The national karate federation, Ferwaka, has revealed this year’s Genocide Memorial Tournament will be taking place on Saturday, June 23 at Amahoro Stadium.

The one-day competition is open to all karatekas in different gender and weight categories.

According to the local karake governing body, participants will be classified under different clusters in the senior kumite category but those willing can also enroll to kata competition.

Kumite is the part of karate in which a person trains against an adversary, using the techniques learned from the kihon and kata whereas kata are executed as a specified series of a variety of moves, with stepping and turning, while attempting to maintain perfect form.

Since Rwanda is to host this year’s African Karate Championship from August 31- September 2, the karate federation has barred all national team athletes from participating in the memorial tournament so they can solely concentrate on the continental showpiece.

The annual karate memorial tournament is one of the various memorial events organized by different sporting federations in honour of the over one million victims of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

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