Japan’s Kiyou Shimizu continued her domination of the Female Kata category as the two-time world champion secured her third successive gold on the international stage at the inaugural stop of the Karate 1-Series A in Guadalajara (Spain). While Japan topped the medal table with 15 awards, including four golds, hosts of Spain and Turkey also succeeded at the record-breaking event being held in the Spanish city. 

Japan’s Kiyou Shimizu continued her domination of the Female Kata category as the two-time world champion secured her third successive gold on the international stage at the inaugural stop of the Karate 1-Series A in Guadalajara (Spain). While Japan topped the medal table with 15 awards, including four golds, hosts of Spain and Turkey also succeeded at the record-breaking event concluding today in the Spanish city. 

Japan’s Kiyou Shimizu maintained her leadership of the Female Kata category with a new gold medal. The two-time world champion defeated teammate Hikaru Ono (4-1) in an all-Japan final thus claiming her 13th gold in international competitions. 

The representatives of the birth nation of the sport extended their winning streak in Kata competitions since the gold medal in Male Kata also ended in Japanese’s hands. Kazumasa Moto defeated home hero Damian Quintero of Spain in the final (4-1) in his big first triumph in major competitions. 

The celebrations for the Japanese karatekas did not end with the Kata categories. Miho Miyahara dominated the Female Kumite -50kg competition and took her third consecutive gold medal. After her victory in Karate 1-Premier League in Paris two weeks ago, the 21-year-old karateka defeated Busra Tosun of Turkey in a showdown of offensive Karate 5-1. 

KARATE STARS PREVAILING IN GUADALAJARA  

Brazil’s Douglas Brose also took the spotlight at the inaugural event of the 2018 Karate 1-Series A season with his victory in Male Kumite -60kg. The two-time World champion presented efficiency on the tatami to edge Michael Dasoul of Belgium 1-0. It is Brose’s second medal this season after the second position in Karate 1-Premier League in Paris. 

“I am very happy because I could finally get the gold after four finals. Now I just have to keep on working; it is a long season, and for me, it is important to keep on getting points and to continue going up in the ranking. It was a good tournament with a lot of competitors. Now I start preparing for the Karate 1-Premier League in Dubai”, said Douglas Brose.  

One of the highlights of the day was the final of Male Kumite -75kg. Grand Winner Stanislav Horuna of Ukraine demonstrated his impressive abilities and showcased his fierce approach to Kumite by overpowering Matias Rodriguez Fuentes of Chile 6-3. While the young Chilean karateka had managed to take an ippon, the Ukrainian star was too effective and earned gold with three yukos and one wazari. 

TWO GOLD MEDALS FOR HOSTS 

Hosts of Spain also finished the tournament on a high note since, in addition to Damian Quintero’s silver and three more bronze medals, the local karatekas took two big awards today. Samy Ennkhaili Anqoud reached the top of the podium in his first final in major competitions after defeating Muhammet Ali Yilmaz of Turkey in a roller-coaster of final of Male Kumite -67kg (2-2). Meanwhile, Laura Palacio also delighted the home crowd with her tight victory over Finland’s Titta Keinanen. The 2014 World Championships bronze medallist won the final by ‘Hantei’ (0-0) and claimed her first medal in nearly two years.  

“I have just recovered from an injury and I could not train with the intensity that I would have liked. In fact, I could not participate in Paris due to this injury. So winning gold like this makes me even happier,” said Laura Palacio, who was thrilled for succeeding at home. 

“Most international tournaments are away from home, and you don’t get to compete in front of family and friends. Now they are all here, especially my mom, so for me, it is great that I could win,” added the 30-year-old local heroine. 

Turkish karatekas were also the big winners in Guadalajara. In addition to two silver and four bronze medals, the representatives of the Eastern European nation managed to prevail in two more categories. The gold medals for the Turkish delegation were claimed by Tuba Yakan who defeated Jennifer Warling of Luxembourg 1-0 in Female Kumite -55kg, and by Merve Coban who convincingly beat Karina Diaz of Dominican Republic (4-1) in Female Kumite -61kg. 

Belgium’s Luana Debatty’s gold in Female Kumite -68kg, Netherland’s Tyron Lardy’s victory over Rodrigo Rojas of Chile in Male Kumite +68kg, and Ukraine’s Valeri Chobotar’s triumph in Male Kumite -68kg completed the list of gold medallists in Guadalajara. 

Relive the best moments of the thrilling Karate event with the streaming of the finals. Go to WKF YouTube channel to watch all the best karatekas in action from Guadalajara. 

Also, go to KARATEWORLD.TV for all things Karate. The karateworld.tv Channel gives fans around the world a front row seat to view all the major Karate events. Sign up for the Karate World TV Channel HERE

(Pictures: Servolle Xavier / KPhotos)