NEWS
RELEASE
2012 WKA North American Combat Sports
Championships
U – Turn Sports
Complex, Richmond, Virginia
March
31 and April 1, 2012
2012
WKA North American Combat Sports Championships were,
in a word, stunning. With more than 400 fighters and
approximately 100 grapplers from more than 116 gyms
from 20 states as well as Canada, the WKA tournament
is showing its usual trend of year-to-year growth. In
addition to growing in size every year, the WKA has
striven to grow in terms of competitors’ needs as
well. The addition of K-1 for adult males as well as
the overwhelmingly popular Full Rules Muay Thai (in
addition to the past disciplines of Thaiboxing, MMA,
and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu/No Gi Submission Grappling) is
a prime example of this. With no limits on division
sizes, competitors also had unlimited opportunity to
grow their own experience by virtue of multiple bouts.
WKA staff worked hard into the night Friday to ensure
that everyone was bracketed
properly and that nearly all competitors had at least
one match. Competitors were bracketed into their
proper weight class so that even if they did not make
the weight they were aiming for, no one was turned
away. Despite the number of competitors and the size
of the brackets, the flow of the tournament as well as
the use of three rings and a cage made for a smooth
running competition which finished up surprisingly
early both Saturday and Sunday. Fighters Inc., the
tournament’s equipment sponsor, also helped with the
smooth running of the competition by its generous
providing of the gear for the tournament.
WKA officials came from all over the country to
promote the safety, fairness, and competitiveness of
the Championships. A full medical crew, coming from
CJW Sports Medicine and consisting of three doctors,
several athletic trainers and physical therapists, and
an emergency transport squad, ensured that fighters
were well taken care of. No major injuries came out of
the tournament, quite a feat for an event with so many
matches.
This
event is the pre-qualifier for the US National Team,
which will go on to compete in the WKA World
Championships later this year in Orlando, Florida.
Qualifiers get the chance of a lifetime to compete
against the best amateur fighters from around the
world at the WKA Worlds. Past US Team members have
thoroughly enjoyed the experience and will never
forget the great opportunity and the uniqueness of
such a large-scale event.
A special thanks to Fighters Inc. and to all the
sponsors—Namman Muay, CJW Sports Medicine, Title MMA,
L-1 Boxing, Chapes-JPL, I Like to Save, Battleware
Technology—who made the 2012 WKA North American Combat
Sports Championships the most successful event of its
kind to date.
