VENICE – Davide Benetelloformer karate world champion, after having fought on tatamis all over the world, this time plays at home. The president of karate sector of Fijlkam (of which he is vice president) in fact, he is preparing to welcome to Jesolo, his hometown, the two thousand young athletes from 113 countries who will take part in the World Cadet-Junior-U21from today to 13 October at the Palazzo del Turismo. “It will be an unprecedented event, in terms of size, spirit and organization. It’s a great opportunity for our sport,” says Benetello.
Karate and sustainability, Jesolo welcomes the future with the Under 21 World Championships
by our correspondent Franco Vanni
How is the Italian karate movement doing?
“Very good. It’s lush. We have surpassed pre-Covid numbers in terms of members, facilities and companies. Our federation, Fijlkam, includes all major martial arts and is active in all regions.”
In the 1980s, karate was very popular in schools, also thanks to idols such as Chuck Norris and cult films such as the Karate Kid. How do kids approach discipline today?
“The Netflix series Kobra Kai, a spin-off of Karate Kid, can have a small role and we are happy about it. Anything that helps karate become known is welcome. But parents are the real driving force of the movement. 60 percent of our practitioners are minors, even if you can continue training until you are one hundred years old.”
What does karate teach young people?
“Respect. For the opponent, first of all. Every meeting begins and ends with a greeting. And for the rules.”
What should a teacher do, and not do?
“It must teach students to live together and collaborate with their gym mates. The more you work when sparring for a partner, the more you grow as a group. What must be avoided, however, is excessive rigidity, which is not appreciated today. The concept of martial arts has changed over time. Being rigid is right, being immobile is not.”
A wish and a recommendation to the girls and boys who will compete in the world championship?
“As president of the world athletes commission, I tell them to live in the moment. They are aged 14 to 21, they have a lot to discover, even outside of meetings. It’s like an Erasmus, to get to know different people and cultures. Everything doesn’t end on the tatami.”
No plastic, right?
“For us it is very important. It will be the first totally plastic-free event promoted by our federation. We have banned small bottles. And even the tatami were made with a recyclable material.”
Tradition and technology. Automatic clickers will be used to score points instead of flags. What changes?
“We look ahead, it’s inevitable. The four referees each have a joystick in their hands, the clicker, with which they can assign 1 to 3 points for each hit, based on its importance.”
How will it be possible to follow the races from home?
“We will have live streaming for all the tatami, in full HD. Just connect to the Fijlkam website to see everything, even if you are far from Veneto”.
She has a special bond with Jesolo.
I grew up on the sand of the beach. The fact that the Youth World Cup is taking place right there is a dream come true for me. I thank the Municipality, the Veneto Region and the Ministry of Sport and Youth, without which organizing the World Cup would not have been possible”.
Busà and Busato’s generation is over thirty years old. Who are the promises of karate today?
“We have 1,500 clubs and 60,000 members, including girls and boys. For both the feminine and the masculine, the turnover is continuous. We won the European senior team championships, and in the senior group there were three athletes under 23 years old. These are beautiful signs.”
Children, in gyms where combat sports are learned, are increasingly fascinated by mixed martial arts. Natural evolution or negative drift?
“It’s a very spectacular but brutal discipline, which I honestly don’t like, but it’s a personal thing. In mixed martial arts, safeguarding the health of athletes depends greatly on the quality of refereeing. A problem we don’t have. In karate you go to work without black eyes. Our regulations make this sport one of the least traumatic ever, even less than five-a-side football and tennis, for example.”
At the last Olympics, karate was excluded.
“It wasn’t included, let’s put it that way. The committee of the organizing country always has the power to propose additional sports to those always admitted. In Tokyo obviously karate was added, in Paris it wasn’t. The French preferred other disciplines that guaranteed greater commercial and image returns. A legitimate choice, but a sad one.”
What are the chances of seeing karate at the Games again?
“The horizon is Brisbane 2032. We are working to be there and we are very confident that this will happen. But the goal is more ambitious: to permanently include karate among the Olympic sports. He deserves it.”
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