W.A.K.O. World Championships 1979

W.A.K.O. World Championships 1979 were the second ever world kickboxing championships hosted by W.A.K.O., organized by American Mike Anderson. They were open to amateur men only from across the world, with two styles of kickboxing - Full-Contact and Semi-Contact - on offer. This was the championships where the (now) world famous martial artist turned actor Jean-Claude Van Damme was supposed to have competed – although reports on the event and from participating fighters give no confirmation of Van Damme ever participating.[1] By the end of the championships West Germany was the strongest nation, Italy were second, Great Britain third. The event was held at the Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, Florida, USA between November 3 and 4 in 1979.[2]

W.A.K.O. World Championships 1979
The poster for W.A.K.O. World Championships 1979.
Information
PromotionW.A.K.O.
DateNovember 3 (Start)
November 4, 1979 (End)
VenueHillsborough Community College
City Tampa, Florida, USA
Event chronology
W.A.K.O. European Championships 1979 W.A.K.O. World Championships 1979 W.A.K.O. European Championships 1980

Men's Full-Contact Kickboxing

The Full-Contact category at Tampa had seven weight divisions, ranging from 57 kg/125.4 lbs to over 84 kg/+184.8 lbs, with all bouts fought under Full-Contact rules. More detail on Full-Contact's rules-set can be found at the W.A.K.O. website, although be aware that the rules have changed since 1979.[3] The medal winners of each division are shown below with notable winners being Tony Palmore who won his second gold medal at a W.A.K.O. world championships and reigning W.A.K.O. European champion and future K-1 world champion Branko Cikatić picking up a bronze medal. By the end of the event, West Germany were the strongest nation in Full-Contact, winning two golds and two silvers.[4]

Men's Full-Contact Kickboxing Medals Table
Event Gold Silver Bronze
-57 kg Howard Brown Michael Kuhr Jesus Duran
Max Mankowitz
-63 kg Ali Pehlivan Godfrey Butler Jonny Mirer
Jimmy Barletta
-69 kg Ferdinand Mack Javier Reyes Sandry Ravessoud
Walter Parlovic
-74 kg Franz Haller Harold Roth Alfred Tommey
Branko Cikatić
-79 kg Jean-Marc Tonus Dieter Herdel Benny Hedlund
F. Okkonowiak
-84 kg Flavio Galessi Branko Zgaljardic Juan Ponce
Gary Sproule
+84 kg Tony Palmore Harold Ehmann Mladen Carevic

Men's Semi-Contact Kickboxing

Semi-Contact returned to the 1979 world championships, having been absent from the 1978 world championships. Semi-Contact differed from Full-Contact in that fights were won by using skill, speed and technique to score points rather than by excessive force - more detail on Semi-Contact rules can be found at the official W.A.K.O. website, although be aware that the rules will have changed since 1979.[5] Like Full-Contact there were seven weight divisions ranging from 57 kg/125.4 lbs to over 84 kg/+184.8 lbs. The medal winners of each division are shown below with West Germany being the top nation in Semi-Contact by the championships end.[6]

Men's Semi-Contact Kickboxing Medals Table
Event Gold Silver Bronze
-57 kg Alessandro Ortelli Sarhan Salman F. Infantone
-63 kg Andreas Lindemann Jim Hakkens Thomas Volken
-69 kg Andreas Brannasch Patrick Teugels Goyvaerts
-74 kg Hans-Peter Weinhold Durovic Homero De Moya
-79 kg James Cisco Ivan Wray Flavio Galessi
-84 kg Harald Edel Walter Meneghini Streicher
+84 kg Norman McKenzie Urich Falk Anne Delis

Overall Medals Standing (Top 5)
Ranking Country Gold Silver Bronze
1 West Germany 5 3 0
2 Italy 3 1 1
3 Great Britain 2 2 0
4 USA 2 1 1
5 Switzerland 1 1 5

See also

References
  1. "First WAKO World Championships in 1978 and 1979 (Jean-Claude Van Damme's enigma)". karate-in-english-lewis-wallace.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2011-03-30.
  2. "2nd WAKO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS" (PDF). www.wakoweb.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2011-03-31.
  3. "WAKO Full contact Rules" (PDF). www.wakoweb.com. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
  4. "2nd WAKO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (Men's Full-Contact)" (PDF). www.wakoweb.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2011-03-31.
  5. "Semi-Contact Rules" (PDF). www.wakoweb.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
  6. "2nd WAKO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (Men's Semi-Contact)" (PDF). www.wakoweb.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2011-03-31.
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