Venice was the last stop of the Youth League this year.
One of the most massive tournaments this time brought together 2660 karatekas from 58 countries, who determined the best both in the standings among children, cadets, and among juniors. Athletes representing Budo-Nord from Ukraine, Sweden, Portugal, Italy, Ireland and Denmark also took part in the competition.
Ukrainian silver
20 athletes from Ukraine performed in Budo-Nord equipment. This figure can be called a kind of record. At the same time, 10 karatekas were declared in the U-14 standings. Of course, the tournament path of the participants developed in different ways. For example, Dombrovskyi Vladyslav (40 kg) lost in the first match to Fejér Milán (Hungary), while Chornyi Andrian (45 kg) advanced to the final. He topped his group and advanced to the quarter-finals, where he beat his Ukrainian teammate Myshyn Ivan 5-0. In the semi-final, Chorny beat Roland Nathan (Belgium) by five points (9:4), but lost to Serb Krstin Filip (1:9) in the final, winning the silver medal. Naturally, the owners of the tatami were represented by the maximum possible number of participants.
The Italians put up impressive squads in all age categories, including athletes in Budo-Nord equipment. The most successful among them was Ravasio Mattia (+55 kg) in the U-14 standings. He started by beating Kržıšnık Lan (Slovenia) but lost 0-2 to his Italy teammate Conti Alessandro in the next round. And in the cadet competitions, Ech Chaqouri Wassim (52 kg) could not pass in the first match Farid Mammadov from Azerbaijan – 0:8.
Among juniors Swedish athletes Haag Ozzy (-76 kg) and Alscog Tage (76+ kg) lost from the first fight. Ozzy was stopped by a competitor from Montenegro Saljiu Emre (1:3), a competitor from Italy Toma Gioele (1:3) stopped in Tage. Since the opponents failed to reach the final, the Swedish athletes, who lost to them with the same score, finished the competition ahead of schedule.
In the weight category up to 68 kg among juniors, two Portuguese karatekas with Budo-Nord equipment were announced at once. True, the participation of both in Venice turned out to be rather short-lived: Fernandes Pedro in the opening match was defeated by Suleymanov Rashid from Azerbaijan (0:4), and Guedes Bernardo lost to Piris Ferrer Miguel from Spain.
Youth League on the rise
In general, the competition fully justified its status. And the Youth League has established itself as one of the best finds of the World Karate Federation. After all, if the Premier League and Serie A are tournaments with the participation of first-rate stars, then the Youth League is a chance for young karatekas who are just trying their hand at big-time sports to make themselves known. This year, the league stages were held in Acapulco (Mexico), Limassol (Cyprus), Porec (Croatia), and Venice became a kind of final chord.
If we talk about the results, then at the home tournament the hosts tried to take their toll. For example, in the standings among the cadets, three gold medals went to the Italian team, which excelled in both kata and kumite. In juniors, Italy took one first place, but in one of the U-14 standings, the audience witnessed the Italian final. It is also worth adding that the Youth League was preceded by a major karate tournament in Venice, which brought together participants of almost all ages, graced the start with their performance.
Therefore, non-stop karate, which we could watch in Venice, was quite a success. Now the busy season is gradually taking a short break to resume next year. Next year, the Karate1 Youth League kicks off in February in the Emirati city of Fujairah, which hosted the Premier League this year. The Youth League will continue in April in the Spanish city of A La Coruna, in June in the Croatian Porec, in September in the Mexican capital of Mexico and will end again in December in Venice.
Read more about the World Karate Federation (WKF) and Serie A tournament in Jakarta.
Read more about World championship in Konya.