).

French nationals have to submit and succeed to the rigid system of education and prove themselves in competition as well as being respected by peers, in order to have a slight chance to become a DTD (directeur technique départemental).

In the United States Jean-Noel Eynard brought Savate Boxe-Francaise & Canne de Combat (FFBFSDA) as a pioneer to the east coast.

A couple years later, under the collaborative assistance of a steering committee made of Gilles le Duigou (FIS), JN Eynard, ARSIC-International (PA), Armando Basulto (NJ) and Norman Taylor, USSF president(NJ) as well as few other individuals from California, the official name of United States Savate Federation was given to this combined association.

In addition to kicks and punches, savate de rue incorporates knee and elbow strikes as well as joint locks, sweeps, throws, headbutts and takedowns.

[28][29] In "Dr. Wells is Missing", a 1974 episode of The Six Million Dollar Man a savate master named Pierre fights with Steve Austin, using the original kicks-only style of the art.

[citation needed] In Marvel Comics, the criminal mercenary Batroc the Leaper, an adversary of Captain America and mentor of Gwen Poole, is a master of savate, training the latter.

[40] In the manga series Kengan Omega, Nicholas Le Banner uses a martial art he calls 'Sahate', created by incorporating techniques from Fencing, Savate, and Karate.

[citation needed] In the manga series One Piece, Sanji uses a martial art consisting exclusively of precise kicks using the toe or heel called the "Black Leg" style.

Ash himself is portrayed by SNK as a character with an unknown origin, because his lineage as descendant of Saiki (Those from the Past's leader), but it says too that he was raised by the Blanctorche clan, a French family.

[citation needed] Remy from Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike uses savate in a majority of his kick normals, combined with charge command specials reminiscent of Guile and Charlie Nash.

His kick normals have a long reach but are slow and punishable, placing him low among competitive 3rd Strike tier lists.

"[citation needed] Ulrich Stern, occasionally alongside his good friend Yumi Ishiyama, is a practitioner of the French martial art in the 2003-2007 French animated show Code Lyoko In early Alone in the Dark series of survival horror games the main protagonist Edward Carnby was using Savate as unarmed combat method.

[44] Mixed martial arts also had influence in a similar matter, in UFC 1 world-champion savateur Gerard Gordeau participated, reaching the finals where he lost to Royce Gracie, and he went to corner and train many future Dutch MMA fighters.

[45][46] Other savateurs have competed in MMA, such as Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion Christian M'Pumbu, Karl Amoussou and Cheick Kongo.