Morocco’s Nisrine Brouk secured her first-ever gold medal on the Karate 1 Premier League circuit this Sunday, January 25, 2026, marking a historic breakthrough at the season opener in Istanbul, Turkey.
Competing in the women’s -68 kg kumite category, Brouk delivered a commanding performance to defeat Egypt’s Hadir Hendy with a 4–2 victory. The win follows a string of consistent performances from the Moroccan athlete, who had previously reached two Premier League finals only to settle for silver.
While Brouk celebrated her individual milestone, the Egyptian delegation emerged as the overall dominant force of the tournament, topping the medal standings with six total medals. Key highlights for Egypt included world champion Abdalla Abdelaziz, who reaffirmed his supremacy in the -75 kg category by defeating Turkey’s Omer Faruk Yurur to claim his fourth consecutive gold. Additionally, Egypt’s Omar Osman secured a title in the -84 kg category after a tactical 1–0 win over teammate Youssef Badawy.
The Istanbul stage also featured several high-profile title defenses. In the technical Kata events, Mo Sheung Grace Lau of Hong Kong and Japan’s Kakeru Nishiyama maintained their global dominance, while Sweden’s Agnes Nyman made headlines by winning her country’s first-ever senior Premier League gold in her debut tournament. Local fans also had reason to cheer as Turkey’s Eray Samdan captured gold in the -60 kg category on home soil before emotionally announcing his retirement from international competition.
With the 2026 season officially underway, the global karate elite will now turn their attention to the next stop of the circuit, scheduled to take place in Rome, Italy, from March 13 to 15.
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