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It was a good year for karateka James de los Santos, now hailed as the “King of E-kata”.
While most athletes struggled in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic-induced lockdowns, de los Santos, 30, thrived in online kata (form) competitions.
Competing in more than 52 e-kata tournaments since April, de los Santos has accumulated 36 gold medals, practically one gold medal a week, in addition to three silver and three bronze medals.
Last December, de los Santos achieved three hat-tricks.
In a span of nine months, de los Santos claimed six Grand Winner titles at the Venice Cup, the e-Champions Trophy World Series, Athlete’s eTournament, Katana Intercontinental League, Golden League eTournament and eKarate Games.
The feat earned de los Santos the world’s number one ranking in the senior men’s individual division in e-kata competition, well ahead of his rivals with 17,645 points.
“2020 was a great year for me. It really has been a blast. I am ready to leave and enter 2021. I hope the world will return to normal soon, ”reads the de los Santos Facebook post on Thursday, December 31.
“Long live, Filipino athlete. Happy New Year. “
De los Santos’ victories inspired his students who competed in the Maharlika Karatedo Kai of the Philippines International Tilt.
Fatima A-Isha Lim Hamsain topped the U-15 Female eKumite ranking and finished No. 8 in the U-15 Female e-Kata ranking at the end of the year.
Julia Ian Marcos, meanwhile, was ranked No. 5 in the U21 Female e-Kata rankings also at the end of the year.
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