The Executive Committee of the World Karate Federation met virtually today to discuss the future of the sport worldwide and the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

WKF President Antonio Espinós chaired the virtual meeting with the members of the Executive Committee connecting remotely and stating their commitment and ambition to help grow Karate even further.

Additional information on the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 as well as updates on the competitions amid the current challenging circumstances were on top of the agenda. Furthermore, the 2021 competition calendar was revised while the draft of the 2022 competition calendar was ratified.

Refereeing and financial matters were also discussed as the chairs of different commissions presented their state reports and proposals. The progress of the sport worldwide and the modernisation of events in times of coronavirus remains the top priority of Karate’s governing body.     

“We used the past year and the subsequent halt of our competitions in 2020 to fully prepare for the restart of our activities. It took us a whole year, but we finally succeeded in going back to competition. We resumed our international tournaments after hosting the Karate 1-Premier League Istanbul last month. This event was a huge success, and it has given us the confidence to see our upcoming events with great optimism. I am convinced that sooner rather than later we will return to a somewhat normal situation and that we will be able to celebrate our upcoming events,” said WKF President Antonio Espinós.

“I am positive that if we keep the unity that we have maintained thus far, we can accomplish great things. Without the support of the team and the community of the WKF, it would not have been possible to achieve the outstanding success that we have reached over the last years,” added Mr Espinós.