PH Karateka clinches world no. 4 ranking in online kata

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

 

Filipino athletes continue to shine on the international stage despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic after Karateka James delos Santos took the world men’s senior individual online kata rankings by storm and landed at fourth.

After flirting with a dominant and flawless performance during the Korokotta Cup 2020, e-Kata tournament, the former world number six jumped two places higher in just one month.

One of the boosts in helping him tally a massive 1855 points was his quarterfinal finish during the Adidas Karate Open World Series 2020.

Out of 18 competitors from 11 different nations, the Filipino pride bested South Africa’s Cerone-Biagonil in a sweeping 5-0 victory to take home the gold medal.

“I strongly believe that training is vital in any sport. But if you have the opportunity to compete, that’s the best way to evaluate your progress and to become better at your sport. Lucky for me, there are online tournaments for the category in my sport, karate. I will continue to train and compete,” said delos Santos.

This is the second gold medal finish for delos Santos since the Palestine International Karate Cup last April where he also dominated.