The Historic Olympic Karate Debut
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games (held in 2021) marked a monumental milestone for traditional martial arts: the historic Olympic Karate debut. Governed by the World Karate Federation (WKF), the world’s elite practitioners gathered at the legendary Nippon Budōkan to compete on the ultimate global stage.
The following is the definitive, updated roster of the qualifying Olympians following the final qualification events in Tokyo, Japan. This historical archive details the athletes, their representative countries, and their traditional Ryūha (martial arts style).
Olympic Kata (Forms) Qualifiers
The Olympic Kata division featured athletes performing recognized forms from the major traditional Ryūha, including Gōjū-Ryū, Shitō-Ryū, Shōtōkan-Ryū, and Ryūei-Ryū.
| Event | Name | Country | Ryūha (Style) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male Kata | |||
| Male Kata | Damián Quintero | Spain | Shitō-Ryū |
| Male Kata | Ryō Kiyuna | Japan | Ryūei-Ryū |
| Male Kata | Ali Sofuoğlu | Turkey | Shōtōkan-Ryū |
| Male Kata | Antonio Díaz | Venezuela | Shitō-Ryū |
| Male Kata | Mattia Busato | Italy | Shōtōkan-Ryū |
| Male Kata | Ariel Torres | USA | Gōjū-Ryū |
| Male Kata | Yi-Ta Wang | Chinese Taipei | — |
| Male Kata | Heejun Park | South Korea | — |
| Female Kata | |||
| Female Kata | Sandra Sánchez | Spain | Gōjū-Ryū |
| Female Kata | Kiyou Shimizu | Japan | Shitō-Ryū |
| Female Kata | Viviana Bottaro | Italy | — |
| Female Kata | Mo Sheung Grace Lau | Hong Kong | Shitō-Ryū |
| Female Kata | Sakura Kokumai | USA | Shitō-Ryū |
| Female Kata | Dilara Bozan | Turkey | — |
| Female Kata | Alexandra Feracci | France | — |
| Female Kata | Jasmin Jüttner | Germany | — |
| Female Kata | Alexandrea Anacan | New Zealand | — |
Olympic Male Kumite (Sparring) Qualifiers
The Olympic Kumite events were divided into strictly monitored weight categories, showcasing the highest level of WKF point-sparring dynamics.
| Event | Name | Country | Ryūha (Style) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male Kumite -67kg | |||
| Male Kumite -67kg | Darkhan Assadilov | Kazakhstan | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Steven Da Costa | France | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Angelo Crescenzo | Italy | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Ali Elsawy | Egypt | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Naoto Sago | Japan | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Eray Şamdan | Turkey | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Abdel Rahman Almasatfa | Jordan | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Firdovsi Farzaliyev | Azerbaijan | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Kalvis Kalnins | Latvia | — |
| Male Kumite -67kg | Andrés Madera | Venezuela | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | |||
| Male Kumite -75kg | Bahman Asgari Ghoncheh | Iran | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Luigi Busà | Italy | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Rafael Aghayev | Azerbaijan | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Stanislav Horuna | Ukraine | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Ken Nishimura | Japan | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Nurkanat Azhikanov | Kazakhstan | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Noah Bitsch | Germany | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Károly Gábor Hárspataki | Hungary | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Tsuneari Yahiro | Australia | — |
| Male Kumite -75kg | Abdalla Abdelaziz | Egypt | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | |||
| Male Kumite +75kg | Uğur Aktaş | Turkey | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Sajad Ganjzadeh | Iran | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Jonathan Horne | Germany | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Ivan Kvesic | Croatia | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Ryūtarō Araga | Japan | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Brian Irr | USA | Wadō-Ryū |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Tareq Hamedi | Saudi Arabia | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Gogita Arkania | Georgia | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Daniel Gaysinsky | Canada | — |
| Male Kumite +75kg | Daniyar Yuldashev | Kazakhstan | — |
Olympic Female Kumite (Sparring) Qualifiers
| Event | Name | Country | Ryūha (Style) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Female Kumite -55kg | |||
| Female Kumite -55kg | Serap Özçelik Arapoğlu | Turkey | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Anzhelika Terliuga | Ukraine | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Tzu-Yun Wen | Chinese Taipei | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Miho Miyahara | Japan | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Sara Bahmanyar | Iran | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Ivet Goranova | Bulgaria | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Moldir Zhangbyrbay | Kazakhstan | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Anna Chernysheva | Russia | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Radwa Sayed | Egypt | — |
| Female Kumite -55kg | Bettina Plank | Austria | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | |||
| Female Kumite -61kg | Xiaoyan Yin | China | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | Giana Lotfy | Egypt | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | Jovana Preković | Serbia | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | Merve Çoban | Turkey | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | Mayumi Someya | Japan | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | Btissam Sadini | Morocco | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | Anita Serogina | Ukraine | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | Claudymar Garcés Sequera | Venezuela | — |
| Female Kumite -61kg | Alexandra Grande | Peru | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | |||
| Female Kumite +61kg | Irina Zaretska | Azerbaijan | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Hamideh Abbasali | Iran | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Li Gong | China | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Meltem Hocaoğlu Akyol | Turkey | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Ayumi Uekusa | Japan | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Elena Quirici | Switzerland | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Silvia Semeraro | Italy | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Feryal Abdelaziz | Egypt | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Sofya Berultseva | Kazakhstan | — |
| Female Kumite +61kg | Lamya Matoub | Algeria | — |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Karate to be included in the 2024 or 2028 Olympics?
Not as of the publishing of this article. The Tokyo 2020 Games serves as Karate’s historic Olympic debut, but the sport is not yet confirmed the Paris 2024 and Los Angeles 2028 programs. This makes the Tokyo 2020 roster incredibly significant as the sole representation of Olympic Karate to date. Karate does has however, been included in the World Games since 1981, the Junior Olympics and the World Masters Games!
What traditional styles (Ryūha) are represented at the Olympics?
The WKF recognizes four main styles for Kata performance: Gōjū-Ryū, Shitō-Ryū, Shōtōkan-Ryū, and Wadō-Ryū. Additionally, athletes like Ryō Kiyuna successfully represent Ryūei-Ryū.
About the Author
Johnpaul Williams Shihan is the Director of Seiwakai Karate Silicon Valley and holds advanced teaching licenses (Kyōshi and Renshi Shihan) in Gōjū-Ryū and Karatedō with over 50 years of traditional training experience. He is a recognized researcher, academic, and the author of the celebrated publication, Volume 1 Gōjū-Ryū Karate-Dō Desk Reference 剛柔流空手道 参考書 – Introduction & Historic Chronology.
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