Well, ladies and gentlemen! Fasten your belts – this year is going to be crazy!
In the beginning of 2020 I had already traveled to the other side of the world. During my stay, I trained two times a day. The first session in the morning and the second one in the afternoon. Moreover, I had three photo sessions and the results were breathtaking. Lastly, I participated in a TV show that was released during my visit.
The World Games Athlete Of 2019
After a successful career at the highest level for 12 years, Stanislav Horuna of Ukraine has become one of the most admired karatekas in the world. Respected by rivals and cherished by fans, Horuna is probably the most-followed competitor in the world by the younger generation. The sight of the Ukrainian athlete surrounded by hundreds of enthusiasts has turned out to be a classic feature at major events. His friendly personality, his unique hairdo and his spectacular style of fighting are among the reasons for his widespread fan base.
He received over 92,000 votes in “The World Games Athlete of the Year” competition and ended as first runner-up. He received tremendous support from his fans during the athletic event. Even though the competition was over, Stanislav Horuna fans continued to appreciate his campaign video throughout social media.
“This number of voices was a surprise for me. I didn’t expect such support from people! Of course, I was trying hard to spread the info about the voting everywhere. I’m thankful for the huge support from the World Karate Federation! The secret to such a result lies in the common united efforts,” Stanislav Horuna says. “In addition to the Karate community, I also asked my friends from other sports to involve their audiences. That’s how I was given support from stars and world champions such as (Football) Zinchenko Oleksandr, (Judo) Daria Bilodid, (Boxing) Taras Shelestyuk, (Wrestling) Zhan Beleniuk, (Acrobatic Gymnastics) Oleg Verniaiev and many others, including bloggers and influencers from several different spheres.”
The four-time European Championship medallist received his most substantial accomplishment at The World Games in 2017, where he won the gold medal in Spectacular fashion. Stanislav Horuna defeated Iran Aliasghar Asiabari with 4-2 in one of the most important games of the tournament. Furthermore, as if this wasn’t enough, this year he won the gold medal at one of Karate’s biggest events, the 2019 European Games.
“Winning at The World Games 2017 was an interesting experience for me. I believe it helped me win the European Games 2019, as it was the same format in both events. I hope that my experience will make it easier for me to compete at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.”
Antonio Espinós, President of the World Karate Federation, praises Horuna: “Stanislav Horuna is not only one of the best athletes in the world. He represents – like many other karatekas do – the outstanding values of our sport. Honour, hard work, respect, kindness… all these principles that together make Karate so unique are symbolised in Horuna’s career and in his performances. It is an honour for Karate that he is the runner-up of The World Games Athlete of the Year 2019. I would like to sincerely congratulate him for this fantastic success. Also, many thanks to the thousands of sports fans who voted for him. As he said himself, this is not just Horuna’s success; this is a big success for the whole of our sport”.
In addition to his success on the tatami, Horuna works as an attorney in his home town of Lviv. He has a Master of Law from the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. Horuna´s major hobbies are Snowboarding, Skydiving and Football. “My work is very different from Karate. Sometimes it is very tiresome, however, it helps me to switch my mind. During the day I work at the office and in the evenings I go to the gym and train,” said Horuna.
He concludes by thanking all who voted for him: “I’m really thankful for the constant support during the whole period of voting! If we ever have another chance to be nominated for the title of “The Athlete of The World Games – I’m sure we will win!”
The World Games is a multi-sport event staged every four years by the International World Games Association, under the patronage of the International Olympic Committee. The 11th edition of The World Games will be held in Birmingham, Alabama, USA, 15-25 July 2021. 3,600 athletes from over 30 sports and 100 countries will take part in the games.
Series A, my first race of 2020, did not bring me the desired result – I did not make it to the podium, and I did not display my prime shape. I had had a rough day spending the entire day stuck inside the Airport of Rome where I also was forced to exercise.
The next start – the Premier League in Paris – is the most difficult measured in both numbers and excellence of participants. I have received two gold medals in 2014 and 2017 and three bronze medals from Paris in 2015, 2018 and 2019 and my ambition is to bring in one more from #parisopen in 2020.
Stanislav Horuna ranked 6th in the Olympic Games karate division. He is 30 years old, and is an outstanding figure in the karate world. His everyday life is thrown between the law office by day and the karate training in the evening. This to be in the best shape before the World Cup and the Karate Olympics.
Between the 29th and 30th of June 2019, other European games were held in Horuna’s home nation of Ukraine. In the city of Minsk, a series of vital matches were decided before the Olympic Games next year. Among them was the long-awaited meeting between Stanislav Horuna and the Azerbaijani karate champion Rafael “Rafa” Aghayev. Horuna and Aghayev have met a total of 5 times. When they first met at the Tyumen Premier League 2013, Horuna was a relative newcomer within the world of karate. Meanwhile Aghayev was classified as world champion for the fourth time. Azerbaijan Aghayev came out victorious at that meeting.
It took over five years before the new star Horuna was given another shot at beating Aghayev . After a long wait and “studying of my opponent,” he got his vendetta in the form of a perfectly timed Ura Mawashi (high turning kick). Azerbaijan was out and the match was definite. Stanislav “Stan” Horuna had secured the gold and his road to the Olympics.
Friday 24th of July to Sunday 9th of August 2020, the Summer Olympics will be held: In the native country of karate; Japan. In Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium, Horuna will compete against a series of tough opponents, including Karatekan Bahman Askari from Iran, World Cup 2018 gold medalist.
Horuna is also coming, once again, to meet his old rival Aghayev, in his fight towards the Olympic gold.
#roadtoTokyo #iamhoruna #budonord #budofitness
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