Karateka Ricky Leong wins Gold in Karate World Cup, South Korea!

Taken from New Sabah Times 22nd August 2012 news:

KOTA KINABALU: Ricky Leong added another feather to his cap after clinching the gold medal at the Karate 1 World Cup held in Busan, South Korea from August 18-19, 2012.

The Sabah-born exponent registered a resounding victory en route to winning the Individual Kata gold.

Ricky, who is based with the national squad in Penang, defeated his Iranian opponent 5-0 in the first round before ousting a Korean with the same score in the second round.

In the third round, he edged a Chinese Taipei opponent before getting the better of a Korean in the final.

For the record, the Karate 1 is newly introduced by the World Karate Federation (WKF). The new WKF project comprises up to 10 competitions which include the Busan Karate 1 World Cup.

The first one was held in Paris last January.

This was also the first time that the WKF organised a completion with prize money for the winners.

WKF dubbed the new competitions, as the Formula I of Karate.

This new competition will be completed by the Masters’ Cup in which the eight best athletes of the world will be competing in an open category in three yearly competitions in order to have the best of the best.

The Masters’ Cup or the Grand Finals will be held in Salzburg, Austria from December 8 to 9, 2012.