Kickboxing Excellence on Display at the 4th WAKO India Open International Tournament! The 4th WAKO India Open International Kickboxing Tournament kicked off with a spectacular opening ceremony at the K.D. Jadhav Indoor Stadium, Indira Gandhi Sports Complex, Delhi. The event was graced by WAKO President Mr. Roy Baker (Ireland), Mr. Romeo Desa (Chairman, Technical Committee - WAKO, Croatia), Dr. Rajeev Tyagi (Pro Chancellor, Shri Venkateswara University, India), and dignitaries from around the globe, highlighting the event’s international prestige. Athletes from diverse nations gathered to showcase their skills, setting the stage for an electrifying competition that celebrates the true spirit of kickboxing. Stay tuned for exclusive highlights and powerful moments from the tournament—capturing the passion, precision, and power of kickboxing at its best! #WAKOIndiaOpen #KickboxingChampionship #WAKO2025 #OneWAKOOneChampion

Congratulations to Mr. Santosh Agrawal on His Election as President of WAKO India! WAKO proudly extends its heartfelt congratulations to Mr. Santosh Agrawal on his election as President of WAKO India. WAKO President Roy Baker shared his thoughts: "Mr. Agrawal is the right man at the right time to lead WAKO India. His leadership and vision will undoubtedly elevate the sport of kickboxing in India to new heights." We look forward to seeing the positive impact of his presidency on the growth and success of kickboxing in India. #OneWAKO #KickboxingLeadership #WAKOIndia

As decided during the last WAKO Board of directors meeting, it was two new members, countries coming from African continent, approved as members of WAKO:   * Federation Beninoise de Kick-Boxing et Disciplines Associees (FBKB-DA) (BENIN) approved as Full Member Chairman: Mr. Narcisse Justin Soglo
 * Bonaire Kickboxing Federation (BONAIRE) approved as Provisional Member Chairman: Mr. Peter Silberie WAKO President Roy Baker commented: “We are delighted to welcome two new national Federations as WAKO members. This shows continued growth of WAKO on a global scale. We now have 132 recognised members which is a clear indication of the strength of the Sport of Kickboxing in the world today. Welcome Benin and Bonaire to the WAKO family!”

The WAKO Gamechangers had their last module in Lausanne on 6 December. It was a successful event organized in the Olympic House (IOC Headquarter) and the day was packed with a designed module where contributors form WAKO was Zsolt Moradi, Daimi Akin and Espen Lund from WAKO and Maureen Ojong, Gaby Meyland and Jeremy Dodson from IOC. Topics was about inclusion of athletes and coaches, engagements through Olympism 365 and Athlete 365. IOC Executive Board Member, Ivo Ferriani dropped by to inspire the young leaders. Irina Gladkikh and Ella Bounous from the Sport Department welcomed the team in the morning. The Gamechanger team was engaged in breakout sessions and gave WAKO a lot of good advise to focus on. It is all about learn and share. WAKO future are bright.

PAN Hellenic Kickboxing Federation (WAKO Greece) has finished the elections and new President of Pan Hellenic Kickboxing Federation is Mr. Antonios Mavrommatis. WAKO President Roy Baker congratulated him for the new presidential mandate wishing him success not only in his organisation but in International relations committee of WAKO as well, where Mr Mavrommatis is a member.

Breaking news: Mr. Salim KAYICI, WAKO IF and WAKO Europe Vice President and the President of WAKO Mediterranean International Kickboxing Federation, was re-elected as the President of the Turkish Kickboxing Federation for the 4 year’s term by receiving the votes of the majority of the delegates at the General Assembly of the Turkish Kickboxing Federation, held in Ankara on 1st December, 2024. WAKO President Roy Baker commented on his re-election: “I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate WAKO vice president Salim Kayici a successful re-election as a President of the Turkish Federation. Salim has shown great leadership in developing sport of kickboxing in Turkiye making it one of the strongest nations globally for the sport of Kickboxing in a very short period of time. Congratulations to Turkiye Federation, to Salim and his family and the entire Kickboxing community of Turkiye. I really look forward to working alongside Salim in the future, to build and develop a sport of Kickboxing on the global stage.”

Happy International Kickboxing Day! On this special day, we celebrate not only the incredible global sport of kickboxing but also the milestone of receiving full recognition as an Olympic sport on November 30th 2019. This achievement reflects the hard work, dedication, and passion of every national federation, athlete, coach, and supporter in our community. As the President of the World Association of Kickboxing Organisations, I am proud to witness the positive growth and development of our sport. We are committed to upholding the highest standards of governance and transparency, ensuring that our national federations thrive and that our athletes receive the support they deserve. Together, we are building a strong foundation for the future, empowering our athletes and coaches to reach new heights. With your continued support, we look forward to a bright future filled with opportunities, unity, and success in kickboxing on the global stage. Let’s celebrate this special day and our continued journey together and keep the spirit of kickboxing and WAKO alive! 🥊💪 Roy Baker President WAKO #InternationalKickboxingDay #KickboxingOlympics #GrowthAndDevelopment

The president of WAKO Peru and esteemed member of the WAKO Panam Board of Directors, Professor Ruben Lara, proudly carried the Olympic Torch for the Bolivarian Games 2024 in Ayacucho, Peru. This momentous occasion highlights not only WAKO’s growing presence in the Bolivarian Games but also our progress toward integrating kickboxing further into the official Olympic circuit across the continent. It’s a proud milestone for our athletes and affiliates, opening new doors for participation and recognition on the global stage. A heartfelt thank you goes out to Professor Ruben Lara for his tireless efforts in making this possible, as well as to all the leaders of the participating countries who have worked relentlessly to turn this dream into a reality. With each accomplishment, we edge closer to the ultimate goal: seeing kickboxing featured in the Pan American Games 2027. For a united and stronger WAKO Panam community. Together, we are unstoppable.Oss!

Under the patronage of the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) 2026 , the Youth Festival - Festival Dakar En Jeux  showcased kickboxing as part of its vibrant program. This monumental achievement highlights WAKO’s continued strides toward global recognition. Espen Lund , WAKO 1st Vice President, visited Dakar for the second time, meeting key figures such as: Mamadou Diagna Ndiaye , NOC President Ibrahima Wade , YOG General Coordinator Balla Dieye , Sport Director Alongside WAKO Senegal President Yakhya Diop , they attended IOC YOG Coordination meetings, site visits, and exchanged ideas to further integrate kickboxing into Dakar 2026. The Youth Festival also featured a fantastic outdoor K1 showcase , thrilling the public with high-level fights and shining a spotlight on the world’s greatest combat sport. A special thank you to international delegates from South Africa, Italy, Ivory Coast, and Lithuania , who joined us in making history. A huge shoutout to WAKO Gold Sponsor RDX  for providing exceptional equipment and clothing, ensuring the event’s success. 🤝 Let’s continue to elevate kickboxing on the global stage! #rdxsports #onewakoonechampion #wako #kickboxing #youtholympics2026

Breaking News - re-inclusion of Belarus in WAKO activities from January 2025 Dear Members, We are pleased to inform you that following a WAKO Board meeting and interactions with various WAKO Committee, it was approved at the WAKO IF board meeting for the re-inclusion of Belarus in our WAKO activities starting from January 2025. WAKO has meticulously followed international developments regarding the inclusion of Russia and Belarus in sports. After careful consideration, we have decided to adhere to the IOC guidelines, allowing participation for individual neutral athletes, in line with practices adopted by many other sports and combat sports within the Olympic movement. Following a thorough investigation and subsequent meeting with the Belarusian authorities, we have granted access to Belarusian athletes, coaches, and referees under the condition that they comply with the individual neutral athlete principle. The Belarusian federation has signed an agreement outlining these principles and regulations. We acknowledge and deeply appreciate the Belarusian Federation's loyalty to WAKO’s past decisions and their amicable acceptance of our regulations. Key conditions include: - Athletes and support personnel must not be members of any armed forces or actively involved in the military conflict between Russia/Belarus and Ukraine. - Athletes and support personnel must comply with IOC and WAKO regulations, maintaining neutrality and refraining from any activity or communication associated with the national symbols of Belarus or support for the conflict in Ukraine, at any official venue or in the media (including interviews and social media) before, during, and after WAKO competitions. Any violations of the agreement will result in disciplinary investigation and action. Please note, this decision pertains solely to Belarus and does not extend to Russia at this time. Please join me in welcoming the Belarusian federation and its athletes and coaches back to our competitive calendar in 2025. Thank you for your attention and cooperation. Respectfully Yours, Roy Baker WAKO President

The #livetogether program was launched in 2017 by Peace and Sport organization in Zaatari camp, in cooperation with UNHCR, Blumont and International Federations of: Kickboxing , Table Tennis and Teqball ( WAKO , FITEQ, ITTF Foundation), and the support of the Jordan Olympic Committee and the Government of Monaco. Special focus is on promoting gender equality, aiming to provide equal opportunities for girls to participate in sport-based activities and be empowered through sport. Powerful role models and great source of inspiration were Champions for Peace, who were involved in the program, to act as role models for the children and for the refugee coaches. One of them was Zsolt Moradi, 10 x Kickboxing World Champion, visited Zaatari camp multiple times, mentoring the Kickboxing and self- defence coaches. “When mobilizing international kickboxing experts as part of the program, WAKO ensured to arrange joint training seminars for refugees and Jordanian resources. This allowed both communities to benefit from quality trainings” , was highlighted in the special report of the P&S of this sport-based program as a good practice of capacity building.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is pleased to publish new Guidelines for Major Events (Guidelines). The Guidelines support the World Anti-Doping Code (Code) and International Standards to better equip Anti-Doping Organizations (ADOs) when preparing and implementing anti-doping programs in the lead-up to a major event. While Major Event Organizations (MEOs) have specific roles and responsibilities under the Code and International Standards that are referenced in these Guidelines, please note that the Guidelines can also be used by other ADOs and stakeholders for single sport major games, such as a world, continental or regional championships. Building on the experience and best practices implemented at major games, these Guidelines provide clear and practical solutions for preparing and implementing an anti-doping plan in the framework of a major event. Given that developing an efficient plan for a major games requires ADOs to navigate within many anti-doping areas, activities, and requirements, references to the Code and International Standards have been integrated throughout the Guidelines, enabling the document to function as a centralized source for all relevant information. To further support ADOs in the preparation of games, WADA has produced multiple resources, including templates and checklists, many of which are referenced in the first section of the document. Acknowledging that every games faces different challenges, the document is designed to help stakeholders from all Tiers1 navigate through it in the most convenient way and is therefore broken down into five sections: General overview of an anti-doping program during major games Planning the anti-doping program for your major games Pre-Games implementation period Games implementation period Program sustainability WADA will be organizing a webinar to present to stakeholders a more detailed overview of these new Guidelines in the coming months. Should you have any questions or comments regarding the Guidelines for Major Events, we invite you to contact Sport Movement Relations at sportrelations@wada-ama.org . Note :(1) WADA’s Policy for the Application of the International Standard for Code Compliance by Signatories (ISCCS)  also known as the Prioritization Policy , divides Signatories into different Tiers . Save the date 18-19 March 2025 2025 Annual Symposium 1-5 December 2025 2025 World Conference