National Champion, Ujunwa Nwankwo, has retained her title at the just concluded Zainab Saleh Female International Karate Championships in Lagos.
The Anambra Karateka who represented All Star Martial Arts defeated Felicia Fidelis of Delta state in the Senior Kumite -68kg final, won gold in the Team Kumite as well as Team Kata on Saturday.
Nwankwo is currently ranked number one in the country and will represent Nigeria at the 24th World Karate Federation (WKF) World Cup in Madrid, Spain.
Nwankwo said she is happy to have retained her title adding that there was no threat in her weight class this year.
“I am very happy about everything. I was able to retain it because I cultivated the indomitable and perseverance spirit. In this particular competition I did not have any serious challenge or tough fight in my weight” she added.
“My next target is doing exceedingly well at the forthcoming World Karate Championships. I used this tournament to prepare myself and correct some things. I will go back to training and not relent on my efforts” Nwankwo said.
Team Anambra Karate fielded a total of 12 female athletes consisting of 4 senior, 3 junior and 5 Cadet.
The team won 5 gold and 2 silver in the cadet; 1 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze in the juniors; winning 3 gold and 3 bronze medals in the senior category.
Ujunwa Nwankwo led Anambra state to Zainab Saleh International Female Karate Competition in Lagos.
Image credit: Adebola Adenusi