Reality check for Kenya karate team at World Championships

It is not everyday that Kenya enters a team in World Karate Championships. However, a group of 13 exponents departed Nairobi on Monday as they will debut at the World Championships, which will be held in Paris, France from November 21-25 at Bercy Stadium. Francis Didier, the President of French Karate Federation, said the championships is expected to be a huge success with over 70 countries/regions competing. Kenya team of 13 has 4 ladies competing in the Kumite category and nine men - three are going for the kata and six in kumite categories. "We have hard it hard to compete in competitions abroad. It was in 1980 when Kenya last competed in an event of this magnitude at the world stage," said Kenya Karate Federation (KKF) chairman Caleb Atemi. "Our then coach Yashio Tamura took 3 players to Spain. After that we have been out in the cold. It shows you how far we have come. These players are committed and want to prove a point. They were not born when Kenya last competed at the world stage." Even though, financial constraints forced the team to cut short it's training in Nairobi, a fact Atemi said might jeopardize their performance in Paris, Kenya is ready to get off the blocks in world championships. The team has been sponsored by the ministry of Sports. "We had our challenges in training. It has been hard but we are proud of the players' determination and bravery. Their morale is very high," he said. Egypt, Mali and Cameroon are some of the countries that have dominated Karate in Africa, and Atemi, said Kenya is angling itself to curve its own niche in the discipline. "Egypt remains our biggest opponents. But we are not focusing on them now, we are eyeing the world and it will be a great experience for the players," he said. The last international tournament Kenya competed in was in Maputo last year during the All Africa Games, though it never won any medal.