The Karate1 Premier League rolled into Rabat from 12 to 14 June 2026, drawing 357 entries from 54 nations to the Prince Moulay Abdellah complex. Japan left Morocco as the clear winners of the week with three golds and twelve medals, but the story for our readers ran a little closer to home: a breakout run from the Netherlands’ Robin van Wezel, and a kata bronze for one of the athletes we follow.
🇯🇵 Japan dominate the medal table
Japan topped the standings by a distance: three golds, three silvers and six bronzes, twelve medals in all. The golds came from Aika Okazaki (Female Kumite -50 kg), Rina Kodo (Female Kumite -55 kg) and Kakeru Nishiyama, who confirmed his status as the world No. 1 in Male Kata. Japan’s depth was the real headline: four of the twelve categories finished with two Japanese athletes on the podium.
Italy were next best with two golds and six medals, followed by Egypt, who turned three silvers and two bronzes into a strong overall haul without reaching the top step.
🇳🇱 Robin van Wezel pushes the world No. 1 and finishes fifth
Follow Robin van Wezel on Instagram.
The result our community was watching for was Robin van Wezel in Female Kumite +68 kg, and she delivered the performance of her senior career so far, even if the medal would not come.
Van Wezel topped a brutal three-way pool, beating Maryia Malakhava 3-0 and Chahinez Jemi 4-0, dropping only a 7-6 thriller to Denmark’s Astamaja Bath and advancing on the head-to-head count. That set up the moment of the day: in the pool-winner knockout she met top seed and reigning world No. 1 Sofya Berultseva, and won 3-3 on senshu, the first-point rule deciding it in her favour.
The run ended one step from the podium. She lost her semi-final 9-1 to England’s Rochelle Walters, the eventual silver medallist, then fell 4-1 to Italy’s Asia Pergolesi in the bronze-medal match to finish fifth.
So, to set the record straight: no medal this time. But beating the world No. 1 at a Premier League and pushing the silver medallist on the same day is a genuine marker of where Robin van Wezel now belongs. One win away, and worth keeping a very close eye on.
🇲🇦 Morocco strike gold at home
The host nation gave the Rabat crowd what it came for. Said Oubaya won Male Kumite -67 kg for a home gold, Sawsane Benchbab took silver in Female Kumite -61 kg, and Ahmed Haddadi (-60 kg) and Mehdi Sriti (-84 kg) added bronzes. One gold, one silver and two bronzes made Morocco the best-performing African nation of the weekend.
Mens kumite action in Rabat. Photo: WKF.
🥋 Around the mats
Mo Sheung Grace Lau on her way to Female Kata gold. Photo: WKF.
- 🥉 Ariel Torres Gutierrez (USA) took bronze in Male Kata, behind the Japanese pair of Nishiyama and Kotaro Ohata. Another podium for one of the athletes we follow, and a reminder that the Olympic medallist is still a fixture at the very top of world kata.
- 7️⃣ Ema Sgardelli (CRO), the reigning European -50 kg champion, finished seventh in a deep field that Japan’s Aika Okazaki won.
- 🥇 Mo Sheung Grace Lau (Hong Kong, China) won Female Kata ahead of Japan’s Maho Ono, denying Japan a clean sweep of the kata titles.
- 🥇 Clio Ferracuti (Italy) closed out Female Kumite +68 kg with an 11-2 win over Rochelle Walters in the final.
- 🥇 Irina Zaretska (Azerbaijan) took Female Kumite -68 kg, and Andjelo Kvesic (Croatia) won Male Kumite +84 kg.
- 🥇 Competing as a neutral athlete under the WKF flag, Ernest Sharafutdinov won Male Kumite -75 kg.
Full medal results
The complete medal table lives in our results database: all twelve categories across kata and kumite, with every gold, silver and bronze. You can filter by discipline and search any athlete or country.
👉 See the full Karate1 Premier League Rabat 2026 results
Sources
- 2026 Karate One Premier League Rabat - event hub - World Karate Federation
- Official results, Karate One Premier League Rabat 2026 - WKF / sportdata (full draw sheets and final standings)
Reporting on the Karate1 Premier League Rabat 2026, 12 to 14 June 2026. All scores, athlete names and finishing positions are drawn from the official WKF results. Editorial photos in this piece are credited to the World Karate Federation (WKF) and reproduced for news reporting purposes.