The World Association of Kickboxing Organizations is an international organization of kickboxing. The governing body of amateur kickboxing certified by WAKO is created to develop support and govern at an amateur level In addition to holding world championship events, WAKO sanctions the champions of kickboxing. WAKO is the only organisation worldwide that is recognised by the GAISF and the IOC.
Ivan Strugar is a Montenegrin kickboxer. He is a winner of numerous trophies and accolades both in amateur and professional competition, and is one of the most popular sportsmen in Montenegro. He currently fights in W.A.K.O Pro association, out of Ariston gym in Podgorica. He won his last match in Podgorica. He fought Beloni third time in his career, and lost the fight by third-round knockout.
Eduard Tofig oglu Mamedov is an Azerbaijani professional kickboxer, nicknamed "White Wolf". 26-time world champion, 7-time European champion, 7-time World Cup winner, 15-time champion of Azerbaijan, champion of Asia and Eurasia, world champion among professionals, holder of the WAKO intercontinental belt among professionals, holder of the world belt among professionals in versions of IKBO, Honored Master of Sports, Honored Trainer. Honorary Worker of Physical Culture and Sports of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Azerbaijan Kickboxing Federation, Assistant to the Head Coach of the National Team, Chief Inspector of the Sports Society "DINAMO" of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan. Lieutenant Colonel.
W.A.K.O. World Championships 2007 in Belgrade were the joint 16th edition of the W.A.K.O. world championships - the second event would be held later that year in Coimbra, Portugal. They were for amateur male and female kickboxers and covered the following categories; K-1, Low-Kick and Light-Contact. Weight classes for men ranged from light bantamweight to super heavyweight, while the women's ranged from featherweight to super heavyweight. More information on the categories, weight classes and rules is provided in the various sections below. In total there were 1085 athletes at the championships, representing sixty countries including China, fighting in 49 tournaments. The Belgrade championships were held at the Pionir Hall in Belgrade, Serbia from Monday, September 24 to Monday, October 1, 2007.
W.A.K.O. World Championships 2007 in Coimbra were the joint 16th edition of the W.A.K.O. world championships and was the second event. The championships were for amateur male and female kickboxers and martial artists, covering the following categories; Full-Contact, Semi-Contact, Musical Forms and Aero Kickboxing. In the contact kickboxing categories, weight classes ranged from light bantamweight to super heavyweight. The Musical Forms and Aero Kickboxing categories did not have weight classes but had different forms. More information on the categories, weight classes and rules is provided in the various sections below. In total there were around 600 competitors at the event, representing fifty countries from five continents, competing in forty-three competitions. The Coimbra championships were held at the Pavilhão Multiusos de Coimbra in Coimbra, Portugal from Monday, November 26 to Sunday, December 2, 2007.
W.A.K.O. European Championships 1988 were the ninth European kickboxing championships hosted by the W.A.K.O. organization arranged by W.A.K.O. president Ennio Falsoni. The event was open to amateur men and women based in Europe only, with two categories on offer; Semi-Contact and Light-Contact, with Light-Contact being introduced for the first time ever at a W.A.K.O. event. As decided by WAKO's world congress in Munich 1987, international championship are to be split up into two events and locations to accommodate fighters for newly added Light-Contact and later Low-Kick. Therefore, European championships for Full-Contact kickboxing and Forms took place at a separate event in Trogir, Yugoslavia. Each country was allowed one competitor per weight class per category. By the end of the event, hosts Italy were the top nation across all categories, with Great Britain second and regular European leaders West Germany in the third. It was held at the Palasport Taliercio in Mestre, Italy in 1988.
W.A.K.O. European Championships 1996 were the thirteenth European kickboxing championships hosted by the W.A.K.O. organization arranged by the Serbia and Montenegro kickboxing president Borislav Pelević. The event was the first ever to be held in Serbia and Montenegro and welcomed the country back into the international community after the devastation of the Bosnian War. It was open to amateur men and women representing thirty-seven countries in Europe - more detail on the participating nations is provided in the relevant section below.
W.A.K.O. European Championships 2000 in Jesolo were the joint fifteen European kickboxing championships hosted by the W.A.K.O. organization and the sixth championships to be held in Italy. The event was open to amateur men and women from across Europe and there were three styles on offer; Low-Kick, Light-Contact and Semi-Contact. By the end of the championships the most successful nation was the hosts Italy, followed by Hungary in second and Kyrgyzstan in third. The event was held over five days at the Palasport Cornaro in Jesolo, Italy starting on Wednesday, 18 October and ending on Sunday, 22 October 2000.
W.A.K.O. World Championships 1999 were the joint twelfth world kickboxing championships hosted by the W.A.K.O. organization. It was the fifth championships to be held in Italy and was open to amateur men and women from fifty countries across the world.
W.A.K.O. World Championships 2001 were the joint thirteenth world kickboxing championships hosted by the W.A.K.O. organization. It was the second championships to be held in Serbia and Montenegro and was open to amateur men and women across the world.
W.A.K.O. European Championships 2002 in Jesolo was the sixteenth European championships to be held by the W.A.K.O.. It was the second championship to be held in Jesolo and the seventh to be held in Italy. W.A.K.O. had originally hoped to have a joint event that year like they had with the last world championships, with an event in Greece in October and another in Hungary in November, but due to the difficulties involved they scrapped the idea and resorted to Jesolo which had held a successful event two years previously.
W.A.K.O. World Championships 2003 in Paris were the joint fourteenth world championships held by the W.A.K.O. and the first ever to be held in France. The other (joint) world championships were to be held in November of the same year in Yalta, Ukraine. The event was open to amateur men and women with approximately 780 athletes from 63 countries across the world taking part.
W.A.K.O. European Championships 2004 in Budva were the joint seventeenth European championships and were the fourth W.A.K.O. championships to be held in Serbia and Montenegro/Yugoslavia. The event was open to around 300 amateur men and women from 26 nations from across Europe.
The men's heavyweight Low-Kick division at the W.A.K.O. European Championships 2004 in Budva was the second heaviest of the male Low-Kick tournaments and was one of the smallest involving only three fighters. Each of the matches was three rounds of two minutes each and were fought under Low-Kick kickboxing rules.
W.A.K.O. World Championships 2005 in Agadir were the joint fifteenth world championships held by the W.A.K.O. organization and the first ever to be held in Morocco and the continent of Africa - with the other event to be held later that year in Szeged, Hungary. The championships were open to amateur men and women from across the world, with about roughly 48 countries providing around 350 athletes, who all attended despite initial fears about potential terrorist attacks.
W.A.K.O. World Championships 2005 in Szeged were the joint fifteenth world championships held by the W.A.K.O. organization and the third ever to be held in Hungary - with the other event having been held a couple of months earlier in Agadir, Morocco. The championships in Szeged were open to amateur men and women from across the world with around 720 athletes from 48 countries across five continents taking part.
W.A.K.O. European Championships 2006 in Skopje were the joint eighteenth European kickboxing championships held by the W.A.K.O. organization. It was the first event to be held in the country of Republic of Macedonia and was organized by the nation's kickboxing president Ljupčo Nedelkovski, involving (mainly) amateur men and women from 31 countries across Europe.
Indian Association of Kickboxing Organisations (IAKO) is the national federation of kickboxing in India. IAKO was formed in 1993 to control and promote kickboxing activities throughout the country. IAKO promotes amateur kickboxing and professional kickboxing in all the states, union territories and special armed forces across the country.
Astemir Borsov is a Russian kickboxer. He is the former Glory of Heroes Junior Bantamweight champion and the current WAKO World K1 Featherweight champion. He is currently signed with ONE Championship.
