2024-03-12 18:49:35
Burgas karatekas, graduates of world champion sensei Gergana Apostolova – Kostova, returned from Turkey with four gold and five silver medals.
300 competitors from Turkey, Romania, Greece, Moldova, Serbia and Bulgaria took part in the tenth Balkan Championship in categories for children, youth, girls, men, women and veterans, held in Bursa. The sports event was initiated by the International Karate Organization and its local representative – sensei Omer Duran.
52 karatekas from BKA member clubs in Varna, Burgas, Razgrad, Plovdiv and Yambol took part from the Bulgarian team, led by Shihan Emil Kostov.
The first day of the competition started with the disciplines “kata” and “kumi” for children, juniors and girls, and on the second day the competition continued for young people, girls, men, women and veterans.
Four of sensei Gergana Apostolova-Kostova’s club “Kyokushin Spirit” – Mikaela Nikolova, Gergana Imperova, Valentin Zhelev and Ivan Pavlovski – won gold medals in the various categories. Silver was won by Valentin Borisov, Mitko Mitkov, Stratimir Stratiev, Simona Stoicheva and Nikolay Nikolov. Patrick Beagle, Nadezhda Atanasova and Simona Stoycheva brought bronze.
Part of the delegation of the Bulgarian team took part in the judging panel of the championship, at which the director of the International Department of IKO – Shihan Katsuhito Gorai, appointed Shihan Emil Kostov as an observer and coordinator.
The 10th Balkan Championship was a very good test for our competitors for the upcoming European Championship, which will take place in May in Varna, commented sensei Gergana Apostorolova – Kostava.