Lyudmila Ustyugova, one of Kazakhstan’s many good fighters. World Champion in 2018, KWF. World Champion in 2019 this time in KWU. Improving her her result from 2017 when she came in on 3rd place. 2017 was a very noticeable year, reaching the final in the 6th World Championship weight categories WKO. The only non Japanese entering the podium. A real statement knocking down 3 time All Japan Champion Kikukawa in the semifinal and entering the upper level of lightweight fighters of the world.
Brigita Gustaitytė, World Champion 7th World weight, winner of many tournaments trough the years.
Photos in this article by: Photographer Annika Peterson check out for more
During this year’s World Championship we saw another fight between two incredible athletes. It was as known, not the first time they met on the mat. And it was no coincidence that they would meet at this point in the tournament. We all know from previous matches how hard they have been and how much they cost to the athletes. We’ve gathered Dimitrov vs Mazur fights – do you know how many times they’ve met?
Many said that the Hungarian Open was a tournament at such a high level, that it even could be compared to the European Championships. The tournament does not exist today in the same way, but it was arranged several times.In 2009 Hungarian Open was streamed LIVE, and with 149 competitors from 11 countries, (European countries, Russia and Kazakhstan) Four categories men and three women + Kata as well. and World Cup fighters, EC champions and more at the line up – this turn out to be a tournament way beyond the normal. Picture: Marius Ilas / Romania
European Championships – Budapest, Hungary 2006, had some of the strongest profiles in the line up. We tough it would be great to look back at the women’s final(s) And in the heavyweight category we had Veronika Sovetes / Hungary vs Gergana Atanasova / Bulgaria. Both some of the very finest and high merited athletes.
We continue to look at the previous World Champions – as an “warm up” to the upcoming 12th World Open Karate Championship this Autumn in Japan. A World Championship that will be the main event this year in the full contact Karate World. We pick up the champions, and time we will give you some videos from when these champions met each other in different tournaments..
We continue to look at the World Championships finals, and we are picking up the women division. With the European selections tournaments still going in replay in our heads, there are no doubt that the level in total has been lifted up significant higher. But looking at the previous finals – there are no doubt that the level has been high for many years – but what we believe, is that not only top 4 are good – but you must be really good to reach top 8! And reaching the top eight, it won’t be easy either. We’v said it before, it’s time to expand the women division into competitors from all nations, not only select from the regions. Video time…!
We are getting closer to the next World Championship, and as we like to do – a little rewind of previous finals. Some of the are seen many times, some has been given less attention – as always. In many tournaments the final it self becomes a little of a anticlimax – even so it is the World Championship final! Sometimes it can be a factor that the finalist maybe not are the one that the big crowd expected to be there. And the road to the final can also be a factor. Anyway a World Championship final is a final with a big F in our dictionary! We give six World Championship finals:
Three weeks ago champions of The 5th All Japan Open Fullcontact organisation where crowned. And in the same time top fighters that will represent Japan in the 12th World Open Karate Championship later this year. In other words these top fighters will be facing the best fighters from all over the world – and when we look at the settings for the 5th All Japan Open – the tournament remind us just like the World Championship will be – thinking of the two days of fighting and the number of fights one have to fight – aiming for the top spot.
