Delos Santos adds another e-kata victory

James delos Santos, the top-ranked e-karateka in the world, keeps count of his online gold medals: 36 last year and 11 so far this year.

The last of those was more special than the others because his proteges, Fatima A-Isha Lim Hamsain and Christina Karen Colonia, also secured honors along with him. “I’m very proud of Fatima and Karen for bringing home medals as well,” said Delos Santos of his Maharlika Karatedo Kai of the Philippines International students.

Together they competed in the recent second leg of the Budva Winner Adria-Cup. There, he defeated World No. 2 Matias Moreno-Domont of Switzerland, 25.8-24.4, for the men’s seniors title. “Last year, I brought home 36 golds. So to add with the 11, that’s 47 gold medals in total,” said Delos Santos. “This tournament will add even more points to the virtual kata world rankings. I want to be much further away from my competitors.” Hamsain also bagged the gold in the female U-16, beating Swiss Ritz Lila, 24.2-22.3. Colomia settled for the silver after she bowed in the finals to Germany’s Lea Gomolka (24.2-22.1) in the female U-18.

“For me, bringing home the medal for the country is what matters. But I do have sponsors who take care of my tournaments,” he added.

Delos Santos added that he gets additional funds from his earning from Kumu, a streaming app.

“I use my earnings to continue my virtual tournament campaign,” he said. “Right now, I’m still very happy continuing to be a competitive athlete. I’ve also ventured into entertainment.”INQ