admin
Ellina Mhlanga Sports Reporter
FORMER world champion, Samson Muripo, has done the nation proud once again as he scooped a bronze medal in the World Kyokushin Championships in Bulgaria over the weekend. The tournament began on Friday and ended on Sunday with karatekas from across the world taking part in various weight divisions and Muripo finished third in the men’s 80kg category.
It was catering for fighters from different full contact styles.
Muripo reached the semi-finals in which he fought against eight-time champion Abdurashidov Shamsutdin of Russia and lost.
He then took on Azerbaijan’s Gulmammadov Mehraj for the third-and-fourth place and won the match to clinch a bronze medal.
Mehraj had lost to Yorgov Nikolay of Bulgaria in the other semi-final match.
Shamsutdin was the eventual winner of the championships with Nikolay claiming the silver medal.
Zimbabwe sent six fighters, including Muripo, Mugove Muhambi, Admire Chingozhoro, Brian Chiringa, South Africa-based Sydney Veremu and Kudakwashe Katiyo, who was booted out of the competition in the first round.
Most of the fighters managed to pull through to the second round but found the going tough.
Zimbabwe Karate Union secretary general, Steven Charandura, said they were happy with Muripo’s achievement and hailed the other members of the team for their efforts.
“There were only two fighters from Africa who won medals, Muripo and a woman from South Africa. In Africa he is the only male fighter with a medal.
“He did very well for the country, he has kept Zimbabwe on the world map.
“I think they all did well but found the going tough. We only have Katiyo who lost in the first round, the competition was tough.
“They did their best and there is room for improvement.
“For Katiyo, it was his first international tournament and I think experience was needed but it was good exposure for him,” said Charandura.
Charandura said the fact that Muripo won a bronze shows that the standard of the sport is high locally.
The team had been training together which helped them prepare for the championships.
“Muripo does not train on his own but with other fighters and it means that Zimbabwe’s karate standard is high because we are talking of the Japanese getting a few medals and the Russians who dominated the event.
“Bulgaria dominated too, which was expected, because they put a lot in preparation unlike us who do not have resources and we had few fighters,” said Charandura.
The team is expected to arrive today from Bulgaria.
Online Reporter