Algiers 2026: Africa’s karate championships, Bulletin No. 2

Bulletin No. 2 is out. Algiers hosts the African Karate Championships from 6 to 13 September 2026. Registration opened on 6 June. It closes on 25 August — eleven days from today.

That is the clock. The rest is the programme.

Bulletin No. 2 is the FAK working paper for the African Karate Championships 2026 — also styled African Karate Championship Algeria 2026. UFAK and WKF already have the host and the competition dates. The bulletin locks the venue, the hotel, the categories, the tatami count and the video-review rule.

The window

The Algerian Karate Federation — FAK, also styled AKF — organises the championships under the aegis of the Algerian Ministry of Sports. WKF rules. UFAK-affiliated countries only.

UFAK puts the event in Algiers from 6 to 13 September. Competition runs 10–13 September across four tatami. The Opening Ceremony is Saturday 12 September, alongside the U21 finals and Para Karate.

The poster artwork shows 5–13 September. Bulletin No. 2 does not. The official window in the bulletin table is 6–13 September. WKF lists the championships as 10–13 September — the competition days.

The event window starts on 6 September. The medals start on 10 September. 5 September is poster art, not the official start.

Accreditation and the event sit on the longer window. The medals sit on the shorter one.

Who and where

UFAK President Souleymane Gaye welcomes the field. In that welcome he thanks Reda Benkaddour — the bulletin prints Reda BENKADDOUR — president of the local organising side, the Algerian authorities, and Antonio Espinós, president of the WKF, for their support of African karate.

The competition venue is the Office du Complexe Olympique Alger. The poster names the Hall of the Olympic Complex Mohamed Boudiaf — La Coupole — Algiers. Same complex. Same hall.

The official hotel in Bulletin No. 2 is the Hotel Holiday Inn Alger. That is the headquarters hotel on the bulletin. FAK’s address for the file: Maison des Fédérations, Chemin Ahmed Ouaked, Dely Ibrahim, Alger.

WKF’s event page styles it 2026 UFAK Championships Argel. Recent hosts on that page: Abuja 2025, Casablanca 2023, Durban 2022, Cairo 2021, Tangier 2020, Gaborone 2019. Algiers is next.

Abuja last year. Casablanca, Durban, Cairo, Tangier, Gaborone before that. The continental championship moves city to city. This year it is La Coupole.

The tables

Cadets, Juniors, U21, Seniors. Male and female.

One individual athlete per category. One team per activity. Individually, athletes compete in one category. They may join a higher category as a team if their age matches that team.

That is the entry rule. It is tight. A cadet who fights cadet kumite does not also fight junior kumite. A junior of the right age can still stand in a senior team kata if that team’s age band fits. Federations will feel it when they close their lists.

Seniors, 18 and over. Individual kata, men and women. Team kata from 16, men and women. Kumite men: −60, −67, −75, −84, +84. Kumite women: −50, −55, −61, −68, +68. Team kumite, men and women.

U21, 18 to 21. Individual kata, men and women. The same five kumite weights as the seniors, men and women. The bulletin does not list U21 team kata or U21 team kumite.

Juniors, 16 and 17. Individual kata. Team kata from 14 to 17, boys and girls. Kumite men: −55, −61, −68, −76, +76. Kumite women: −48, −53, −59, −66, +66.

Cadets, 14 and 15. Individual kata. Team kata is the shared 14–17 draw — the same team kata activity as the juniors, not a separate cadet team. Kumite men: −52, −57, −63, −70, +70. Kumite women: −47, −54, −61, +61. Four female cadet weights, not five.

Four tatami. Video review is mandatory on the first and last day of competition. Videos are available all four days. They are for tatami managers and the appeal jury.

Four days of competition, four tatami. The review is not optional on the opening day or the closing day. In between, the footage is still there if a tatami manager or the appeal jury needs it.

U21 is new

UFAK newly validated the U21 category for this championship. That is why the competition stretches to four days. Cadets, juniors and seniors were the old spine. U21 sits on the programme now, with its own individual kata and the senior kumite weights.

The Opening Ceremony on Saturday 12 September is built around the U21 finals and Para Karate. That pairing is UFAK’s, not a guess.

That is the structural change. Not a rumour. A validated category.

Eleven days

Registration opened 6 June 2026. It closes 25 August 2026. From Friday 14 August, that is eleven days.

UFAK opened registration on 6 June 2026 and closes it on 25 August. That close is not a soft date. After the 25th the lists are the lists.

Bulletin No. 2 is the working document: dates, venue, hotel, categories, tatami, video review. UFAK has the host announcement. WKF has the championship page. The lists close on the 25th.

One athlete per category. One team per activity. Four age groups. Four tatami. U21 on the programme for the first time at these championships.

The championship sits in Algiers. The work is the entries.