Filipino-Japanese karateka Junna Tsukii won the Kumite gold medal in the recently held Invitational Championships in the town of Aranđelovac, Serbia.
The Philippines’ national athlete competed against fellow Tokyo Olympic hopefuls and ruled the under 55 kg weight division after defeating world-ranked No. 6 Brazilian Valeria Kumikazi in a 1-1 victory on November 29, 2020.
“It was a simulation of an Olympic qualifying competition, round-robin style and accumulating overall results,” explained Karate Pilipinas Sports Federation Inc. (KPSFI), adding that most of the competitors were from the Serbian National team.
The 29-year-old Tsukii, currently at the 10th rank in the World Karate Federations (WKF) ranking (Female Kumite -50kg), moved up to the -55kg category in Serbia.
“I’m getting the best results here, so I’m ready for next year in the best condition!!! I would like to thank everyone who supported me,” Tsukii wrote in an Instagram post.
Junna Tsukii left for Serbia in October to train with the best karate practitioners in the world.
The 2019 Southeast Asian Games gold medalist is targeting a spot in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Meanwhile, Filipino champion karateka James De Los Santos is staying on top of the World eKata Rankings and has just won another gold, this time from the biggest virtual kata – the SportData eTournament World Series.
SEND CONGRATULATIONS in the comments below to the Philippines’ national karateka Junna Tsukii for winning the Kumite gold medal in the Serbia Invitational Championships!
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