Jakarta to host world karate event

JAKARTA: Indonesia will host the first 2012’s World Karate Federation (WKF) Premier League in Jakarta over the weekend, featuring 321 karateka from around the world.

“As many as 30 countries have registered in and they will start coming to Jakarta [on Wednesday],” event director Syafruddin told reporters on Tuesday as quoted by Antara news agency.

The organizers said that world-class karatekas, including Venezuela’s 2010 World Championships champ Antoinio Diaz would come to Jakarta.

Meanwhile, host Indonesia would send 36 athletes from its national training camp as part of preparations for the 2013 Southeast Asian Games in Myanmar, Syafruddin said.

“We are targeting to grab two gold medals in order to be world No. 5,” he added.

Indonesia’s team manager, Jafar Jantang, admitted that while his athletes were ready, they would not be at their peak for this weekend’s competition.

“By the time they fly for Myanmar, they’ll be in their peak performance,” he said. “WKF is part of our athletes’ preparation for SEA Games. They’ve been in training camp for two months, and they’re physically ready for the WKF.”