Istanbul, Türkiye – The 2026 season of the Karate 1-Premier League kicked off in high gear this weekend at the Basaksehir Sports Complex. From January 23 to 25, the world’s karate elite gathered for the first stop of this premier series, marking the competition’s grand return to Türkiye after a five-year absence (last edition in 2021).
With 373 athletes from 63 countries, the level of competition was exceptional for this inaugural tournament. Egypt topped the medal standings, closely followed by a Turkish team galvanized by their home crowd.
Medalists Overview
| Category | 🥇 Gold | 🥈 Silver | 🥉 Bronze |
| Female Kata | Lau Mo Sheung Grace (HKG) | Ono Maho (JPN) | Shimizu Natsuki (JPN) Iwatani Azuki (JPN) |
| Female Kumite -50 Kg | Nyman Agnes (SWE) | Hubrich Shara (GER) | Sgardelli Ema (CRO) Ouikene Cylia (ALG) |
| Female Kumite -55 Kg | Samasheva Bella (KAZ) | Kvasnicova Nina (SVK) | Elhayti Chaimae (MAR) Kodo Rina (JPN) |
| Female Kumite -61 Kg | Yenen Fatma Naz (TUR) | Ajaray Maryam (BEL) | Otaboyeva Sevinch (UZB) Shimada Sarara (JPN) |
| Female Kumite -68 Kg | Brouk Nisrine (MAR) | Hendy Hadir (EGY) | Meshkova Aleksandra (WKF-1) Schroeter Madeleine (GER) |
| Female Kumite 68+ Kg | Berultseva Sofya (KAZ) | Gurung Arika (NEP) | Golombos Nikolina (CRO) Giamouki Theodosia (CYP) |
| Male Kata | Nishiyama Kakeru (JPN) | Moto Kazumasa (JPN) | Torres Gutierrez Ariel (USA) Ken Okamoto (JPN) |
| Male Kumite -60 Kg | Samdan Eray (TUR) | Kilic Nuri (TUR) | Sabatino Christian (ITA) Hammad Abdallah (JOR) |
| Male Kumite -67 Kg | Ogannisian Iurik (WKF-1) | Baliotis Georgios (GRE) | Almasatfa Abdel Rahman (JOR) Maresca Luca (ITA) |
| Male Kumite -75 Kg | Abdelaziz Abdalla (EGY) | Yurur Omer Faruk (TUR) | Asgari Ghoncheh Bahman (IRI) Sakiyama Yusei (JPN) |
| Male Kumite -84 Kg | Osman Omar (EGY) | Badawy Youssef (EGY) | Gasparian Eduard (WKF-1) Aljafari Mohammad (JOR) |
| Male Kumite 84+ Kg | Rojas Rodrigo (CHI) | Mahmoud Taha (EGY) | Elmasry Ahmed (EGY) Kudzinau Ivan (WKF-2) |
Egypt and Türkiye in Command
Egypt confirmed its status as a global karate superpower by finishing atop the medal table. The Egyptian delegation leaves with two gold medals thanks to the performances of Abdalla Abdelaziz in Male Kumite -75 kg and Omar Osman in -84 kg. They also secured three silver medals, notably through Hadir Hendy (-68 kg) and Youssef Badawy (-84 kg).
The Turkish hosts did not disappoint their supporters. Türkiye celebrated two champions on home soil: Fatma Naz Yenen dominated the -61 kg category, while Eray Samdan triumphed in the Men’s -60 kg. Nuri Kilic (-60 kg) and Omer Faruk Yurur (-75 kg) added silver to the local tally.
Highlights: Kazakhstan and Kata
Kazakhstan delivered a remarkable performance, also winning two gold medals in the women’s categories thanks to Bella Samasheva (-55 kg) and Sofya Berultseva (+68 kg).
In the technical events (Kata), Hong Kong and Japan shared the honors. Star Grace Lau Mo Sheung (Hong Kong) won gold in Female Kata, while Japan’s Kakeru Nishiyama prevailed in the men’s event, confirming the depth of the Japanese talent pool, which placed four athletes on the Male Kata podiums.
Other notable victories include Chilean Rodrigo Rojas in the heavyweights (+84 kg), Swede Agnes Nyman in -50 kg, and Moroccan Nisrine Brouk in -68 kg.
Medal Table by Country
| Rank | Country | 🥇 Gold | 🥈 Silver | 🥉 Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Egypt (EGY) | 2 | 3 | 1 | 6 |
| 2 | Türkiye (TUR) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | Kazakhstan (KAZ) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Japan (JPN) | 1 | 2 | 6 | 9 |
| 5 | WKF (Neutral Athletes) | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| 6 | Morocco (MAR) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 7 | Chile (CHI) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | Hong Kong (HKG) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | Sweden (SWE) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | Germany (GER) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 11 | Belgium (BEL) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| – | Greece (GRE) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| – | Nepal (NEP) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| – | Slovakia (SVK) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 15 | Jordan (JOR) | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 16 | Croatia (CRO) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| – | Italy (ITA) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 18 | Algeria (ALG) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| – | Cyprus (CYP) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| – | Iran (IRI) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| – | USA | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| – | Uzbekistan (UZB) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Exporter vers Sheets
Grand Winners Debut Golden Embroidery
Beyond the medals, this event in Istanbul was particularly symbolic as it marked the debut of the new Grand Winners. These athletes, recognized as the best of the best in each category at the end of the previous season, had the honor of wearing their special karate gis adorned with golden embroidery for the first time.
Next Steps
After this successful launch in Istanbul, a regular host of major WKF events (such as the 2022 European Championships in Gaziantep or the World Youth Championships in Konya), the global circuit continues its world tour. The 2026 Karate 1-Premier League will next travel to Rome (Italy), Leshan (China), and Rabat (Morocco).