The second day of the competition of the 2023 Karate 1-Series A Richmond-Vancouver put the spotlight on new names of the sport who reached the finals at stake today.

SURPRISING FINAL IN MALE KATA

Dyun Kimura of Brazil surprised the favourites and qualified for the title-deciding bout of Male Kata after topping the last pool with a score of 42.0. It will be the first final for the current PKF bronze medallist.

Karatekas from the United States continued their impressive performance in Richmond-Vancouver, and Rey Chinen made it to the final of the category. The 2019 U21 World champion got a score of 42.2 in the last pool.

CANADA CELEBRATE FINAL IN FEMALE KUMITE -55KG

Hosts of Canada also celebrated final spots today. Hana Furumoto-Deshaies took the flag of the organising country to the final of Female Kumite -55kg following a slim 4-3 triumph over Japan’s Akira Yatoji.

Her rival in the final will be Gulmira Ussenova of Kazakhstan who edged Matilda Roselind of Sweden by “Hantei” or decision in the semi-finals (0-0).

PROMISING NAMES PREVAIL IN RICHMOND-VANCOUVER

Two of the most promising names of the category in Karate 1-Series A will meet in the final of Female Kumite -50kg. Former EKF U21 champion Asia Agus of Italy made it to the final after beating Laura Charruf of Mexico in the semi-finals (2-0) while current U21 EKF runner-up Ema Sgardelli of Croatia qualified for the title-deciding bout after upsetting Eva Alexander of the United States 3-2.  

TWO FINALS FOR MEXICO

The event was also an opportunity for karatekas from Mexico to make it to the final rounds of a first-class tournament. Erika Gabriela Luque Sanchez aims at her first crown in senior competitions following an impressive 6-0 victory over local hopeful Selma Raad in Female Kumite -61kg.

The other side of the tatami will be taken by Maryam Ajaray of Belgium. A first-time finalist, Ajaray defeated Hei Wood Chow of Hong Kong 5-2.

The second final for Mexican representatives was claimed by Bernardo Solorzano in Male Kumite -67kg. The current PKF Championships bronze medallist beat Gianmarco Pacino of Italy in the semi-finals 3-0.

The other finalist in the category is Morteza Nemati of Iran who took an impressive 11-4 victory over Tomas Fuentes Freire of Chile.  

ALL-JAPAN FINAL IN MALE KUMITE -60KG

The Japanese delegation continued shining in Richmond-Vancouver. The final of Male Kumite -60kg will have two competitors from the birth nation of the sport fighting for gold.

Hiromu Hashimoto reached the title-deciding bout following an outstanding 8-0 triumph over Bogdan Marian Florin Gogolosi of Romania while Sena Kondo defeated Naim Abdessalam Rouichi of Algeria in the semi-finals 6-5.

2023 KARATE 1 SERIES A RICHMOND-VANCOUVER