Saudi Arabia celebrate gold in Male Kumite on day 2 of Karate at World Combat Games
10/21/2023
Multisport events
The second day of the Karate competition at the 2023 World Combat Games had favourites taking the spotlight in Male Kumite categories. Local star Sanad Sufyani, Omer Faruk Yurur, and Mehdi Sriti were the winners of the Male Kumite divisions on day 2.
Omer Faruk Yurur of Turkiye became the champion in Male Kumite -75kg. The Turkish karateka defeated Nazim Nurlanov of Kirgizstan in the final 3-0 in a highly technical match.
Yurur opened his count in the final with a “Yuko” or one-point technique with one minute to go. This technique helped the Turkish karateka to take the lead and later, he increased the advantage with a “Waza-ari” or two-point technique. Despite Nurlanov’s attempts, Yurur closed the match 3-0.
MEHDI SRITI UPSET LOCAL HOPEFUL
Meanwhile, the crown of Male Kumite -84kg went to Mehdi Sriti of Morocco. The thrilling final of the division had the Moroccan karateka fighting for gold against Anas Alzahrani of Saudi Arabia. The local star could not get the crown as Sriti won the final 5-3.
The Moroccan karateka started the bout on a high note with a “Waza-ari” thus putting some distance on the scoreboard 2-0. Sriti increased the lead with an “Ippon” or three-point technique, but Alzahrani fought hard to come back from behind, helped by the support from the stands. He even scored a late “Ippon” to give hope to the local fans. However, Sriti kept the advantage and claimed the title 5-3.
GOLD FOR LOCAL HERO SANAD SUFYANI
The last category of the day was a celebration of Saudi Karate since local star Sanad Sufyani won the crown in Male Kumite +84kg. The Saudi karateka upset Dias Anarbekov of Kazakhstan in the final 4-1.
The representative of the host nation soon took the lead in the clash, much to the joy of local fans, after scoring two “Yuko”. Anarbekov recovered distance with one point after the video review. Nonetheless, Sufyani used the home ground factor in his favour to score two more “Yuko” to win the title 4-1.
Follow the updates on the WKF social media channels. Alternatively, you can watch the event LIVE HERE.
All the results can be followed in real-time on the official website HERE.
(Pictures: @worldcombatgames_sportaccord)
