Kenya Karate Federation are planning to use the local championships to hone James Mwangi's skills ahead of February's African tournament in Morocco and the Tokyo Olympic Games in July next year.
Inter-club Championship is scheduled for Malindi this weekend while another competition will be staged in Nakuru on November 23 to give the much-improved Mwangi the platform to better his performance going forward.
Mwangi earned an automatic qualification to the Olympic Games by virtue of being the best ranked in the country in his Kata category. KKF secretary-general Gabriel Mutuku said several coaches have been brought on board to help the karateka gain new experience and register all-round improvement.
He said: "Mwangi will have gained a lot by the time he heads to Tokyo. We expect him to win in Malindi even though he faces tough opposition. We will use the local tournaments to enhance his ability to win before he goes to the Olympics. It's non-stop until February when he travels to Morocco."
He said Individual karatekas from Uganda and Rwanda have expressed interest to take part in the event and if they do, Mwangi will benefit a great deal. Mwangi is currently ranked 61st in the world up from his previous 86th place. He started at position 131.
