Two bronze medals were won by Turkmen karate athletes at the concluded 23rd AKF Cadet, Junior and U21 Championships, held in the city of Shaoguan (China).

The competition, organized by the Asian Karate Federation WKF in the urban district of Guangdong province, China, gathered 498 athletes from 30 countries.

WKF is the English acronym for the World Karate Federation, which includes 200 countries representing five continental federations. To date, it is the only karate organization recognized by the International Olympic Committee and has over one hundred million members.

The Turkmenistan team at the Asian Championship was represented by 8 athletes, two of whom stood on the podium.

The first bronze medal in our team was won in kumite among juniors (16-17 years) in the weight category up to 55 kg by Gurbannazar Amandurdyyev, a student of the 11th grade of Secondary School No. 16 with in-depth foreign language studies in the Ak Bugday etrap of Ahal velayat.

On the final day of the competition, the second bronze medal for the Turkmenistan team was brought by Garamammet Garamammedov, a 2nd-year student at the Turkmen State Architecture and Construction Institute. He achieved this success in kumite among athletes under 21 years old in the weight category up to 60 kg.

Currently, both athletes are improving their skills in the Turkmenistan national team under the guidance of the head coach, 5th Dan black belt holder Aydyn Charyev.

At the previous AKF Cadet, Junior and U21 Championships, held last year in Manila (Philippines), Turkmen karate athletes won three bronze medals. Then, this success was achieved in kumite among cadets up to 57 kg by a student of Ashgabat’s specialized secondary school No. 61, Alymukhammet Kakaliyev; among juniors under 21 years – Athlete of the Turkmen Karate Federation Magtymguly Annaev (up to 55 kg) and a student of the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Davut Nazmyradov (up to 75 kg).