Women light-heavyweight -60 kg – a category that have maybe the sharpest spear of European fighters. With a handful of absolute top fighters in the category, one could say that this category will Europe challenge the world.
With eighteen fighters and many well-known names, this category will bring up some top fights almost right from the start. Looking at the four first names gives us an idea of the level.
We believe the veteran Inga Mikštaitė / Lithuania will be too experience for the representative for The Middle East, Rezvan Kosari Kakhki. Mikštaitė into the second round will give us a rematch between two champions, a rematch between a “veteran” in the game and an up and coming fighter. Lili Mező / Hungary have been turning heads as soon she stepped into the tatami. She got walkover in her first fight, so the possibility for this fight to happen will be very high.
Inga Mikštaitė vs Lili Mező – for us this is a “super-fight” and so early in the tournament give a little other setting than if it was the last fight of the day. Both are so skilled that it will be very hard to play the other one out tactical. The physical aspect will of course be a factor, most likely combined with tactics. It will also be a matter of who can make the fight go closes to the chosen gameplan. On top of that the winner need to have something left for the rest of the fights – already In the next fight a challenge will be ready.
Riri Ishihara / Japan and Assel Azimkhanova / Kazakhstan Kyokushin-Kan will battle for the right to face Mikštaitė or Mező. Azimkhanova became the KWU Asian Championship this spring. Ishihara has been in the upper level of Japan in some years, top 3 in All Japan Open’s makes her despite her young age very experienced. With the general level of Japanese fighters and the experience of Ishihara, we fall towards her as the favourite in this fight. If so, it will be an interesting matchup in the second round. Mikštaitė vs Ishihara will be a rematch from 12th World Championship, Mező vs Ishihara will be (far as we know) first time these two top fighters face each other in a championship. It could be interesting to see Mező vs Ishihara and a possible “kicking-lesson” from two excellent kickers.
Further-down we also have a great kicker, Camille Haddouche / France. Have done some changes since we first saw her in the EC 2019. Move down in weight categories – with success. Maybe the kicking has been a little less visible naturally, since one have factors like shin-protection in the women’s divisions. It might be so that the kicking can be a topic in the fight vs Ramu Amikawa / Japan. We must add that it is very nice to see France be represented, The breadth of nations makes the tournament more colorful and, in a sense, more interesting as well.
Amikawa does have some serous skills herself, and in this case, both fighters have a good reach in their 170cm height. Back in 2019, Amikawa did a break through winning the 1st Asian Open Championship. In the final, she went to war with Ioanna Belykh / Kazakhstan, and did win. Already well known Belykh, so this was an eye opener. Lately many of you for sure have seen Amikawa in demo videos as the “invisible knee” by Kuro-obi world channel. Once again, we have a match-up that is hard to predict. Amikawa have a strong (and large) Japanese team to help her with preparations that might not be the same case for Haddouche. Can Haddouche power trough or will Amikawa move and lands her knees.
The last fight in the in the upper section of the draw, we have Kelebogile Princess Dichaba / South Africa vs Marta Lubos / Poland. This is a fight we assume the level between the fighters are significant. We do not know the actual level of Dichaba, but we know that she will go up against one of the top European fighters in this division. Lubos has been fighting at top level for many years, faced the top elite and challenged them – to become one of them. We think Lubos will go into round two, and then we get a big question: Japanese or French?
If it going to be Amikawa we believe this will be their first meeting – Haddouche vs Lubos did happen in this year EC, so rematch can be a fact. Anyway, with Lubos on the loose there will be a fight – and our experience tell us it will be a good one. Lubos was very impressive in the semi-final this year EC, facing Inga Mikštaitė, totally neutralized her and secured the victory in the ordinary round.
When we reach half way in the category, we realise exactly that! So many good fighters and yet we are just half way through!
Mirjam Björklund / Sweden will face Egla Rossmery Gattorno Gutierrez / Honduras representing Central America region. Gutierrez is the only representative from Honduras. The countries are quite similar when it comes to population, but when it comes to Kyokushin history and level, there are significant differences – which Sweden comes out best of. We think this will be a parallel to the battle between these two fighters. Especially since Björklund has been improving a lot lately, from being the U-21 EC Champion in 2019, and now been on the EC podium 2021/22.
María Eugenia Ubal / Uruguay will face Azu Kodama from Japan. Kodama got some good results in previous championships – top 4 in JFKO All Japan open, and from further back in time, runner up in The Karate Grand Prix 2020. Eugenia Ubal will for sure have the up to now hardest challenge in her carrier. Kodama high pace intense fighting and use to long fights and large championships. We feel that it might be Kodama coming in with the sharpest sword.
Chelsie Smith / Australia qualified by winning the national, which made her the representative for the South Pacific region. Coming of a victory in the Victorian Open Full Contact Championship earlier, the goal was within reach. Facing the representative for Central Asia, Kazakhstan Ioanna Belykh. In 2017 fought Belykh on home soil in the last World Championship in weight-categories. 3rd place became the result and she followed up with several good tournaments. Because of this, she did also represent Kazakhstan in the 12th World Championship in Japan. Advancing in the championship with notable wins over Meskauskiene / Lithuania and even bigger win against Japan heavyweight fighter Momo Fujiwara. Can Smith keep the winning flow that made her qualify to the tournament, or will the more experienced fighter Belykh use that to her favour? No doubt, that Belykh has been fighting more and that on a higher level.
The last first round fight between Solmaz Zeynalli /Azerbaijan vs Ayane Umezawa / Japan where the winner will go up against Rūta Brazdžionytė / Lithuania. Brazdžionytė going into the second round with a walkover in the first. Zeynalli has been in the game for a while and worked herself into an established position on the European Championship podium. Skilled and adaptable make her a solid fighter. Umezawa do not have all the top spots I tournament as others, so what she can bring will be interesting what the youngest (and lightest) fighter in the category can bring. We assume the pace will be high, but what about the pressure and the strength?
Looking at the experience at merits, Brazdžionytė should be the one to advance. For over ten year, we have seen her on the EC podium. However, being so successful for such a long time will take its toll so can the champions fire burn one more time – being challenge by the wolf pack hunting? We believe that the fire will burn, and Brazdžionytė will once again challenge everyone in her way. We keep in mind that Brazdžionytė became the EFKO EC Champion in 2000, and kept the heat on winning the WKO EC Championship in 2021 – in the final she beat Lili Mező. Brazdžionytė very strong in her pressure, constantly stalking down her opponents and tear them down. Zeynalli and Umezawa, are different style-vice, but for Brazdžionytė it will be most likely the same tools in use facing one of them.
