The first open International Karate Championship Hamdan Bin Mohamed Bin Rashid 1st open International Karate Championship was held on December 8 and 9 in Dubai's Al Ahly Club. Teams from the USA, Italy, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Qatar, Kuwait, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Iraq and Iran took part in it. Of course, there were some representatives of the Creative Concepts Martial Arts Team.
On the first day, kata was held - demonstrations of the technical arsenal of karate. Very strong teams, which were dominated by titled athletes, came from the Netherlands, Egypt, Kazakhstan and Qatar. But the main rivalry for the first places here developed between the favorites of the tournament - the national teams of Italy and Iran. The tournament was supervised by Tommy Morris himself, holder of the 8th dan and Chairman of the Council of Judges, the highest governing body in the WKF (World Karate Federation), which is one of the largest and most influential martial arts organizations in the world.
Kata took place all day. Creative Concepts Martial Arts Team was represented by Najmeddin Al Haddat and Khamis Makhum (member of the UAE karate team). Recall that the Creative Concepts Martial Arts Team was named after Creative Concepts Real Estate, which took custody of athletes from the Martial Arts Academy club performing at various competitions.
It is noteworthy that the first day of performances ended without injuries and the athletes never needed the help of ambulance doctors on duty at the tatami.
“The martial arts tournaments held in the United Arab Emirates are often criticized for the lack of professionalism of the organizers and the general low level of participants. But this sporting event was a pleasant exception! It feels like the organizers have been preparing for this tournament for a long time and every little thing has been thought out” - shared his impressions Vladimir Burdun, president of the aforementioned "Academy", who himself once met on the tatami with many members of the Emirates karate team.
During the second day of competition at the Al Ahly Club, kumite was held as part of the individual championship. On this day, the audience was the most, since fights always cause the greatest interest among fans of martial arts. Emirate fans in the stands did not let the flags out of their hands and chanted the names of their athletes. Temperamental fans from Tunisia, having previously acquired tambourines and drums, supported the national team of their country with rhythmic tunes all day.
Due to the intensity of passions and the number of knockouts, this tournament came close to professional fights in full contact. Several knockouts made everyone present worried about the health of the athletes. As a result of injuries, two of the participants left the tatami on a stretcher. True, one of the hospitalized members of the UAE team Khamis Makhum literally escaped from the hospital and after half an hour supported the remaining emirate karatekas.
As noted, summing up the competition, the vice-president of the karate federation, six-time champion of the Emirates, Mohammed Abbas Ahmed "... our young karatekas gained valuable experience in this tournament, and experienced gained well-deserved medals. Medals are not given easily. Medals are blood, sweat and tears "- added the legendary karate.
The Italians in these competitions were not equal in kata. The Iranian team was in the lead mainly in kumite. According to the head coach of the Iranian national team, about a million people are engaged in karate in the country, and mass championships within the country allow quality selection for the national team.
Against the background of such calculations, the successful performance of the tiny Qatar team seems somewhat surprising. Ultimately, in proportion to the number of medals in all nominations of the competitions, the places were distributed as follows: the first place was in Iran, the second in Italy, the third in the UAE. The assets of the team of the United Arab Emirates for men were 1 silver and 3 bronze medals, for women - 1 gold and 2 bronze.
The tournament and the atmosphere of the sporting event is already over. Karatists are preparing for new performances. The UAE Karate Federation has gained a reputation as an excellent organizer, and the Emirates themselves are another international tournament, and young citizens who, after watching it, will come to sports halls to improve their body and spirit.
