MANILA – The Philippines will host the third leg of the Karate One-Youth League on May 14-17, 2026 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Karate One-Youth League, a tournament for athletes 14-17 years old, will kick off in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates (Feb. 12-15) followed by the Harare (Zimbabwe) leg on March 27-29.
The other legs are in Porec, Croatia (July 2-5), Guadalajara, Mexico (Sept. 17-21), and Venice, Italy (Dec. 10-13).
A National Championships will be staged in Tagaytay, Cavite in March to select the athletes for the world-class competition.
“We can’t say for now since most of them will be competing for the first in a high-caliber championships,” Karate Pilipinas president Richard Lim said in an interview Thursday when asked about the medal chances of Filipino athletes.
An estimated 100 countries are expected to join the Karate One-Youth League, the biggest tournament to be held in the Philippines after the 2024 Asian Youth (Cadet, Junior and U21) Karate Championships at the PhilSports in Pasig City.
“We started hosting the Youth since last year to promote and upgrade our young athletes because they will be the next generation of karatekas in the Philippines. Also to give them world-class karate event. Those who will not participate will benefit from it by experiencing the hosting,” he added.
As an athlete, Lim had a career-best world ranking at No. 8. He won medals at the 1989 (team kata gold and individual bronze) and 1991 (individual kata gold) SEA Games, 1994 Asian Games (individual kata bronze), and 1995 Asian Championships (individual kata bronze).
The Philippine Sports Commission, as lead of the National Sports Tourism Inter-Agency Committee (NST-IAC), is helping Karate Pilipinas organize the Karate One-Youth League.
Under Administrative Order No. 38, which was signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Oct. 29, PSC chief Patrick “Pato” Gregorio will serve as chairman of the NST-IAC with his counterparts from the Department of Tourism as vice-chairperson.
Members are the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Budget and Management, Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority and Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PNA)