History of Karate was written today in Paris. The updated judging system for Kata was officially unveiled in the Karate 1-Premier League Paris as the sport continues taking steps towards its debut in the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. 

History of Karate was written today in Paris. The updated judging system for Kata was officially unveiled in the Karate 1-Premier League Paris as the sport continues taking steps towards its debut in the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. 

The new rules for Kata are modernising the way that the category of choreographed movements is evaluated. With the new system, point-allocation replaces the traditional flags. A panel formed by seven judges assesses the performance of karatekas, and scores are given according to the technical and athletic presentation of the Katas. 

“This new system is the result of many months of hard work and analysis by many members of the WKF. The determination to implement the updated rules was a much-meditated decision, and I think it continues taking our sport in the right direction. Obviously, it will take some time to get used to this procedure, but in the end, I am convinced that the new system will contribute to further drive our sport towards excellence, objectivity, and innovation,” declared WKF President Antonio Espinós. 

These are the main updates of the modernised Kata judging system: 

1. All the competitors are divided into groups of eight karateka.

2. Each karateka performs their kata in front of the panel of judges.

3. The panel of judges evaluates the kata in terms of technical and athletic performance.

4. Judges give points for each of the two criteria. The two highest scores and the two lowest scores are automatically eliminated. With the rest points, the total is calculated. A breakdown is applied of 70% for technical performance and 30% for athletic performance.

5. A ranking is thus established with the points of all the karateka in the pool. The top four competitors in the pool proceed to the following round. 

6. When only two groups of eight competitors remain, a new kata will be performed by the athletes to win their qualification to the medal bouts. 

7. The second and third-ranked karateka from each group will clash for the bronze medals. The two top athletes will clash for gold.