2024 Karate National Championships & Team Trials

Cajundome
444 Cajundome Boulevard
Lafayette, LA 70506

USA Karate Nationals Hotel Information - Team Travel Source

We suggest that flying into Baton Rouge in addition to Lafayette.  Most major airlines have multiple daily flights to BTR.

We want to take a moment and make sure the athletes and coaches are aware that for Elite Categories per the NKF rules of competition, the WKF equipment requirements will be enforced at the National Championships and Jr. Team Trials. This includes the Elite 12-13 (U14/Youth) categories with external body protection and WKF facemask and helmet. No exceptions will be made and athletes are encouraged to plan ahead and arrive with the required equipment.

Please refer to this WKF link for equipment requirements HERE.

For NON-Elite categories, please refer to the USA NKF Rules HERE.

Per the listed rules of competition mentioned above, for all NON-Elite categories under 14, a solid white headgear must be worn in kumite. USA Karate will not provide equipment at the tatami and athletes are encouraged to come prepared with all required equipment.

Every year, USA Karate celebrates its top athletes, coaches, volunteers, and officials. This year, we're adding two new awards to the lineup: the Golden Gi and the Platinum Dojo award.

The Golden Gi isn't just any award—it's all about recognizing the club with the most gold medals. The Platinum Dojo award goes to the club with the highest participation at Nationals. How do you snag one of these shiny accolades? Check out our criteria below.

Get ready to bring your A-game to the National Championships, and let's see who'll be taking home the Golden Gi!

Club Awards
Golden Gi

Criteria:

• Must be a registered USA Karate club
• Highest overall gold medal count, regardless of categories

Platinum Dojo

Criteria:

• Must be a registered USA Karate club
• Highest number of registrations from a club

Athlete Awards

Sr. Male Athlete of the Year

Sr. Female Athlete of the Year

Jr. Male Athlete of the Year

Jr. Female Athlete of the Year

Criteria:

• Based on WKF ranking one month prior to the National Championships

Coaches Awards

Coach of the Year

Criteria

• USA National Coach
• Has made significant contributions to the National Teams and National Coaching Staff
• Actively participated in the success of US Team athletes
• Led or actively participated in USA Karate training or regional camps

Developmental Coach of the Year

Criteria

• Coached at all Signature Events in the past year
• History of coaching at USA Karate local and national tournaments
• Actively and positively supports USA Karate with their participation and the participation of their athletes
• Produces athletes that consistently make the podium domestically at Signature Events regardless of category.

Referee Awards

Referee of the Year

• Criteria
• International licensed referee (PKF, WKF)
• Currently participates in international PKF and WKF events
• Currently participates in USA-NKF Signature Events
• Serves as a Mentor to help build up other referees pursuing higher licenses.
• Positively contributes ideas to increase operations at Signature Events
• Is a positive example to other referees of the quality of USA Referee Program

National Referee of the Year

Criteria

• USA-NKF National licensed referee
• Currently participates in USA-NKF Signature Events
• Works to continually seek improvement and guidance from other referees.
• Provides support through athlete and volunteer participation for USA-NKF events.
• Represents the USA Referee program well.

Volunteer Awards

Volunteer of the Year

Criteria

• Repeated volunteer service to USA Karate
• Presents a positive image of USA Karate to the public
• Demonstrates the giving spirit of volunteerism by selflessly donating time and effort to USA Karate events and goals
• Contributes a positive attitude and behavior toward fellow volunteers, referees, coaches, fans and athletes.

*All award recipients must be members of USA Karate

This rule does NOT apply to athletes participating in the event.  Additionally, no outside food or drinks are allowed, with the exception of athletes bringing in sports drinks, protein bars, etc.

The birthday cut offs for the 2024 Jr. Team Trials are:
Jr. PKF - August 27, 2024
Jr. World Championships - October 7, 2024

The athlete must be the age they are trying out for by those dates. For example, if a 15-year-old turns 16 after Nationals, but before Aug 27, 2024, they are eligible to compete in 16-17 year old (Junior Elite) category at the National Championships.

If an athlete has a birthday between the Jr. PKF Championships and the Jr. World Championships they are eligible to compete in both categories and try out for both events.  For example, if an athlete is 15 at Nationals and turns 16 on October 6, 2024, they can compete in 14-15 (Cadet Elite) and 16-17 (Junior Elite) categories at Nationals so that they have opportunity to win a spot for both the PKF Team and the World Championships Team. 

If you have any questions, please reach out to our National Office at natoffice@usankf.org.

We're excited to announce that USA Karate is hosting a special qualifier event on Sunday, July 14th, at the Nationals! This is the qualifier to the Jr. Pan American Games Qualifier in Sao Paulo, Brazil, which takes place the day before the Jr. Pan American Championships on August 28, 2024.

This event is open to our Elite Kumite Athletes born between January 1, 2005, and December 31, 2007. The Jr. Pan American Games will not include Kata. Please note that registration for the qualifier is separate from the National Championships. You can register through a separate link at www.tournamentinabox.com, and for your convenience, onsite registration will be available until 6 PM on Friday, July 12, 2024, without any late fee.

For all the details and to access the complete announcement, please click HERE.

We are pleased to announce that USA Karate, in collaboration with the Athlete Advisory Committee, has expanded the Senior Team Selection Pool. Athletes who achieve a medal in the Senior Elite Kumite categories at the 2024 National Championships will now be considered for inclusion in the Senior Team Kumite categories for the 2024 Karate World Cup (formerly the Team World Championships).

To further expand the selection pool for the 2024 Karate World Cup, USA Karate will introduce an additional competition for the Senior Team Kumite selection. Previously, eligibility was limited to athletes who qualified and participated in the 2024 Senior Team Trials held in January 2024. The revised process will now also consider athletes who secure a top-four placement in the Senior Elite Kumite categories at the 2024 National Championships, scheduled for July 11-14 in Lafayette, Louisiana. You can read the Preliminary Notice regarding the Athlete Selection Procedures HERE.

Dear Coaches and Referees:

Thanks to President Elisa Au for giving the WKF Rules and Ranking Commission the opportunity to conduct a live test under the competition under the 2024 USANKF Nationals in Lafayette.

The test is simply to during the last 15 seconds (ato shibaraku) to stop the clock between each time the referee calls WAKARETE until the referee calls TSUZUKETE. There is no change in how the Referee conducts the bout. The only difference from the current rules is that the timekeeper will on his/her own initiative stop the time on WAKARETE and start it again on TSUZUKETE, and then only during the last 15 seconds of the bout.

The test will be carried out in the senior elite open division only.

The purpose of the test is to try a remedy against instances where a competitor with a lead purposely wastes time by being slow in following the instructions during the last phase of the bout.

I will be very interested to learn your experience with the test regardless if you are an official, coach or athlete.

Thanks and regards,

Gunnar Nordahl, Chairman
WKF RULES AND RANKING COMMISSION

Sunday, July 14 at 2 pm at the Cajundome

This meeting is for all Junior Team (1-2 seeds) members to receive important information about the Junior Pan American Championships/Junior Pam Am Games Qualifier in Sao Paolo, Brazil. At this meeting 1-2 seed team members will also receive their team track suits, t-shirts, patches, and get their headshots taken. Info will also be available about the important Q3 prep camp in Kansas City, MO August 2-4. This meeting will take place at the Cajundome where Nationals is taking place and will be led by Director of Sport Brody Burns. The time is 2 pm (originally 12 but changed to accommodate the qualifier rounds).

USA Karate is monitoring Hurricane Beryl as it moves towards the Gulf of Mexico, and of course our thoughts are with all those already affected in the Caribbean.

We are in touch with the National Weather Service and at this time it does not appear that Beryl will directly impact our National Championships & Team Trials in Lafayette, LA.

However, travel may be impacted throughout the Gulf region, and we encourage everyone to closely monitor their travel plans as our event approaches.

Safety will remain our top priority and we will communicate any necessary updates in the days ahead.