KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will host the Karate 1 Series A competition for the first time at the World Trade Centre (WTC) in Kuala Lumpur from Oct 3-5.
Malaysian Karate Federation (MAKAF) general secretary Razlan Shah Mohamad Rabii credited World Karate Federation (WKF) Executive Committee member, Tun Dr Mohd Ali Mohd Rustam, for helping secure the hosting rights.
“Tun Ali lobbied for the Series A (event) to be held in Malaysia and it will be held in Kuala Lumpur for the first time this year,” said Razlan.
Razlan added that hosting the event will give Malaysian karatekas the opportunity to earn valuable ranking points.
“The Karate 1 Premier League is for athletes ranked one to 30, while Series A (events) are for 31st and below. These two competitions are mostly held aboard in Europe and are costly for our athletes to compete in,” said Razlan.
“To reach the Premier League, we need our athletes to be in the top 30 of the rankings. We need to expose them to higher level competitions and hosting the Series A will be a good platform for them to gain ranking points.”
MAKAF plans to field a large squad for the tournament, including senior and Under-21 exponents.
“We will send as many exponents as possible to compete in the event here, including those from the Under-21 squad,” said Razlan.
“Due to funding constraints we often had to pick and choose for competitions abroad and it limits the growth of our exponents. They rarely get a chance to test themselves against their peers, especially from Europe.”
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
