It will a new opportunity for Karate fans to see their idols in action. Barely two weeks after Karate heroes shook the sport in the Karate 1-Premier League in Rotterdam, top karatekas will again take the spotlight this weekend at the third stop of the first-class Karate international competition to be held in Dubai. 

It will a new opportunity for Karate fans to see their idols in action. Barely two weeks after Karate heroes shook the sport in the Karate 1-Premier League in Rotterdam, top karatekas will again take the spotlight this weekend at the third stop of the first-class Karate international competition to be held in Dubai. 

The status of Karate’s best competitors will be on the line this weekend at the Karate 1-Premier League in Dubai. Nearly 900 competitors from 77 countries have registered to participate in the event, thus further stating the growing impact of the top events of the sport. While 1217 athletes and 1021 competitors took part respectively in the first two tournaments of the season in Paris and Rotterdam, the tally of karatekas travelling to Dubai extends the increase in the number of participants at the top series of international Karate competitions. Over 500 karatekas from 55 nations participated in last year’s edition of the event in Dubai. 

Favourites hoping shine in Dubai

Karate Stars, Grand Winners, and fan favourites hope to be crowned in the Emirate city. Japan’s Ryutaro Araga aims at winning back-to-back Karate 1-Premier League titles this season after prevailing in Paris and Rotterdam. World champion Araga, and surprising promising karateka Sadriddin Saymatov of Uzbekistan are the only two athletes who have won both Karate 1-Premier League titles this season, so they appear as the competitors to beat in Male Kumite -84kg and Male Kumite -60kg categories, respectively. 

The Male Kata category will also be one thrilling highlight of the competition since two of the best Kata karatekas of the moment will look to contend for the crown this weekend. After his silver medal in Rotterdam, 2016 Grand Winner Damian Quintero of Spain aims at reaching the top spot at the podium in Dubai. Two-time world champion Antonio Diaz of Venezuela will also be one of the main contenders in the quest to glory in Dubai. The Venezuelan Karate Star opens his season this weekend and sets his eyes in dominating the largest category in Dubai, with 117 athletes registered to participate in Male Kata. 

Also signing his first participation in Karate 1-Premier League events this season, superstar Rafael Aghayev will arrive in Dubai with the intention of demonstrating his condition of one of Karate’s biggest heroes. The five-time world champion and defending European title-holder will be one of the names to watch in one of his rare appearances in Karate 1-Premier League. Karate Star and silver medallist in Rotterdam Thomas Scott of the USA and 2016 Grand Winner Majed Alkhalifah of Saudi Arabia will be among the top contenders for the title in Male Kumite -75kg. 

In Women’s categories, Serap Ozcelik of Turkey also looks to be a major player in the tournament. The Karate Star won bronze in the inaugural event in Paris and hopes to recover the crown of Female Kumite -50kg. With two bronze medals this season under her belt, Karate Star Sandra Sanchez aims at earning her first gold this year in Female Kata, while 2016 Grand Winners Terryana D'Onofrio of Italy, Ingrida Suchankova of Slovakia, Kateryna Kryva of Ukraine, Syakilla Salni Jefry Krishnan of Malaysia, Elena Quirici of Switzerland and Anastasya Stepashko of Ukraine will be among the names to follow in the anticipated event in Dubai. 

About Karate 1 – Premier League 

The Karate1-Premier League- is the most important league event in the world of Karate. It comprises of a number of the most prominent Karate competitions, with the cities of Paris (France), Rotterdam (Netherlands), Dubai (UAE), Rabat (Morocco) and Halle/Leipzig (Germany) acting as the stops of this year’s edition.

The Karate 1-Premier League will also be one of the key elements in the road to the Olympic qualification since the points to be allocated in Karate 1-Premier League tournaments will play an essential role in the configuration of the World ranking. 

About Karate World TV Channel 

The Karate World TV Channel gives fans around the world a front row seat to view all the Karate 1- Premier League events. By signing to the Karate World TV Channel, Karate fans will receive all the excitement of the 2017 Karate 1-Premier League in HD, including all five tournaments LIVE, On-demand event replays, Video On Demand and Exclusive Content. 

Sign up for the Karate World TV Channel HERE

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