Karate, start to the Youth League: over 3 thousand athletes in Jesolo

After the record of over 4,000 athletes and eight million euros of related activities recorded last year, Jesolo is ready to reaffirm itself as the world capital of karate. From 3 to 7 December, Pala Turismo will return to host the Venice Cup, the Parakarate Cup and the Karate1 Youth League Venice, the last stage of the international youth circuit. This year there will be 3,336 participating athletes, coming from 83 Nations, in four days of the event (one less than the 2024 edition).

THE PROGRAM

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Wednesday 3 December will open with the Venice Cup and the prestigious “Parakarate Cup” competition, where athletes with visual and motor disabilities and Down syndrome will compete together with the senior athletes of the XXXI edition of the Venice Cup. Entry will be free: a powerful message of sporting inclusion, symbol of how athletes and paraathletes can share the same tatami and the same passion. From Thursday 4th to Sunday 7th December it will be the turn of young people: the Karate1 Youth League Venice, the most awaited event of the year, will attract thousands of under 21 athletes from all over the world to Jesolo.

INTERNATIONALITY

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Among the registered nations, the participation of Ukraine stands out with 221 athletes, one of the largest and most competitive delegations of the tournament: last year they won 23 medals, contributing to the technical prestige of the event. Other larger delegations include Italy (577 athletes), Germany (181), Croatia (151) and England (118), along with numerous competitors registered “without flag”. Also present is Trinidad & Tobago, symbol of an increasingly widespread and international karate. There will be 45 categories competing, for a total of 135 medals which confirm the event as one of the most selective in the world. “What makes the Youth League special – says Vladi Vardiero, president of the FIJLKAM Veneto Regional Committee – is its international soul: 83 countries, talents from every continent, nations like Trinidad & Tobago that bring historicity and new perspectives to the world of karate. This event has become a model of inclusion: from parakarate to young people, from environmental support to digital initiatives, Jesolo demonstrates that karate is much more than a sport. It is a universal language that unites, educates and opens roads. And every year we see it more clearly.”

ECO-SUSTAINABILITY AND STORIES

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The event, organized by Multisport Veneto with the support of FIJLKAM and ASI, reaffirms the commitment to inclusive, international and sustainable karate, thanks to environmental initiatives and a digital format that enhances the stories of the athletes even outside the tatami. On the eco-sustainability side, Pala Turismo will be equipped with water dispensers, six ecological islands and fifteen columns for recycling cigarette butts created in collaboration with Human Maple, partner of the “Riccicami” campaign. An initiative that confirms how sport and the environment can share the same philosophy: respect, care and sense of community. The theme of female empowerment will also be addressed with “Luchadoras”, the performance by visual artist Elena Ketra who will bring the story of Mexican wrestlers, icons of resilience and strength, to the tatami. Through an engaging self-defense happening, the artist will focus on the value of female self-determination, giving life to a project that combines artistic languages ​​and sporting discipline. Alongside the sporting competition, the karate event will open a new participatory and digital dimension. The athletes will also be protagonists outside the tatami, telling through short videos on their social channels what karate represents for them: discipline, respect, energy, balance. A choral story that goes beyond the technical gesture to transform itself into a shared experience, capable of inspiring and bringing the public – especially the younger ones – closer to the authentic values ​​of this martial art.