Up-and-coming karatekas surprised with qualification to the finals at the third stop of the 2026 Karate One Premier League in Leshan, China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With points critical in the race for the Grand Winners title, the event is one of the most anticipated tournaments of the year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Female Kata: Maho Ono to face Grace Lau in classic rematch<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Maho Ono of Japan moved into the final with a clear 7-0 win over teammate Hisami Nakaji. On the other side, Grace Lau Mo Sheung of Hong Kong, China, beat Japan\u2019s Kiri Mishima 6-1. The final will repeat one of the sport\u2019s most familiar match-ups. Both athletes showed control and precision, and their rivalry now adds another chapter on one of the biggest stages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Male Kumite -60kg: Nuri Kilic returns to final against Hiromu Hashimoto<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Nuri Kilic of T\u00fcrkiye secured his place with a strong 16-8 victory over Abdallah Hammad. Hiromu Hashimoto of Japan edged a tight bout against Mekhriddin Turakhonov, winning 3-2. Kilic reaches his second final of the season and looks to go one step further after silver in Istanbul. Hashimoto, a former Grand Winner, aims for a fifth title after missing gold in Rome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Female Kumite -50kg: Cylia Oukine and Yorgelis Salazar on collision course<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Cylia Oukine of Algeria defeated Ema Sgardelli 5-1 to book her place in the final. Yorgelis Salazar of Venezuela followed with a 7-3 win over Mizuki Ishihara. Oukine continues her steady rise after podium finishes in Istanbul and Rome and now targets a major title. Salazar, already a winner in Rome, is chasing her eighth Premier League gold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Male Kumite -67kg: Abdul Vakhkhob Rashidov reaches first final, meets Luca Maresca<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Abdul Vakhkhob Rashidov of Uzbekistan claimed a 3-1 win over Olzhas Altynbek to reach his first Premier League final. Luca Maresca of Italy defeated Iurik Oganisian 2-0. Rashidov builds on his bronze from Rome, while Maresca enters his sixth final, still chasing consistency after collecting two bronze medals this season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Female Kumite -55kg: Valeriya Dimova shocks field, Yuchun Wei lifts home crowd<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Valeriya Dimova of WKF-1 advanced with a narrow 2-1 win over Rezzan Im Zumra. Yuchun Wei of China beat Nejra Sipovic 3-2 to reach the final. Dimova\u2019s run is one of the surprises of the day as she enters her first major final. Wei becomes a local favorite, giving fans a home athlete to support in the title bout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Male Kumite -75kg: Nurkanat Azhikanov and Enes Bulut set final showdown<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Nurkanat Azhikanov of Kazakhstan defeated Ernest Sharafutdinov 5-3 to return to the final stage. Enes Bulut of T\u00fcrkiye secured his place with a 3-0 win over Andrii Zaplitnyi. Azhikanov aims to reclaim the title he last won in 2022. Bulut, with one previous final, looks to improve on his silver medal from 2024.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Up-and-coming karatekas surprised with qualification to the finals at the third stop of the 2026 Karate One Premier<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11508,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[38],"class_list":["post-11507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsbeat","tag-karate"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t