New changes in the rules for the year 2023 are currently planned
The WKF Rules and Classification Commission is working on rule and regulation improvements, as well as suitable alternatives to continue to develop sport karate over time. In this context, and based on the participation statistics that have been collected over the past years at WKF Youth League events, in addition to the information available on our World Championships for youth categories, the WKF Executive Committee approved the Commission’s proposal to add new categories for young female athletes.
Therefore, from January 1, 2023, the new female categories for young athletes that will be reflected in the new version of the competition rules will be as follows:
– Female U14: -42kg / -47kg / -52kg / +52kg
– Cadet Woman: -47kg / -54kg / -61kg / +61kg
– Junior Female: -48kg / -53kg / -59kg / -66kg / +66kg
The World Championships in Konya will not be affected by these category changes. However, as the introduction of new categories also has implications for some important events at continental and other level for the younger categories, a short transition period will be granted for the introduction of these categories. As a result, events such as qualifying and preparation events at national level which will already take place in 2022 (such as those of the European Championships which will be held in February 2023) can already take place in these new categories.
We are confident that this initiative will be welcomed as a positive development for female athletes in sport, also promoting gender balance in competition.