Preparations are well under way for the forthcoming WKN World Cup 2009 being held in Malta for the first time ever on 19 September at the Sky Club in Paceville.
The evening, which starts at 6 and concludes at about midnight, will feature K-1, kick-boxing and boxing bouts for title belts in a match between Malta and The World.
Athletes from 14 different countries will be fighting against Maltese athletes who will include some women kick-boxers.
Apart from Malta, the other countries/regions sending their representative are France, Belgium, The Netherlands, The Caribbean, Spain, Italy, Germany, Corsica, Ireland, Catalunya, Switzerland, Cyprus, Northern Ireland, Egypt, Guadeloupe, Poland, Somalia, Turkey, Curacao and St Martin.
Addressing a news conference yesterday morning, Adrian Axisa of Ying Yang Kickboxing, said the organisers were looking forward towards staging this big event on these islands. “We have never had anything like this here. It is going to be a big spectacular show and the crowd will certainly be entertained, not only through the boxing bouts, but also because there will be some entertainment spots as well,” he said.
Axisa said the levels of the athletes coming to Malta are well known because they are frequently seen in action on Eurosport TV programmes. They all form part of the World Kick Boxing Network which, this year, is celebrating the 15th anniversary since its foundation.
He said fights will be staged in different categories, that is, juniors (16 years upwards), ladies (kick-boxing) and adults (main events) where the main bouts will be the last on the programme.
These will see the top three local athletes, that is Terence Cilia, Reuben Azzopardi and Daniel Zahra, in action.
Axisa also revealed that WKN president Stefan Cabrera, who works in collaboration with well known boxing promoter Don King, is pleased that the event is being held in Malta. “We can also reveal that we are planning more fights next March when we hope to bring over some Japanese and Thai boxers to take part,” he said.
Another member of the organising team, Noel Mercieca, said Maltese kick-boxing will be making history on 19 September.
He explained that the main difference between K-1 and kick-boxing was the fact that while K-1 was unprotected (only gloves are allowed), kick-boxing is protected.
He said the popularity of the sport was on the increase even locally and they were expecting the event to be broadcast internationally, probably by Eurosport later on this year.
The athletes representing Malta will be the following:
Juniors
Kick-boxing: Keith Mills, Kersten Borg.
Women
Kick-boxing: Ruth Tanti, Lucienne Desira
Men
Kick-boxing: Steve Martin, Matthew Lagana, Stephen Cassar, Jonathan Curmi, Charles Buttigieg, Darren Borg.
Boxing
Men: Ludwig Muscat
K-1
Men: Terence Cilia, Reuben Azzopardi, Daniel Zahra.
The judges will be Wolfgang Raach of Germany, Pedro Fernandez of Spain and Mario Saliba (Malta) – they all reside in Malta. The international chief referee will be Jerome Loisel.
The organisers thanked their sponsors and helpers who include Dimos Melifronides of Bling Promotions, Tao Natural Health Centre, Ying Yang Boxing Club, Untours, Right Deal, Dual Zone, Britannia, Ir-Rokna (which is offering the accommodation of the athletes), Sailor Arms and the World Kickboxing Network.
The competition is being organised by representatives of the WKN (World Kickboxing Network) event in Malta, that is, Adrian Axisa, TAO Natural Health Centre of Bugibba, 9925 6363, Dimos of Bling Promotions (7900 7618), and Noel Mercieca of the YingYang Kickboxing Club (7920 8283). One should contact the above promoters for any further information regarding Martial Arts and the upcoming event.