Many highlights at Swakop Open at The Dome

Karate
A visiting team from South Africa competed in the two-day competition for all styles.
  • 3 Days Ago
Shotokan Karate Academy – JSKA Namibia hosted the 11th Swakop Open Championship last Friday and Saturday at the MTC Dome in Swakopmund for all styles of karate in Namibia.

The international team of JSKA South Africa were also hosted at the annual championship, which is held in two disciplines. The Shotokan Karate Traditional tournament forms the first part (regulated under the official JSKA rules) and on the following day the Swakop Open Championship is contested, regulated under the official WKF rules.

This initiative is to give all Namibian karateka much-needed competition time on the floor and in addition, this event was also an excellent opportunity for all our traditional athletes to have trials for the JSKA Namibia team to travel to Japan in November 2025 for the JSKA world championship.

In the traditional discipline, 89 participants in categories from kiddies (the youngest being five years old) to senior members, participated in the event.

The highlight of the traditional tournament was the senior black belt team event, where karateka from both attending countries were picked at random to form two teams that competed against each other in an open kumite (fighting) event.

On Saturday the Namibian athletes of all styles had an opportunity to prepare for the upcoming AUSC Region South Karate Championship scheduled for June 2025 in Durban, South Africa.

A total of 125 participants, representing five different styles of karate in Namibia, competed for medals to be the Sport Karate champions in their respective age categories.

The categories were open for children under 10 years, 10-13 years, cadets (14-15 years), juniors (16-17 years), U21 (18-20 years) and seniors (18 and older).

The event was hosted by the Shotokan Karate Academy Swakopmund dojo of sensei Valdemar Swart and facilitated by the Namibian Karate Federation’s chief referee, sensei Wikus Oberholster, with extended invitation to all Namibian qualified referees, judges and table officials to partake in order to give the karateka the best possible experience in a controlled, friendly environment.

The organizers expressed thanks all athletes that travelled from outside regions and even across borders to attend the event. Appreciation goes to the MTC Dome for the venue, to FNB Namibia’s Swakopmund branch for a sponsorship towards the tournament and to Mr. Cilliers van Wyk of Crushplant/BMG for sponsorship towards the medals.

Shotokan Karate Academy – JSKA Namibia appreciate each official, parent and karateka that was present to make this event such a huge success and organisers are excited to host an even bigger event in 2026 with even more international exposure.