Bi - Monthly newsletter from WAKO President€¦ · Bi - Monthly newsletter from WAKO President The objective with this newsletter is to document activities, projects, best practice,

Bi - Monthly newsletter

from WAKO President

The objective with this newsletter is to document activities, projects, best practice, raise awareness, to learn and share and to motivate and create WAKO pride

#onewako #onechampion

If you have important information to share, please send it to our WAKO administration office

Bi Monthly Newsletter from the President

One WAKO, One Champion WAKO, the world governing body developing the sport of kickboxing #BecauseWeCare

The President

Firstly I would like to thank you all for giving me the opportunity on the 2nd February, to lead WAKO on your behalf. It is a great honour for me to chair this position and focusing on the future.

This new monthly publication, will give you an insight in to the various activities and news in WAKO and will give you an opportunity to distribute this information amongst your members and to your external partners, showing a positive and credible picture of the sport of Kickboxing, building up the profile of Kickboxing worldwide. Please feel free to send information to our administration.

It is my goal to continue to build WAKO into the future starting from the successes of the past. To develop and deliver better services to each region and continent in WAKO by creating and delivering, courses, seminars by investing in a multi year continental development plan for Coaching, Officials and Athletes, focusing on our members needs and requirements. Where applicable, to offer support to countries in their internal relevance and development in regard to achieving government recognition and financial support from government and or Olympic institutions. To really focus on the development of all Continents to be equally strong. To also help our already strong regions to become stronger and better.

This is our goal as a board, to create transparency and accountability at all levels in the organisation. To give everybody an opportunity to be involved in the implementation and growth of our sport. To ensure the board is listening to the needs of our members, that we have been put in place to serve. To revitalise the WAKO IF committees and create a positive focus on development and progressive change, with people that have the right competencies and skills to get the job done.

Our role as leaders in WAKO is to be aware of the present, while building out the future for the next generation of Kickboxers in particular our youth. We cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today. We must be precise in our focus and supportive equally to all members of WAKO.

This as I said in my presidential speech will be my focus over the next four years and beyond, to get the sport of kickboxing in to the African games, Asian games, Pan American games, Oceania games and European games. To expand our presence in the IWGA and to be a part of the FISU Universiade. But, it should be obvious that our ultimate long term goal is to reach for the Olympic Games. Building our the international platforms for our athletes to be inspired, grow, engage, retain and develop for generations to come.

I would like to remind you as leaders of our sport. If our actions inspire others to dream more, achieve more, learn more, do more and become more, we are building our sport for future generations.

Roy BakerPresident WAKO

Presidents Report

If everyone is moving forward together, then success will take care of itself

WAKO Presidential elections delegates 2019

IOC recognition gives us massive opportunities


To start a new active year with IOC recognition only gives us so many possibilities. We know it will be more hard work, but the achievment inspires us to continue to improve and achieve bigger goals for our athletes all around the world. It is up to us to exploit the situation and the only way going forward is to act as ONE team embrase the WAKO family. We will in the coming months have meetings with the IOC in order to outline future activities and improvements. I am confident that we all, as a team, will reach ourfuture goals. I also encourage all our members to exploit the maximum support the federation may grant as a direct consequence of our new international recognition.

The President

IOC Athletes Forum 2019


Zolt Moradi, chairman of the WAKO IF Athletes commision, attended the IOC Athletes forum for the first time.

It was the largest gathering of Athletes representatives in the history of the IOC and what a great Ambassador we have.

The President

IOC President Thomas Bach said: “The Athletes’ Commission has come a long way since the 1981 Olympic Congress in Baden-Baden, when I, together with my then fellow athletes, started this journey. Now, it is clearly the legitimate voice of the elected athletes from around the world”.

Female resources in WAKO


I want to start my newsletter by highlighting the importance of gender equality. Out of many things I am proud of, I want to highlight in particular some female resources that are a close part of our development. These are persons leading the way and that I hope inspire others. WAKO have many strong leaders and my message is clearly;

To create equal opportunities, women are a valuable asset for WAKO development and these persons are only a handful of women I want to motivate going forward.

WAKO Legal ChairmanFrancesca Falsoni

WAKO UkrainaOlga Pavlenko

WAKO SwedenEmma Ankargren

WAKO NamibiaAnita De Klerk

WAKO PortugalAna Vital Melo

WAKO MauritiusIsabella Jeannot

Chairman of WAKOWomen Committee

Katarzyna Kociszewska

The President

WAKO MediaMarijana Pelevic

World Class refereeMichaela Kovacova World Class Referee

Gina Egelhardt-Aue WAKO AdministrationBarbara Falsoni

Great numbers at our events


We experience continous growth and a massive interest at our main events;

The President

Event Country Entries Countries

Athens Challenge Greece 2826 24

Irish Open Ireland 3615 41

Dutch Open Nederland's

1177 21

Turkish Open Turkey 2469 32

Austrian Classic Austria 2223 39

Karlovac Open Croatia 1890 31

Serbian Open ( K1) Serbia 305 14

• Arabian Kickboxing Federation Board members

Presidents Calendar March-MayThe President

Date City, Country Event

16-17.March Amman, Jordan Arab Federation AGM, Coach seminar and International tournament

23-24.March Amsterdam, Netherlands

Yokoso Dutch Open ( World Series)

5-7 - April Antalya, Turkey Turkish Open ( World Series)

12-14.April Innsbruck, Austria

Austrian Classics ( WAKO World Cup)

20-21- Budapest, Hungary

International Sponsor meeting

25-28.4 Quebec, Canada WAKO Canadian Nationals, – Quebec Open

5-10.5 Gold Coast, Australia

SportAccord Convention;- ARISF Assembly- AIMS Assembly- IOC/ARISF Joint meeting- SportAccord Assembly- IWGA Assembly- GAISF Assembly- Separate meetings with IOC, GAISF, IWGA -

FISU – WADA – OCA – AOC +

17-19.5 Budapest, Hungary

Hungarian Open ( WAKO World Cup)

Mr Saud Abdul Aiz - General Secretary of the Union Arab NOC and Dr Sari Hamad, Vice President of Jordan Olympic

Committee . Mr Basel El Shaer , President Arab Kickboxing Federation and Mr Salim Kayici, WAKO Europe Board member

and president of WAKO Turkey.

Arabian Kickboxing Federation Board Members

If OUR actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then and ONLY then are WEtruly leaders in our sport.

Massive activities in PanAm


PanamWith several international events scheduled for 2019, WAKO Panam is steadily growing internationally. Following the same pattern as the World Cups held in Europe, Panam launched this year the Copa América already with two editions: in February, the paradise Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil, received the Brazil Open and in May it will be instead of Buenos Aires to receive Argentina Open, an event that will have the co-organization of Turicentro Viajes, a company that was directly involved in organizing the IOC Youth Games in 2018, held in the Argentine capital. Shortly afterwards, in July, Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago will host the first edition of the Pan American University Kickboxing Championship. In August, Caracas, capital of Venezuela will receive the 4th Bolivarian Championship. Then, in November, it will be the turn of the 11th South American Championship in Lima, Peru and closing the year, the splendid San Juan in Puerto Rico, will organize the Central American and Caribbean Championship.

BrazilFollowing the same steps of Panam, the Brazilian Confederation will organize dozens of capitative and competitive events this year, which shows the strength of the largest Confederation of the American Continent. With hundreds of thousands of practitioners from all over the country, Kickboxing is the fastest growing contact sport that has been gaining in popularity among the general public.

The President congratulate with targeted and strategic development that will benefit the total continent.

The President

All 11 members of Southeast Asian Games Federation are expected to take part in the 2019 SEA Games. Below is a list of all the participating NOCs.

– Brunei– Cambodia– Indonesia– Laos– Malaysia– Myanmar– Philippines– Singapore– Thailand– East Timor– Vietnam

WAKO Kickboxing Included in 2019, 30th Sea Games


The President

WAKO represented in the arabic community and leading the way in gender equality


We are pleased of informing that on Sunday, December 9th, 2018, in Dubai

(United Arab Emirates) Mr. Driss EL HILALI, WAKO Board member, was

appointed as a member of the Executive Office of the Union of Arab

Sports Federations, chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Talal bin Bader bin Saud bin Abdul Aziz, Chairman of

the Arab Sports Council.

A great achievement by President of Arab Federation of Kickboxing

Sport Basel Al-Shaer. The congratulations of WAKO IF.

Dr. Basel Al-Shaer, President of the Arab Federation of

Kickboxing and Advisor to the Union of Arab National

Committees, was appointed as a member of the Executive Office

of the Union of Arab Sports Federations, chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Talal bin Bader

bin Saud bin Abdul Aziz, Chairman of the Arab Sports

Council.

The President

Arab Leaders, congratulating the New President of WAKO at the EGA in February

Under Direction of Arabian National

Olympic Committee, The Arabian

Kickboxing federtion appointed its first

Female board member and in honour

appointed her VP. Congratulations Mrs

Suzanne Mustafa

Assembly – Meeting between the Arabic leaders- With support of the official authorities


As President I was invited together with Mr. Salim Kayici, Vice-President of WAKO Europe, to attend

the Arabic Assembly. I also witnessed the

Coaching seminar held by Mr. Daimi Akin. Our Jordanian federation

invited also coaches from the Live Together programme in the

Za’atary refugee camp, and especially our

kickboxing coach, Mr. Ali Hussein Alkhaldi had the

time of his life.

I want to thank President Basel Al Shaer for his

initiative, his hopsitality and his enthusiasm. The

meetings was duly covered by official

authorities as Union of Arabic Olympic

Committees and NOC Jordan.

The President

Great inspiration in Amman, Jordan 14-17 March


Tournament – Frienship –Learn and Share –

Understanding – Peace –Harmony – Development –

Publicity

This was the result of a weekend packed with

activities.

The President

Number of participating clubs - 412Number of fighter’s - 320Countries - 16participating referees - 36 referees from countries - 10Participants in coach seminar - 32

Social Responsibility

Peace and Sport White Card 2019


The President

Ghana power


GHANA / CHRISTMAS " SHOW YOUR LOVE FOR REFUGEE KIDS “. Developed by our WAKO Ghana representative Parfait Doukrou that also chair the NGO, Divine Grace Africa. He inspires many people using sport as a tool. As President I will cherish such activities. Mr. Doukrou is also a driving force in his country developing the NGO focusing on Peace through sport, but also a person that have willingness and power to create a lot of kickboxing activities.

The President

“No one has ever become poor by

giving.”― Anne Frank

Development in the Za’atary refugee camp- Gianpaolo Calajo do a great job coaching the coaches


WAKO has funded a humanitarian program in Jordan, alongside Peace and Sport and UNESCO. Our WAKO coach, specialist in training and educating kids and youth, Gianpaolo Calajo, visited the Za’atary refugee camp in Jordan 20-24 January. The objective for this visit was to follow up the Live Together program WAKO is involved in. Mr. Calajoconducted a coaching camp for our local Syrian coaches and to inspire the kids a part of the program.The seminars was coordinated by Peace and Sport.

Gianpaolo, thank you for what you have done and what you continue to do.

“Be kind whenever possible.

It is always possible”

Dalai Lama

https://everydaypowerblog.com/dalai-lama-quotes-on-life/

Champions for Peace Ambassadeur in Zaatary- Zsolt Moradi created massive enthusiasm


Our Champions for Peace ambassador, 10 times World Champion, visited the Zaatary refugee camp in order to inspire and teach our WAKO coach. In addition spread enthusiasm and pride with the kids. Moradi also established contact in order to constant feed our coach with new skills. Moradi also participated in a pre-celebration of the 6th April that was organized in the camp on 4th April.

Soon we extend our program me in the Zaatary to also engage Self Defense for women.

Thank you Zsolt – Your contribution are important!

Donation programme continues


During Irish Open and Turkish Open our Donation program “Because We Care” will be executed.

In addition during European European Championships in Györ, Hungary and at our divided World Championships in Sarajevo, Bosnia Herzegovina and in Antalya, Turkey WAKO will organize the same.

If any event want to create adoption program to our “Because We Care” social responsibility program – Contact our WAKO administration. Together we can make a difference!

The President

Bi - Monthly newsletter from WAKO President€¦ · Bi - Monthly newsletter from WAKO President The objective with this newsletter is to document activities, projects, best practice,

Documents