Some 3,600 athletes from more than 100 countries will be present starting tomorrow, July 7, at the XI World Games in Birmingham, United States, which will bring together leading athletes in 36 disciplines. The five-time world karate champion and Bancamiga ambassador, the international Antonio Díaz, will be one of them.

“I am very excited to be at the event and to compete once again. This is an unexpected gift that life gives me, to do what I like. The event takes place on a university campus and the students have received me with great affection. There is a positive energy in the environment,” he said.

He recalled that although he was always in the world ranking, the possibility of being in Birmingham comes after the representative of Turkey had problems with his visa.

When the organization contacted him a week ago, he was given 8 hours to make a decision. He ordered only two. He knew that he was not training at the level that a competition like this demands, but he was also aware that it was a “great gift” and that now he could enjoy the experience differently.

Participating in this event has been part of his career. At the VI World Games, in Akita (Japan, 2001) he won the bronze medal. Four years later he achieved gold in Deisburg, Germany. At the VIII World Games in Kaohsiung (Chinese Taipei, 2009) he won bronze, while in Cali (Colombia, 2013) he won gold. At the X World Games (Wrocław, Poland, 2017) he won the bronze medal.

The prominent athlete and Bancamiga ambassador explained that the Birmingham World Games have the support of the International Olympic Committee

For Díaz, it is an honor to be present at the eleventh edition of The World Games, the first to be held in the United States since 1981, because once again it allows him to show the world the national flag and continue promoting kata in the world, which begins this Friday morning with women and men qualifying round.

Antonio Díaz expressed his satisfaction that Bancamiga is accompanying him in this experience and being its ambassador, because “both of us are working for Venezuela and to ensure that with each passing day we have better citizens. That’s why we make a great team.”

Antonio Díaz, Olympic diploma at the Tokyo 2020 Games, has been one of the greats in history. At the Karate World Championships he won two gold medals in Belgrade 2010 and Paris 2012, one silver medal in 2008 and five bronze medals in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2014 and 2016. No one has won as many medals as he has. He holds the Guinness Record as the male karate fighter with the most gold in individual competitions.

The Birmingham World Games is an international multi-sport event supported by the International Olympic Committee, bringing together the fastest growing sports in the world and running until July 17.

With information from Bancamiga

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